''Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose: The Forgotten Hero'' is a 2004 Indian

epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film defined by the spectacular presentation of human drama on a grandiose scale Epic(s) ...

biographical A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or curric ...

war film War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about navy, naval, air force, air, or army, land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle s ...

, written and directed by

Shyam Benegal Shyam Benegal (14 December 1934 – 23 December 2024) was an Indian film director, screenwriter and documentary filmmaker. Often regarded as the pioneer of parallel cinema, he is widely considered as one of the greatest filmmakers post 1970s. H ...

. The film starred an

ensemble cast In a dramatic production, an ensemble cast is one that comprises many principal actors and performers who are typically assigned roughly equal amounts of screen time.Random House: ensemble acting Linked 2013-07-17 Structure In contrast to the po ...

Sachin Khedekar Sachin Khedekar (born 14 May 1965) is an Indian actor and director known for his work in Hindi, Marathi and Telugu films. His well-known films include '' Kaksparsh'', '' Astitva'' and Shyam Benegal's '' Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose: The Forgot ...

Kulbhushan Kharbanda Kulbhushan Kharbanda (born 21 October 1944) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi and Punjabi films. He is best known for his role as the antagonist Shakaal in '' Shaan'' (1980), Starting off with the Delhi-based theatre group ' Yatrik' in the ...

, Rajit Kapur, Arif Zakaria, 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 ...

, among others. The film depicts the life of the Indian Independence leader

Subhas Chandra Bose Subhas Chandra Bose (23 January 1897 – 18 August 1945) was an Indian independence movement, Indian nationalist whose defiance of British raj, British authority in India made him a hero among many Indians, but his wartime alliances with ...

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

: 1941–1943, and in Japanese-occupied Asia 1943–1945, and the events leading to the formation of Azad Hind Fauj. The

production design In film industry, film and television, a production designer is the individual responsible for the overall aesthetic of the story. The production design gives the viewers a sense of the time period, the plot location, and character actions and ...

was helmed by

Samir Chanda Samir Chanda (1957 – 18 August 2011) was an Indian art director and production designer across Indian cinema, including Hindi cinema, Hindi, Cinema of West Bengal, Bengali, Malayalam Cinema, Malayalam and Tamil cinema, Tamil, most known for hi ...

, with a soundtrack, and background score by

A. R. Rahman Allah Rakha Rahman (; born A. S. Dileep Kumar; 6 January 1967), also known by the initialism ARR, is an Indian music composer, record producer, singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and philanthropist known for his works in Indian cinem ...

. Upon release, the film received wide critical acclaim at the

BFI London Film Festival The BFI London Film Festival is an annual film festival held in London, England, in collaboration with the British Film Institute. Founded in 1957, the festival runs for two weeks every October. In 2016, the BFI estimated that around 240 fe ...

, and has garnered the National Film Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration, and the

National Film Award for Best Production Design The National Film Award for Best Production Design is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the National Film Development Corporation of India. It is one of the several awards presented for feature films and awarded with Rajat Ka ...

for that year. The film was screened retrospectively on August 14, 2016 at the Independence Day Film Festival jointly presented by the Indian

Directorate of Film Festivals The Directorate of Film Festivals in India was an organisation that initiated and presented the International Film Festival of India, the National Film Awards and the Indian Panorama. Although the Directorate helped appoint members of the jury ...

and

Ministry of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...

, commemorating 70th

Indian Independence Day Independence Day is celebrated annually on 15 August as a public holiday in India commemorating the nation's independence from the United Kingdom on 15 August 1947. On this day the Indian Independence Act 1947 came into effect, transferri ...

Plot

Set in

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

, after a political disagreement with

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2October 186930January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethics, political ethicist who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful Indian ...

, Bose's arrest and subsequent release sets the scene for his escape to

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, via

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

and the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. A few days before his escape, he sought solitude and, on this pretext, avoided meeting British guards and grew a beard. On the night of his escape, he dresses himself as a Pathan to avoid being identified. Bose escapes from under British surveillance at his house in

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

on 16 January 1941, accompanied by his nephew Sisir K. Bose in a car. Bose journeys to

Peshawar Peshawar is the capital and List of cities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by population, largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is the sixth most populous city of Pakistan, with a district p ...

with the help of the

Abwehr The (German language, German for ''resistance'' or ''defence'', though the word usually means ''counterintelligence'' in a military context) ) was the German military intelligence , military-intelligence service for the ''Reichswehr'' and the ...

