Makarand Deshpande and Shah Rukh Khan in Swades. (Photo: IMDb)
With a lot of films being re-released lately, the producer of Shah Rukh Khan starrer Swades, Ronnie Screwvala, thinks it is the right time to bring the 2004 film back to the big screen. The movie will complete 20 years of release in December this year. In a recent interview, Screwvala called the film an “evergreen story” and a subject that was “ahead of its time”.
In an interview with India Today, Screwvala spoke about the possibilities of the film re-releasing. He said, “It could re-release for sure. I keep telling everyone that it was a film ahead of its time. Therefore, it needs its second time around.”
Claiming Swades represents the spirit and mood of the nation currently, the producer added, “We started our foundation, and after the film, we renamed it Swades Foundation. Shah Rukh Khan is a NASA scientist, and he comes back to rural India and wants to light the bulb, quite literally. Today, younger generations connect to that. You may go abroad to study, but eventually, you want to come back to your country. The film represents the spirit and mood of the nation, and therefore is very relevant.”
While most films have been re-releasing around a movie release anniversary, Ronnie Screwvala believes that the re-releasing of films shouldn’t be looked at as a business model but as a way to influence the youth.
He said, “Today this should not be looked at as a way to fill up empty hall seats. The fact is, evergreen films can come back. ‘Lakshya’ was an inspirational film and many joined the army because of it. That’s very important. America is a superpower because of its soft power. India and cinema should be a much bigger soft power than we are today. That means we have to influence the youth in a very different manner. If some movies do that, I think they should be [re-released].”
Although Swades wasn’t declared a commercial hit, it had opened to rave reviews. The film, which was remade in Tamil as Desam, is considered as a cult classic in Bollywood as well as one of the best films in Shah Rukh Khan’s career.
