I’ll be very honest with you. When I was around 13 or 14 years old, I remember asking my father (the late filmmaker P.L. Santoshi) about Bhagat Singh. That evening, as night fell in Lonavala, my father told me everything he knew about Bhagat Singh’s life. That conversation stayed with me. While working with Govindji (Govind Nihalani), I picked up the habit of reading. In every city I visited, I made sure to buy books. That’s how I familiarized myself with Bhagat Singh’s life. During my early films like Andaz Apna Apna, Ghayal, and Damini, I read A.G. Noorani’s The Trial of Bhagat Singh. Later, while making Pukar, I read books by K.K. Khullar and Kuldip Nayar. I decided I had to make my film on Bhagat Singh after Lajja. I announced the project in 1999 and signed A.R. Rahman for the music and Santosh Sivan for cinematography. Eventually, Santosh couldn’t do the film. I met my screenwriter Anjum Rajabali through Aamir Khan. We had collaborated on China Gate and Pukar. He wrote the script for Bhagat Singh.

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Two-and-a-half years of hard research. When I decided to make the film, I hit a major stumbling block — no one seemed to know much about Bhagat Singh. It was shocking and saddening that such a significant figure was virtually unknown in our times. Even my screenwriter only knew that Bhagat Singh had hurled a bomb in the assembly. But as we pieced together his life, we became increasingly fascinated.

Yes, I’ve heard others say it started after the success of Lagaan and Gadar. When those two period films worked, suddenly everyone wanted to make a film on Bhagat Singh. Many saw him as an "Angry Young Man" figure. But most of those filmmakers had no understanding of Bhagat Singh’s ideology or what he truly stood for.

Initially, I wanted a newcomer for the role. We launched a massive hunt. Every character in the film had to be culturally accurate. Rajguru was played by a Maharashtrian actor, D. Santosh. Chandrashekhar Azad, played by Akhilendra Mishra, was from UP. We even matched the original physiques, faces, body language, and speech patterns. For Bhagat Singh, we just couldn’t find anyone who could convincingly portray the transformation from a fiery youth to a mature revolutionary ready to sacrifice his life. Ajay Devgn was the closest to my vision of Bhagat Singh.

Yes, that brooding intensity. Once we finalized him, Ajay immediately immersed himself in the project. He worked hard to inhabit Bhagat Singh’s mind and body.

Sunny Deol approached me with the idea of making Bhagat Singh and suggested his brother Bobby for the role. I think very highly of Bobby — I directed his debut Barsaat — but I didn’t see in him the same brooding intensity I needed. I was looking for the Zanjeer-era Amitabh Bachchan — someone who could smoulder in silence. Bobby was a bit too flamboyant for what I had in mind. That doesn’t mean he’s less capable. Maybe another director would have visualized Bobby as Bhagat Singh and done full justice to him. He’s a sincere and competent actor.

When Sunny suggested we merge our two Bhagat Singh projects, I told him that if his research matched mine, I’d gladly hand over everything and step aside. But when he insisted on Bobby, I demurred. As a director, I stood by Ajay. There was nothing personal. Sunny has helped me immensely — especially during Ghayal. He stood by me even when Dharamji was unsure about the film. I’ll always be there for Sunny, no matter what. Even now, if he calls me in the middle of the night, I’ll go to him. There are people poisoning his mind against me. But I still consider myself his friend. Maybe our friendship is cursed — kisi ki nazar lag gayi hai. I spent so many hours on his sets, not caring if people called me his chamcha.

You’d have to tell me why it didn’t get its due. I don’t analyze my past films. But you’ll find the same sincerity in Bhagat Singh. Someone asked me what the Unique Selling Point (USP) was, and I said, “There’s nothing mercantile about it.” It’s an emotional treatise on a personality I deeply admire. I wanted my child to grow up and show his children the true portrait of Bhagat Singh.

Very satisfied. People say I made it very quickly, but that was by design. We never cut corners to meet a deadline. It took 138 days to complete the film. My other films took longer. But this one taught me so much. My producer and I knew other directors were also making films on Bhagat Singh, and they moved ahead confidently thinking I wouldn’t finish mine on time. They miscalculated. Bhagat Singh has long been neglected. If cinema can bring him back into public consciousness, then I’ve done my part.

More Pages: The Legend Of Bhagat Singh Box Office Collection , The Legend Of Bhagat Singh Movie Review

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