Plot

The film Mangal Pandey is partially based on the narrative of an Indian soldier. Mangal Pandey. in the ground forces of the British East India Company who is said to hold initiated the Indian motion for independency from British regulation with what is known as the Sepoy Mutiny of 1957. The British called their Indian soldiers ‘sepoys’ . The film is nevertheless non a historical history by any agencies. and is embellished by many fictional characters and incidents to do it more attractive to viewing audiences.

At the beginning. the film portrays Mangal Pandey as a dedicated soldier in service of the British Empire. In the Afghan War. he saves the life of his British dominating officer Captain William Gordon. and they become good friends irrespective of their rank and race.

Thingss nevertheless go incorrect really shortly. Mangal Pandey’s faith. he is a Brahmin. forbids him to eat beef. He is hence indignant when he learns that the covering of the new cartridge introduced by the British. which he has to seize with teeth through to lade it in the gun. is made of cow fat. He is farther disillusioned when his friend Gordon keeps a Indian kept woman after salvaging her from firing herself in the funeral pyre of her hubby harmonizing to Indian imposts.

Mangal Pandey teams up with the last Mughal emperor of India Bahadur Shah Jaffrar. and other Indian leaders such as Tantia Tope and Nanasaheb to revolt against the British. subvert them. and set up Indian independency. However. events take such a bend that Mangal Pandey finally has to contend against a regiment of British soldiers entirely. He is finally captured. set on test and hanged. The test and hanging of Mangal Pandey is shown to hold instigated the Sepoy Mutiny which is depicted as the first measure in the Indian Independence Movement.

Analysis

Though Mangal Pandey is based on a historical incident and is classified in the genre of ‘Epics’ . the film diverts from historical facts and introduces many fictional characters and incidences. This leads to what could be interpreted as deformation of history for the interest of deriving commercial advantages.

The fictional add-ons that have been made to the film do non accommodate the context of the narrative. In fact. British historian Saul David has protested that the movie’s accusal of the British East India Company slaying civilians and scoffing a bondage prohibition were wholly baseless. “I have ne’er come across any grounds which supports either of these averments. ” he commented ( BBC News ) .

The intervention of the film is really different from American films in the sense that there is more accent on amusement than on showing a historical history. The film includes a figure of song-and-dance sequences in which the chief character participates along with the lead female characters. Very few American films. if any. will picture its cardinal character. that excessively a rebel nationalist as a dance and cantabile figure.

Every facet of the film is over dramatized and there is no attempt at all to keep a wide factual attack. Though the film attempts to portray the socio-economic feel of the state at that period in history. the fictional incidences that it utilizes to make so. derail the cardinal subject of the narrative. The focal point of the movie is diverted by these embroideries. The attending of the spectator is diverted off from the cardinal subject in an effort to present amusement elements in the signifier of vocals. dances and animal episodes. All of these amusement elements do non hold any direct bearing on the chief narrative of the film.

A survey of Indian history besides does non uncover that the extent and scope of the sepoy mutiny was anyplace near to what has been projected in the film. The association of Mangal Pandey with the Mughal emperor and other Indian leaders is besides mostly unsupported. This amounts to consider deformation of history. No nice American heroic poem film would try anything of the sort.

Plants Cited

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