, where he was met by Akbar Shah and Bhagat Ram Talwar. Bose was taken to the home of Abad Khan, a trusted friend of Akbar Shah's. On 26 January 1941, Bose begins his journey to reach

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

through British India's North West frontiers with Afghanistan. For this reason, he enlists the help of Mian Akbar Shah, then a Forward Bloc leader in the

North-West Frontier Province The North-West Frontier Province (NWFP; ) was a province of British India from 1901 to 1947, of the Dominion of Pakistan from 1947 to 1955, and of the Pakistan, Islamic Republic of Pakistan from 1970 to 2010. It was established on 9 November ...

. Shah had been out of India en route to the Soviet Union, and suggests a novel disguise for Bose to assume. Since Bose could not speak one word of

Pashto Pashto ( , ; , ) is an eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family, natively spoken in northwestern Pakistan and southern and eastern Afghanistan. It has official status in Afghanistan and the Pakistani province of Khyb ...

, it would make him an easy target of Pashto speakers working for the British. For this reason, Shah suggests that Bose act deaf and dumb, and let his beard grow to mimic those of the tribesmen. Bose's guide Bhagat Ram Talwar, unknown to him, is actually a Soviet agent. Supporters of the

Aga Khan III Sir Sultan Muhammad Shah (2 November 187711 July 1957), known as Aga Khan III, was the 48th Imamate in Nizari doctrine, imam of the Nizari Isma'ili, Ism'aili branch of Shia Islam. He was one of the founders and the first permanent president of ...

help Bose across the border into

where he was met by an Abwehr unit posing as a party of road construction engineers from the

Organization Todt Organisation Todt (OT; ) was a civil and military engineering organisation in Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945, named for its founder, Fritz Todt, an engineer and senior member of the Nazi Party. The organisation was responsible for a huge range ...

who then aided his passage across Afghanistan via

Kabul Kabul is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province. The city is divided for administration into #Districts, 22 municipal districts. A ...

to the border with

Soviet Russia The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russian SFSR or RSFSR), previously known as the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and the Russian Soviet Republic, and unofficially as Soviet Russia,Declaration of Rights of the labo ...

. After assuming the disguise of a

Pashtun Pashtuns (, , ; ;), also known as Pakhtuns, or Pathans, are an Iranic ethnic group primarily residing in southern and eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan. They were historically also referred to as Afghans until 1964 after the ...

insurance agent ("Ziaudddin") to reach Afghanistan, Bose changes his disguise and travels to Moscow on the Italian passport of an Italian nobleman "Count Orlando Mazzotta". From Moscow, he reached

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, and from there he travels to

. Once in Russia the

NKVD The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (, ), abbreviated as NKVD (; ), was the interior ministry and secret police of the Soviet Union from 1934 to 1946. The agency was formed to succeed the Joint State Political Directorate (OGPU) se ...

transport Bose to

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

where he hope that Russia's traditional enmity to British rule in India would result in support for his plans for a popular rising in India. However, Bose found the Soviets' response disappointing and was rapidly passed over to the German Ambassador in Moscow, Count von der Schulenburg. He had Bose flown on to

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

in a special courier aircraft at the beginning of April where he was to receive a more favorable hearing from

Joachim von Ribbentrop Ulrich Friedrich-Wilhelm Joachim von Ribbentrop (; 30 April 1893 – 16 October 1946) was a German Nazi politician and diplomat who served as Minister for Foreign Affairs (Germany), Minister of Foreign Affairs of Nazi Germany from 1938 to 1945. ...

and the Foreign Ministry officials at the

Wilhelmstrasse Wilhelmstraße, or Wilhelmstrasse (see ß; ; ) is a major thoroughfare in the central Mitte and Kreuzberg districts of Berlin, Germany. Until 1945, it was recognised as the centre of the government, first of the Kingdom of Prussia, and la ...

