''Shaheed-e-Mohabbat Boota Singh'' is a 1999 Indian

Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabis, Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a ...

-language feature film based on the real-life love story of

Boota Singh Boota Singh sometimes spelled as Buta Singh, was a Sikh ex-soldier of the British Army who served at the Burma front under the command of Lord Mountbatten during World War II. He is popularly known in India and Pakistan for his tragic love story ...

and Zainab, starring

Gurdas Maan Gurdas Maan (born 4 January 1957) is an Indian singer, songwriter and actor mainly associated with Punjabi language music and films. He gained national attention in 1980 with the song "Dil Da Mamla Hai". Since then, he had gone on to record ov ...

and

Divya Dutta Divya Dutta (born 25 September 1977) is an Indian actress. She has appeared primarily in Hindi and Punjabi language, Punjabi cinema, and has received accolades including a National Film Award and a Filmfare OTT Awards, Filmfare OTT Award. Dutt ...

in the lead roles. The film is directed by

Manoj Punj Manoj Punj was an Indian punjabi language, Punjabi film director. He directed the hits in Cinema of Punjab, Punjabi Cinema. After graduating with a degree in arts, and experiencing theater in Chandigarh, he assisted Prof. P. S. Nirola who made ...

and produced by

Manjeet Maan Manjeet Maan (also spelled as Manjit Maan) is an Indian film producer and director who works in Punjabi language films. She is married to the noted singer-songwriter and actor Gurdas Maan, and is the owner of Sai Productions, a film producti ...

Arun Bakshi Arun Bakshi is an Indian film and television actor and also a singer. He has acted as a character actor in over 100 Hindi films, and as a playback singer has also sung 298 songs. He has also worked in Punjabi and Bhojpuri cinema. He also playe ...

, Gurkirtan and

Chetana Das Chetana Das (born in Shillong, Meghalaya, India) is an Indian actress from Assam. She is popular face in Assamese cinema for her comic roles. She is the comedy queen of Assamese film industry. Early life Chetana Das was born in Shillong. She ...

played supporting roles. The film won the

National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Punjabi The National Film Award for Best Punjabi Feature Film is one of the National Film Awards of India presented annually by the National Film Development Corporation of India. It is one of several awards presented for feature films and awarded with Ra ...

at the

46th National Film Awards The 46th National Film Awards, presented by Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India to felicitate the best of Indian Cinema released in the year 1998. Ceremony took place on 15 ...

. The movie was an international hit and was screened at many national and international film festivals, including the 1999

Vancouver International Film Festival The Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF) is an annual film festival held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, for two weeks in late September and early October. The festival is operated by the Greater Vancouver International Film Festi ...

and the

International Film Festival of India The International Film Festival of India (IFFI), founded in 1952, is an annual film festival currently held in Goa, on the western coast of India. The festival aims at providing a common platform for the cinemas of the world to project the excel ...

. It is the first film by Maan's home production, Sai Productions.

Plot

Sikh Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Si ...

ex-soldier,

, who served in the British Army at the

Burma Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...

front during the

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, is in his thirties when he returns to his village near

Jalandhar Jalandhar () is a city in the state of Punjab, India, Punjab in India. With a considerable population, it ranks as the List of cities in Punjab and Chandigarh by population, third most-populous city in the state and is the largest city in the ...

. All his age-mates are married, but he is unmarried. He has found no woman to marry as his youth is flying away. A hope to have a family of his own yet lurks in a corner of his heart. A trader assures Boota that if he could raise Rs. 2000/-, he would buy a young bride for Boota from UP or

Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...

. Boota starts saving every penny.

Boota Singh rescues a Muslim girl

India got freedom in 1947 and

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

was born; communal riots begin on both sides of the new border. Boota's village comes in the grip of riots. One day while Boota works in his fields, a beautiful young

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

girl, being chased by the vengeful locals, comes to him for help. The youths demand the girl or Rs. 2500/-. Boota argues that he only has Rs. 1800, and is able to shake them off by giving them his life's savings. His hopes to settle down by raising dowry money are shattered when he needs to use his savings to rescue the

girl, Zainab. With nowhere to go she stays with Boota Singh.

