Films built around family bonds and raw emotion have always held a special place in the hearts of audiences. What is fascinating is that even when the basic story stays the same, every film carves out its own identity, simply because each director brings a different way of putting it on screen. Across a span of 66 years, Hindi and South Indian cinema produced four films that were essentially woven from the same thread of story. Three of them shattered box office records, and one even made it all the way to the Oscars race. These four films were Mother India, Farz Aur Kanoon, Shakti and Jailer.
Mother India: The Film That Laid the Foundation
The chain begins with Mehboob Khan's Mother India, which arrived in theatres on 14 February 1957. It was a completely heroine-driven film, featuring Nargis, Sunil Dutt, Rajendra Kumar and Rajkumar in the lead roles. Sunil Dutt and Rajendra Kumar played the sons of Nargis on screen. Few people know that this timeless classic was actually a remake of the 1940 film Aurat.
The story revolves around Radha, played by Nargis. After the death of her husband, played by Rajkumar, a poverty-stricken Radha struggles to raise her two children, fights every hardship life throws at her, and somehow protects her dignity from the moneylender Sukhilala. All of this was portrayed on screen in a deeply emotional manner.
The climax of the film remains etched in the minds of cinema lovers even today. To protect the honour of her village, Radha shoots her own son Birju. She then breaks down in tears, pulls her son to her chest, and Birju takes his last breath in her arms. Weeping uncontrollably, she cries out, 'Birju mere laal mat jao.' Only a director like Mehboob Khan could have imagined such a bold and emotional scene in that era.
Made on a budget of just 60 lakh, Mother India went on to earn more than 7 crore and proved to be an all time blockbuster. It won the award for the best feature film in Hindi and bagged 5 Filmfare Awards. Most significantly, it became the first Hindi film to be nominated for an Oscar. As fate would have it, the film missed out on the Oscar by just a single vote.
Farz Aur Kanoon: Same Story, Different Ending
The shadow of Mother India's climax could be seen in several films that followed. In the 1980s, the same story resurfaced in a new form in Farz Aur Kanoon, starring Jeetendra, Hema Malini and Rati Agnihotri. The film was released on 6 August 1982 and was directed by K. Raghavendra Rao. It was a remake of a Telugu film. The dialogues were written by Kader Khan, the music was composed by Laxmikant Pyarelal, and the lyrics were penned by Anand Bakshi.
The ending, however, takes a different turn here. In the climax of Farz Aur Kanoon, the father does not shoot his son; instead, the wayward son mends his ways. Jeetendra appeared in a double role and also played the inspector father. Notably, the film was completed in just one and a half months. It had a brisk pace and was a full-fledged masala entertainer. Raj Kiran's performance was widely appreciated, and Farz Aur Kanoon turned out to be a superhit.
Shakti: A Clash of Two Legends
Just two months after Farz Aur Kanoon came Shakti, starring Amitabh Bachchan and Dilip Kumar, which once again repeated the Mother India storyline. Shakti was released on 1 October 1982. Its story was written by the Salim-Javed duo, and it was directed by Ramesh Sippy, the same Ramesh Sippy who had made Sholay.
The film featured powerful performances by Amitabh Bachchan, Rakhee Gulzar, Dilip Kumar, Smita Patil, Kulbhushan Kharbanda and Amrish Puri. Interestingly, Rakhee was playing lead roles in those days, yet she agreed to play the wife of Dilip Kumar. The music was composed by R.D. Burman, and songs like 'Maangi jo dua, wo kubool ho gayi', 'Humne sanam ko khat likha, khat mein likha' and 'Jaane kaise kab kahan ikraar ho gaya' remain popular even today.
Amitabh Bachchan has repeatedly said in his interviews that he has always considered Dilip Kumar his idol, and Shakti was his first film alongside Dilip Kumar. The film failed at the box office, but with time audiences came to understand its depth. One big reason for its struggle was that Jeetendra's Farz Aur Kanoon, with the same story, had arrived just two months earlier, which directly hurt Shakti. This film too had an ending much like Mother India, where Dilip Kumar shoots his son, played by Amitabh Bachchan. Featuring the serious, layered performances of two giants of the century, Dilip Kumar and Amitabh Bachchan, the film later proved to be a school for Hindi cinema. Dilip Kumar also won the Filmfare Award for Best Actor for it.
Jailer: A Modern Take on an Old Story
The newest name on this list is Rajinikanth's film Jailer, which was released on 10 August 2023. It was directed by Nelson, who also wrote the story himself, and was produced by Kalanidhi Maran. Originally a Tamil film, it was also released dubbed in Hindi. It was an action-comedy. The film featured Rajinikanth, Mohanlal, Shiva Rajkumar, Ramya Krishnan, Vinayakan, Tamannaah Bhatia, Jackie Shroff, Vasanth Ravi and Yogi Babu in key roles.
In the film, Rajinikanth plays a retired but extremely tough jailer named Muthuvel Pandian. To save his son Arjun and to take on a gang of idol smugglers, he steps back into the fray. A large part of the story centres on the emotional relationship between a father and his son. Rajinikanth's son is played by Vasanth Ravi, an honest police officer. The moment he is kidnapped, the story takes a sharp twist.
In the beginning, Rajinikanth appears to be a gentle, simple man, but as the story moves forward, his dangerous side gradually unfolds before the audience. The climax of the film is equally stunning, with the son emerging alive. In many ways, the film's ending echoes Mother India, and it would not be wrong to call Jailer a modern version of that very story. Made on a budget of around 240 crore rupees, the film raked in over 600 crore worldwide and proved to be an all time blockbuster.
