Bharat: Entertaining yet an emotional journey for those who lived through partition

by Gita Malik

Bharat,  is an interesting film by Ali Abbas Zafar in flashback mode. A brave start for Salman Khan, to appear as a 70 year old Bharat with the grey hair, courting a mature stature. Of course he still has many instances to demonstrate his strength of mind, and body  during the movie. 
Starting in 2010, the movies takes you back to the partition of 1947 and then flashes forward.  We may have heard the partition stories numerous times but each time they still touch our souls. A promise by a young boy to his father, to keep the family safe and together.  Bharat has many moments when you need the whole box of tissues. 
A touching story of families separated due to the division of the country. Crowding on the trains to their respective refugee camps across the border. Just like most families Bharat, his mother and his two younger siblings take the last train out of Lahore.  His father and younger sister hope to reunite at a meeting point, a family owned ration shop in Old Delhi. 
The flash forward from 1947 takes the audience through the highlights of the years. 
Two young  boys,  Bharat and his friend Vilayati Khan (Sunil Grover) travel through their teens to adulthood and then to mature adults. Connecting the dots from 1947 to 2010,  are images of Nehru’s death, World Cup win for the Indian Cricket team, Shah Rukh Khan and Amitabh Bachan and many more such memorable events. The discovery of oil in the Middle East brought job opportunities to the masses, gave Bharat and his friends a chance to support their families. Moving onto gaining employment in the Merchant Navy and encountering sea pirates.  

As corny as the disconnected sub stories are, Salman Khan fans will enjoy his drama, patriotism and his dialogue delivery.   Kumud (Katrina Kaif) is superb as a confident ‘madam-sir’ as their employment agency manager. Generally confident Kumud gets to showcase her dancing skills with the songs thrown in for entertainment . A fresh face, Disha Patani has a brief role and dance with Salman, ‘slow motion mein’. 
All in all its ‘paisa vasul’. I give the movie 3/5.

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