Chhaayaageet #38 - “I listened to the theme music and it inspired me to join the Army.”
29th January 2020. Three days after India’s Republic Day, the music composer casually picks up the daily newspaper. After flipping a couple of pages, his eyes rest on an article about the Beating Retreat, a ceremony that officially denotes the conclusion of Republic Day activities. Bands of the three wings of the armed forces, the Indian Army, Indian Navy, and Indian Air Force, perform at Raisina Hills in New Delhi, with the President of India in attendance.
The article mentions the list of songs to be performed by the Indian Army band. The first is the customary, Taps. The second is one of his music scores. He is in disbelief.
It has been 16 years since the film’s release. The film had not performed well at the box office. A film writer who had returned to writing scripts after a hiatus of 14 years. A filmmaker making only his second ever movie, on a subject he didn't know much about. But the music had endured. It had gotten embedded in the DNA of the country.
Flashback. Let’s go back to the year 2000, specifically, 26th July 2000. It is the first anniversary of the Indian Army’s victory in the war. The film writer and a few others visit the Indian Army base and lay a wreath at the memorial for the fallen heroes of the war, a solemn moment.
In casual conversation afterwards, one of the Army officers laments the situation. The Indian Army got much high praise after the war. However, it seemed that the Army as a career option for India's educated youth had all but vanished.
Upon hearing this, the writer decides to write a story that would inspire the youth of India.
In most films, songs provide a break from the story. Characters are having fun, then there is a party or something, and there is a song.
But some films are inherently not about music. Typically there is a powerful and dramatic narrative. So it is the writer's skill in how he or she can effectively weave songs into situations. But the songs cannot pause the story. They need to continue the story forward. For song writers, this is relatively easy. They know the points in the story where the song starts and ends, so there is clarity about what they need to write.
For music composers this is a challenge. Now the music of any song has to be an extension of the entire score of the film. And the score of the film has to be equally powerful to enhance the drama of the narrative.
It is a challenging film to make, against the backdrop of war. It is fiction but must be based on facts. The writer and filmmaker research true stories of valor by soldiers in different regiments and weave together a story. Many scenes are shot at the Indian Military Academy campus in Dehradun. The film is released in 2004 to critical acclaim but does not impress at the box office.
It is now 2017, many many years later. The filmmaker is in Dehradun for a concert. He writes to the Indian Military Academy asking permission to visit if it's alright. The IMA hosts him and allows him to tour the campus and see all the places where the film was shot. Afterwards they take him to a large newly built mess, honoring Captain Vikram Batra, posthumously awarded the Param Vir Chakra, India's highest and most prestigious award for valor. About 800 cadets are in attendance. The filmmaker takes questions from them about the making of the film.
The Adjutant Major, who assists the Commanding Officer, says to him, "Sir, I want to show you something." He takes the mic and asks the assembled cadets, "Aap mein se jo bhi is film ko dekh kar Army mein bharti huey hain, haat upar karein." Those of you who joined the Army after watching this film, please raise your hand.
About 70% of the cadets put their hand up.
For an industry obsessed with box office numbers as a benchmark of success, how do you assess this impact? How do you quantify the fact that the message of the film got seeded in everything and reached people, through the script, the performances, through the music? None of those who put the hand up knew the writer's motivation. The music, then, becomes the torch bearer of the idea after the film is gone from theaters.
Cadets come up to the filmmaker and say, "I listened to the theme music and it inspired me to join the Army."
Javed Akhtar wrote the script of Lakshya. His last screenplay was Main Azad Hoon (1989). Lakshya was Farhan Akhtar's second movie after the stupendous success of Dil Chahta Hai (2001).
Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy composed the music of Lakshya. Shankar Mahadevan credits Ehsaan Noorani for composing the theme score of the movie.
Many young Indian men were so captivated by the theme score. That is the power of music. It didn't matter that it was not a #1 song, or that the film was not a box office success.
General Vij, Chief of Staff of the Indian Army, called the team of Lakshya after a year. They were given a trophy. The Army brass and many people in the armed forces felt that the film accurately depicted the Army way of life, and showed it in its entirety. The Army band included the theme of Lakshya in its performance as part of Beating Retreat.
Every year, 26th July is remembered and honored as Kargil Vijay Diwas, in honor of Kargil's War Heroes. Salute.
Music: Shankar Ehsaan Loy
Writer: Javed Akhtar
Director: Farhan Akhtar
Film: Lakshya (2004)