Boota and Zainab get married

The villagers object that Boota cannot keep Zainab in his home like this: he should either marry her or leave her in a refugee camp, where people bound for

live. Boota decides that, since he is far older, he should leave her at the camp. He is about to send Zainab off with a man bound for Pakistan and who is prepared to marry her there. But Zainab, who has learned about the sacrifice he made for her and is touched by his simplicity, asks Boota if he is so poor that he cannot even feed her two

roti Roti is a round flatbread originating from the Indian subcontinent. It is commonly consumed in many South Asian, Southeast Asian, Caribbean, East African, and Southeast African countries. It is made from stoneground whole-wheat flour, kno ...

s per day to keep her alive. Boota Singh and Zainab fall in love and get married. Boota's life transforms overnight. Then they have a baby girl. Boota Singh is pretty happy, matrimonially speaking; he is leading a pleasant life.

The end

An uncle of Boota, who was scheming that Boota would die unmarried and the family property would go to him, becomes envious of his marriage with Zainab. A few years later, when

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and

agree to deport women left behind in the riots, he informs the police that there is such a

woman in their village. In Boota's absence police forcibly dump Zainab into a truck bound for a refugee camp (leaving the child behind). Zainab is sent to her parents' home in the village of Barki in Pakistan. Boota sells all his land and goes along with his child to Pakistan illegally. He is beaten by Zainab's relatives. Then they inform the police and Boota is brought before a judge who is quite willing to free him if his wife owns up, but under pressure from her family, she backs off. A disappointed and mournful Boota jumps with his daughter before an oncoming train. He dies, but miraculously, his daughter survives. Pakistani youth, overcome by this, hail him "Shaheed-E-Mohabbat Boota Singh" (lit. ''Martyr-in-Love Boota Singh'') and erect a memorial and a trust in his name.

Cast

Release

The movie was released on January 1, 1999.

Home Media Release

The film can be streamed online on the

Chaupal Chaupal, or Choupal are Farmer and weaver caste who are mainly present in Indian state of Bihar, though they are also present in Assam, Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal. Notable members * Kameshwar Choupal, former Member of Parliament from ...

OTT platform.

Music

The music director is Amar Haldipur and the playback singers are

Asha Bhosle Asha Bhosle (; ; born 8 September 1933) is an Indian playback singer, entrepreneur, actress and television personality who predominantly works in Indian cinema. Known for her versatility, she has been described in the media as one of the ...

Anuradha Paudwal Anuradha Paudwal (born 27 October 1954) is an Indian playback singer and politician who works predominantly in Hindi cinema and Odia cinema. She has been described in media as one of the most prominent Bhajan singers and also as one of the m ...

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan (, ; born Pervez Fateh Ali Khan; 13 October 1948 – 16 August 1997), also known by his initials NFAK, was a Pakistani singer, songwriter, and music director. Khan was primarily a singer of qawwali, a form of Sufi devot ...

and Karaamat Ali Khan, with

Amar Noorie Amar Noorie (also spelled as Amar Noori) is an Indian singer and actress who works in Punjabi language, Punjabi-language films. She was married to Sardool Sikander, a noted Punjabi singer. Early life and career Amar Noorie was born on 23 May ...

as a guest singer. The movie has six original tracks: # "Ishq Ni Darrda Maut Kolon," sung by Karaamat Ali Khan # "Eh Kaisi Rutt Aayi" sung by

# "Meri Chunni Da Chamke," sung by

and Gurdas Maan # "Gaddiye Ni Der Na Karin," sung by Gurdas Maan # "Main Rowan Tarle Paawan," sung by Asha Bhosle and Gurdas Maan # "Aseen Tere Shehar Nu," sung by Gurdas Maan # "Ishq Da Rutba" sung by

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, id=0308875 Punjabi-language Indian films Films set in the partition of India 1999 drama films 1999 films Films set in the 1940s Films set in Punjab, India India–Pakistan relations in popular culture 1990s Punjabi-language films Films set in the British Raj Best Punjabi Feature Film National Film Award winners Films set in Lahore Indian interfaith romance films 1990s Indian films