. In Germany, Bose is attached to the Special Bureau for India under

Adam von Trott zu Solz Friedrich Adam von Trott zu Solz (9 August 1909 – 26 August 1944) was a German lawyer and diplomat who was involved in the conservative resistance to Nazism. A declared opponent of the Nazi regime from the beginning, he actively participated in ...

which was responsible for broadcasting on the German-sponsored Azad Hind Radio. Bose initiates the Free India Center in Berlin, and created the Indian Legion (consisting of some 4500 soldiers) out of Indian prisoners of war who had previously fought for the British in

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

prior to their capture by Axis forces. The Indian Legion is attached to the Wehrmacht, and later transferred to the

Waffen SS The (; ) was the combat branch of the Nazi Party's paramilitary ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with volunteers and conscripts from both German-occupied Europe and unoccupied lands. ...

. Its members swore the following allegiance to Hitler and Bose: "I swear by God this holy oath that I will obey the leader of the German race and state,

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

, as the commander of the German armed forces in the fight for India, whose leader is Subhas Chandra Bose". This oath clearly abrogates control of the Indian legion to the German armed forces whilst stating Bose's overall leadership of India. He was also, however, prepared to envisage an invasion of India via the USSR by Nazi troops, spearheaded by the Azad Hind Legion; many question his judgment here, as it seems unlikely that the Germans could have been easily persuaded to leave after such an invasion, which might also have resulted in an Axis victory in the War. In all, 3,000 Indian prisoners of war sign up for the Free India Legion. But instead of being delighted, Bose was worried. An admirer of Russia, he was devastated when Hitler's tanks rolled across the Soviet border. Matters were worsened by the fact that the now-retreating German army would be in no position to offer him help in driving the British from India. When he meets Hitler in May 1942, his suspicions were confirmed, and he comes to believe that the Nazi leader was more interested in using his men to win propaganda victories than military ones. So, in February 1943, Bose turned his back on his legionnaires and slipped secretly away aboard a submarine bound for Japan. This leaves the men he had recruited leaderless and demoralized in Germany. Bose lives in Berlin from 1941 until 1943. During his earlier visit to Germany in 1934, he had met

Emilie Schenkl Emilie Schenkl (26 December 1910 – 13 March 1996) was an Austrian stenographer, secretary and trunk exchange operator. She was the wife or the companion of Subhas Chandra Bose, an Indian nationalist leader. Schenkl met Bose in 1934, an ...

, the daughter of an Austrian veterinarian whom he marries in 1937. Their daughter is

Anita Bose Pfaff Anita Bose Pfaff (, born 29 November 1942) is an Austrian economist, who has previously been a professor at the University of Augsburg as well as a politician in the Social Democratic Party of Germany. She is the daughter of Indian nationalist ...

. In 1943, after being disillusioned that Germany could be of any help in gaining India's independence, he leaves for Japan. He travels with the German submarine

U-180 German submarine ''U-180'' was a German Type IX submarine#Type IXD, Type IXD1 transport U-boat of Nazi Germany's ''Kriegsmarine'' which served in World War II. Her keel was Keel laying, laid down on 25 February 1941 at the DeSchiMAG AG Weser yard ...

around the

Cape of Good Hope The Cape of Good Hope ( ) is a rocky headland on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa. A List of common misconceptions#Geography, common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Afri ...

to the southeast of Madagascar, where he is transferred to the for the rest of the journey to

Imperial Japan The Empire of Japan, also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was the Japanese nation state that existed from the Meiji Restoration on January 3, 1868, until the Constitution of Japan took effect on May 3, 1947. From Japan–Kor ...

, The INA's first commitment was in the Japanese thrust towards Eastern Indian frontiers of

Manipur Manipur () is a state in northeastern India with Imphal as its capital. It borders the Indian states of Assam to the west, Mizoram to the south, and Nagaland to the north and shares the international border with Myanmar, specifically t ...

. INA's special forces, the Bahadur Group, are extensively involved in operations behind enemy lines both during the diversionary attacks in Arakan, as well as the Japanese thrust towards

Imphal Imphal (; , ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Manipur. The metropolitan centre of the city contains the ruins of Kangla Palace (officially known as Kangla Fort), the royal seat of the former Kingdom of Manipur, surrounded by a ...

and

Kohima Kohima (; Tenyidie: Kewhira ()) is the capital of the North East Indian state of Nagaland. With a resident population of almost 100,000, it is the second largest city in the state. Kohima constitutes both a district and a municipality. The m ...

