CHANDIGARH, Nov 2: Khalsa, a docu-drama depicting the life and struggles of Guru Gobind Singh, is all set to go on floor on November 4. In an interview to Newsline, Mangal Dhillon, the man behind it, said, "The muhurat will be held at Akal Takht with an ardas at 7 a.m".Mangal is the writer-producer-researcher-director-commentator all rolled into one. "It is a big project and I am using the best of equipments to project this fascinating part of Sikh history. Either an obsessed man or a big director of international calibre can make such a mammoth documentary and I feel I belong to the first category." "The film will be a collage of paintings, background music, enacting and gurudwaras connected with Guru Gobind Singhji," he adds.Mangal is obsessed with the project to such an extent that he has unearthed all the discrepancies in the history books on Guru Gobind Singh. "A lot of concoctions and distortions can be found in the various history books. You cannot erase the lines from those books but we can counter it with reality". The project is partly financed by the Punjab government but "I have put all my savings into it and if need be I will sell off land." After a brief introduction about the nine gurus, the docu will dwell at length on the lifespan of Guru Gobind Singh.The 14 battles he fought will be shown with the help of paintings and the gurudwaras that came out of incidents during these battles. Arvinder Singh has scored the music for the docu and the shabads are sung by Sukhwinder and Sonu Nigam. Mangal has taken Dhananjay Kulkarni, one of the young names on the circuit, as his cinematographer. His actors are not big names but those with whom people can relate the characters to."Since we cannot show the Gurus, the paintings will be there and the camera will emerge out of the paintings into real shots to go back to the painting. So it will be a new experience for them as it is for me. And this is not for any entertainment for this is a tribute to the Guru and the great martyrs and all their sacrifices that made this race stand apart".Mangal intends to have the premier screening at Anandpur Sahib on April 13, 1999. "I want to send cassettes to all the gurudwaras for simultaneous screening on Baisakhi day. Then the first episode of the same in serial format, in Punjabi, can be aired on Jalandhar Doordarshan and in Hindi on national network from April 13. I had got the assurance from S S Gill before he left the Prasar Bharati but now I will have to approach the new set-up. I will make prints for theatres as well." Mangal, who has kept his acting career on hold (he was to become Akbar in Cinevista's `Noorjehan'), is full of his Khalsa now. "This docu will show everything with logistics as the Gurus wanted, even the concept of gurudwaras which embodies humility and equality, the two main pillars of the religion and the Guru Granth Sahib which is the supreme example of religious tolerance." Mangal has another big project `From Sikhs to Singhs' coming up after this.
