Swades@20: Ashutosh Gowariker on casting Shah Rukh Khan as Mohan Bhargav, questioning if India was the ‘best in the world’

On starting his production house Ashutosh Gowariker Films

Gowariker’s journey as a filmmaker took a significant turn when he decided to start his own production house, Ashutosh Gowariker Productions PVT LTD (AGPPL). For him, this move was a natural progression after the success of Lagaan. “After making movies, the obvious next natural step is that you want to start producing and what better time than after Lagaan,” Gowariker explains. “Because you are on a peak, on a high, and you want to optimize on that.”

Gowariker credits Aamir Khan, the star of Lagaan, for giving him the creative freedom to make the film as he had envisioned it. This experience had a lasting impact on Gowariker. “To top that, there was some amount of freedom that I had got which was infectious,” he says. “I got that with Lagaan, from Aamir (Khan). He gave me all the liberty to make the film the way I had imagined it. That stayed in my mind. So, after that I decided that I want to venture into production but first I asked my wife Sunita (Gowariker). If I was going to be a producer, I needed a mind that was going to take care of that aspect of production,” he says. Sunita, who had no prior experience in production, agreed to take on the challenge and AGPPL just flew from there on establishing itself as a reputable production house in the Indian film industry. “That kind of have us confidence of starting Ashutosh Gowariker Productions and here we are, 20 years,” Gowariker reflects.

On 20 years of Swades

As AGPPL celebrates 20 years, it’s hard not to look back at the film that started it all – Swades. Starring Shah Rukh Khan, Swades was a film that left an indelible mark on Indian cinema. The idea for Swades was born out of an episode called Vapasi, in which Gowariker had acted in many years ago, as Mohan Bhargav. “If you go to the entire genesis of Swades, there was an episode that I had done as an actor, many many years ago, which was called Vapasi.

“Somewhere for me playing that part, I played Mohan Bhargav in that, as an actor, that story, the core of it stayed with me. Of course for a film, you needed much more elements, but somehow it stayed. Even during the entire making of Lagaan, that was always there at the back of my mind. After Lagaan, the immediate next thought was of Swades. Through this film I wanted to say much more than one can possibly say in a 20-minute-long episode. I always felt that there was a lot more to the story that can be brought up for a much larger audience.”

Gowariker’s vision for Swades was not just to tell a story but to spark a conversation about nationalism and the state of the country. “At that time, we kept feeling ‘mera Bharat mahan,’ but we are not there yet. It is great to have it as a patriotic feeling but are we there? I feel we are not there, but we have the potential to be there. I gave that thought to Mohan Bhargav and made him actually say it, ‘main nahi manta humara desh duniya ka sabse mahan desh hai…(I don’t believe that our country is the greatest country in the world…)’ With that philosophy I wanted to talk about nationalism and that vehicle became Swades.”

One of my favourite SRK film ❤️#Swades is special because you get to see #SRK’s masterclass in acting for 3+ hours, which is subtle, nuanced and heartfelt! #20YearsOfSwades #ShahRukhKhan #AshutoshGowariker @iamsrk @agppl

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— My Cinema Story (@MyCinemaStory) December 17, 2024

Gowariker doesn’t miss to give credit the talented team that worked on it, including JP Saxena for dialogues, Javed Akhtar for lyrics, and AR Rahman for the music. For Gowariker, Swades was a deeply personal film. “For me, it was a kind of an internalised experience that I wanted the audience to have. There is nothing jingoistic in the film, it’s more felt. Somewhere I wanted everyone to feel that each one of them was going through the same emotion that I was going through and that I was just trying to express it in this way, through Swades.”

Twenty years on, Swades remains a relevant and impactful film. “Thankfully it connected,” Gowariker says. “Today when people say that it’s still relevant, I am not very happy, because things should have changed in our country, in heartland India. But I am happy that it still resonates with people even today.”

 

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On bringing SRK onboard

Gowariker’s collaboration with Shah Rukh Khan in Swades was a highlight of the film’s making. The two had worked together previously as co-actors in the show Circus, and films like Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa, and Chamatkar. “Shah Rukh and I have had a great bond as co-actors,” Gowariker recalls. “Both he and Aamir believed that I had it in me as a director and that I would make a good film someday. So when I went to him with Swades, he was immediately attracted to the role. There was a joy that we’ll be working together with me behind the camera.”

Gowariker notes that SRK was drawn to the film’s themes and message. “Thankfully, at that time, Shah Rukh was also feeling the same emotion that I was feeling, about the state of our country,” he says. “There were a lot of political and sociological thoughts which usually a star is not able to apply in his day to day life because he has to make movies, he has to entertain. So when this became the vehicle, he was very much attracted to it. We had a great time filming.”

For Gowariker, Khan’s portrayal of Mohan Bhargav was a key aspect of the film’s success. “My thing with Shah Rukh was that I wanted to bring in a new persona, in terms of how he is going to portray the part of Mohan Bhargav,” he explains. “That was the only way to create Mohan Bhargav. We needed Mohan Bhargav to be at the forefront and Shah Rukh Khan, the star, to take the back seat. I thought he did it beautifully. He played the part with so much elan and quiet resilience.”

“Shah Rukh has that charm, to reach the masses with this kind of a film, where you can draw in the audiences. Only SRK could have played Mohan Bhargav.”

 

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On Ayan Mukerji paying tribute to Mohan Bhargav in Brahmastra:

Swades’ iconic character, Mohan Bhargav, has taken on a new avatar in Ayan Mukerji’s Brahmastra. Gowariker shares his thoughts on this development. “He is a superhero scientist! (Chuckles). I think it was a very clever integration. Aayan’s (Mukerji) first film was Swades as an assistant director. So there were certain impressions that stayed in his mind, about Mohan Bhargav and it was a very clever brand fit, for both, him and Shah Rukh.”

“Mohan Bhargav, as a superhero… I feel superheroes save the exterior world. For me Mohan Bhargav is someone who is trying to bring out your internal true being. The film is actually trying to go inwards and search inside you and come up with your thoughts and express them. So I find it amazing that today, after all these years the character still connects.”

 

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On re-releasing Swades to celebrate the 20-year milestone

There are plans to re-release Swades in cinema halls, but Gowariker is cautious about the timing. “We will. But not in this month. Sometimes I have a fear that when it released back then, in 2004, it didn’t get the box office reception that I thought it will get. I got a pat on the back and I got people saying that it was much ahead of its time… My fear is what if it releases now and people don’t come to watch it and again people say that it is ahead of its time. How much ahead will this film be?”

On if Swades 2 on cards?

Would he like the idea of Swades being remade? If he was making the film today, how different would be make it? He says, “I would make it shorter. I had to cut out the lullaby, but I would have liked to add that song in the narrative of the film. It is on YouTube but it should have been in the film.”

He concludes by saying that revisiting a film like Swades would be challenging. “I might be not be able to do a Swades now, because it was something that I felt in my heart then. I am concerned with other emotions now, so I’ll probably make a film about those issues. But yeah, it is difficult for a person to revisit a film and say that they are going to make a part two of it. I wouldn’t. No, I couldn’t.” When asked what Mohan Bhargav would be doing today, 20 years down the line, the filmmaker says, “I think he would be in the country. He has already enlightened the people of Charanpur and he has shown them the way how to contribute. So his work there is done. Now he might be travelling village to village, to a town, fixing problems for which people don’t have solutions. I think he would be in heartland of India.”