, along with the Burmese National Army led by Ba Maw and

Aung San Aung San (, ; 13 February 191519 July 1947), known honorifically as '' Bogyoke'' Aung San, was a Burmese politician, independence activist and revolutionary. He was instrumental in Myanmar's struggle for independence from British rule, but he w ...

. However, the Japanese Navy remains in essential control of the island's administration. On the Indian mainland, an Indian Tricolor, modeled after that of the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...

, was raised for the first time in the town in Moirang, in

, in north-eastern India. The towns of

and

were placed under siege by divisions of the Japanese, Burmese National Army and the Gandhi and Nehru Brigades of INA during the attempted invasion of India, also known as Operation U-GO. However, Commonwealth forces held both positions and then counter-attack, in the process inflicting serious losses on the besieging forces, which were then forced to retreat back into Burma. When the Japanese were defeated at the battles of

and

, the

Provisional Government A provisional government, also called an interim government, an emergency government, a transitional government or provisional leadership, is a temporary government formed to manage a period of transition, often following state collapse, revoluti ...

's aim of establishing a base in mainland India was lost forever. The INA was forced to pull back, along with the retreating Japanese army, and fought in key battles against the British Indian Army in its

Burma campaign The Burma campaign was a series of battles fought in the British colony of British rule in Burma, Burma as part of the South-East Asian theatre of World War II. It primarily involved forces of the Allies of World War II, Allies (mainly from ...

, notably in Meiktilla,

Mandalay Mandalay is the second-largest city in Myanmar, after Yangon. It is located on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River, 631 km (392 mi) north of Yangon. In 2014, the city had a population of 1,225,553. Mandalay was founded in 1857 by Ki ...

Pegu Bago (formerly spelled Pegu; , ), formerly known as Hanthawaddy, is a city and the capital of the Bago Region in Myanmar. It is located north-east of Yangon. Etymology The Burmese name Bago (ပဲခူး) is likely derived from the Mon lang ...

, Nyangyu and

Mount Popa Mount Popa (, ) is a dormant volcano 1518 metres (4981 feet) above sea level, and located in central Myanmar in the region of Mandalay Region, Mandalay about southeast of Bagan (Pagan) in the Pegu Range. It can be seen from the Irrawaddy Ri ...

. However, with the fall of

Rangoon Yangon, formerly romanized as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar. Yangon was the List of capitals of Myanmar, capital of Myanmar until 2005 and served as such until 2006, when the State Peace and Dev ...

, Bose's government ceases to be an effective political entity. A large proportion of the INA troops surrenders under Lt Col Loganathan. The remaining troops retreated with Bose towards Malaya or made for

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

. Japan's surrender at the end of the war also leads to the eventual surrender of the Indian National Army, when the troops of the

British Indian Army The Indian Army was the force of British Raj, British India, until Indian Independence Act 1947, national independence in 1947. Formed in 1895 by uniting the three Presidency armies, it was responsible for the defence of both British India and ...

were repatriated to India. On 17 August 1945, Bose leaves from Saigon to Tourane, French Indo-China in the

Mitsubishi Ki-21 The was a Japanese heavy bomber during World War II. It began operations during the Second Sino-Japanese War participating in the Nomonhan Incident, and in the first stages of the Pacific War, including the Malayan, Burmese, Dutch East Indie ...

twin-engine heavy bomber. Subsequently, on 23 August 1945,

Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide writing in 16 languages. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency ...

announces the death of Bose and General

Tsunamasa Shidei was a lieutenant general in the Imperial Japanese Army in World War II. Biography Shidei was born to a ''samurai''-class family in Yamashina, Kyoto prefecture. He attended military preparatory schools in Osaka and Tokyo and graduated from the ...

of the Japanese

Kwantung Army The Kwantung Army (Japanese language, Japanese: 関東軍, ''Kantō-gun'') was a Armies of the Imperial Japanese Army, general army of the Imperial Japanese Army from 1919 to 1945. The Kwantung Army was formed in 1906 as a security force for th ...

Japanese-occupied Manchuria Manchukuo, officially known as the State of Manchuria prior to 1934 and the Empire of Great Manchuria thereafter, was a puppet state of the Empire of Japan in Northeast China that existed from 1932 until its dissolution in 1945. It was ostens ...

. The film ends with the INA trials at

Red Fort The Red Fort, also known as Lal Qila () is a historic Mughal Empire, Mughal fort in Delhi, India, that served as the primary residence of the Mughal emperors. Emperor Shah Jahan commissioned the construction of the Red Fort on 12 May 1639, fo ...

, the Royal Indian Navy mutiny, and the resulting

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 ...

n Independence in 1947.

Cast

* Jisshu Sengupta as Sisir Bose *

as Uttamchand Malhotra * Rajit Kapur as Abid Hasan *

as Ila Bose * Arif Zakaria as Gurbaksh Singh Dhillon *

Ila Arun Ila Arun is an Indian actress, TV personality and Rajasthani folk-pop singer known for her works in Hindi cinema, and Indian pop. She has appeared in many prominent Bollywood films such as '' Lamhe'', ''Jodhaa Akbar'', '' Shaadi Ke Side Effe ...

as Ranu *

Pankaj Berry Pankaj Berry (born 8 January 1956) is an Indian film and television actor. He did his post-graduation from Department of Indian Theatre, Panjab University, Chandigarh where he acted in many theatre productions of the department. His first majo ...

as Abad Khan * Narendra Jha as Raja Habib ur Rahman Khan * Nicolas Chagrin as General Auchinlek * Rahul Singh as Mohammed Zaman Kiani (Chief of INA) * Nandini Chatterjee as Meera * Pradeep Kumar Das as Servant * Chris England as CID Chief * Arindham Ghosh as Subhas Chandra Bose's Cousin * Ahmed Khan as Mian Akbar * Shakeel Khan as Sarat Bose * Howard Lee as

Governor of Bengal In 1644, Gabriel Boughton procured privileges for the East India Company which permitted them to build a factory at Hooghly district, Hughli, without fortifications. Various chief agents, Governors and presidents were appointed to look after co ...

— Sir John Arthur Herbert * Kunal Mitra as Ashok Bose * Samiran Mukherjee as Subhas Chandra Bose's Cousin * Rohan Nichol as CID Officer * Lal Babu Pandit as Checkpost Policeman * Zakir Hussain as Shaukat Malik * Mukul Nag * Anna Prüstel as

Florian Panzner Florian Panzner (born 20 July 1976) is a German actor who has been active since 1999. Life and career Panzner studied at the University of Film and Television Potsdam-Babelsberg. In 2000, he played the role of Truffaldino in the comedy '' The ...

as Alexander Werth * Surendra Rajan as

* Charu Rohatgi as Bivabati Devi *

Alokananda Roy Alokananda Roy is an Indian actress known for her work in Bengali cinema and theatre. She made her thespian debut at the age of seven in the 1951 and later on became part of numerous Bengali plays. She made her screen debut with Satyajit Ray's ...

as Prabhabati Bose * Ashiesh Roy as Spy Police 2 *

Sonu Sood Sonu Sood (born 30 July 1973) is an Indian actor, film producer, Model (person), model, humanitarian, and Philanthropy, philanthropist who works predominantly in Hindi cinema, Hindi, Telugu cinema, Telugu and Tamil cinema, Tamil films. He is k ...

as Lt. Col. Shah Nawaz Khan * Vikrant Chaturvedi as Col. Prem Kumar Sahgal * Rajeshwari Sachdev as Capt. Lakshmi Sehgal * Udo Schenk as

* Bernd-Uwe Reppenhagen as

* Gen Seto as Ambassador Oshima * Rakesh Shrivastav as Spy Police 1 *

Arindam Sil Arindam Sil (born 12 March 1964) is an Indian actor, film director and line producer who predominantly works in Bengali films. Early life Sil was born on 12 March 1964 in North Calcutta to a traditional joint family. He was a student of St. J ...

as Jail Warden * Sandeep Srivastava as Nambiar *

Lalit Tiwari Lalit Tiwari is an Indian film and television actor. His best-known television roles are that of Sanjaya in the series ''Mahabharat'' (1988–1990), and in the historical television series '' Bharat Ek Khoj - The Discovery of India'' (1988). ...

as Checkpost Policeman * Christian Willis as Jail Superintendent * Dr.B.D. Mukherjee as

Janakinath Bose Janakinath Bose (also Janaki Nath Bose; 28 May 1860 – 2 December 1934) was an Indian lawyer and advocate, who was the father of Indian independence leader Subhas Chandra Bose and barrister Sarat Chandra Bose. Early life Bose was born in th ...

Rajpal Yadav Rajpal Naurang Yadav (born 16 March 1971) is an Indian actor and comedian. His breakthrough came in Ram Gopal Varma's ''Jungle'' (2000) with a negative role. Although Yadav has gained widespread recognition for his slapstick comic performances ...

as Bhagat Ram Talwar *

Kelly Dorjee Kalden Sonam Dorji (born 4 January 1971), known professionally as Kelly Dorji, is a Bhutanese actor, model, and artist who works primarily in Cinema of India, Indian movies. Early life Dorji's father is Lynpo Paljor Dorji, widely known as Dasho ...

as the

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Tojo *

Manish Wadhwa Manish Wadhwa (born 1972) is an Indian actor and voice actor. He is best known for his roles Chanakya in ''Chandragupta Maurya'', Balaji Vishwanath Bhatt in ''Peshwa Bajirao'', Kans in '' Paramavatar Shri Krishna'', Amal Nanda/Dansh in '' ...

as Captain Inayat Gyani * Anup Shukla as Major Raturi

Reception

''Bose: The Forgotten Hero'', which offered a controversial view of the life of Bose, sparked protest in India. Director Benegal was forced to cancel its premiere in Calcutta. The film was fiercely opposed by the Forward Bloc party. The party was angry at the film's suggestion that Bose secretly married an Austrian woman,

, in 1937, and that he died in a plane crash in Taiwan rather than fleeing to Russia in 1945 as some people believe. BBC gave 3 stars out of 5 for ''Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose: The Forgotten Hero''. Critic Jaspreet Pandohar called it "an informative and fascinating lesson worth sitting through" and "an absorbing drama." "Benegal is best known for his intimate portraits of Indian women, so it comes as some surprise that his latest film is a biopic of one of India's most famous male icons, Subhas Chandra Bose. Benegal ensures Bose's amazing but complex life story is peppered with just the right amount of detail so as to be easily understood. But what stops this film from becoming a ox-officehit is its marathon length. At nearly three and a half hours, Sachin Khedekar's gallant performance isn't enough to make this a rousing affair," Pandohar wrote in his analysis. Sachin Khedekar's portrayal of Bose was praised by critics including Ziya us-Salam of ''The Hindu'' newspaper. "Khedekar may not win too many international awards for portraying Bose but accolades in India should come in thick and fast," she wrote in her review. "Benegal may not have put together an epic to challenge the lasting greatness of "Gandhi,"

Richard Attenborough Richard Samuel Attenborough, Baron Attenborough (; 29 August 192324 August 2014) was an English actor, film director, and Film producer, producer. Attenborough was the president of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and the British Acade ...

's tribute to our father of the nation. But nor has he had the advantage of such resources. Where Benegal deserves credit is not in the canvas of his work but the intellectual honesty he has brought to the film. He refrains from either diluting or distorting history to serve his ends." Salam also noted the limitations of a director working under a relatively small budget for a historical film."

Music

The highly acclaimed music score that accompanies the film was composed by

. The soundtrack features 20 pieces composed by Rahman, including 12 instrumentals and orchestral themes, six songs with lyrics by

Javed Akhtar Javed Akhtar (born 1945) is an Indian screenwriter, lyricist and poet. Known for his work in Hindi cinema, he has won five National Film Awards, and received the Padma Shri in 1999 and the Padma Bhushan in 2007, two of India's highest civili ...

and a full orchestral version of Indian National Anthem. Most of the score was conducted by Matt Dunkley and performed by

Czech Philharmonic Orchestra The Czech Philharmonic () is a symphony orchestra based in Prague. Its principal performing venue is the Rudolfinum concert hall. History The name "Czech Philharmonic Orchestra" appeared for the first time in 1894, as the title of the orche ...

. Performers include the Western Choir Chennai (for "Aazadi") and the Mumbai Film Choir ("Hum Dilli Dilli Jayenge").

Track listing

Awards

; National Film Awards 2004 *

Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration The Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration was one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the Directorate of Film Festivals, the organization set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry ...

National Film Award for Best Art Direction The National Film Award for Best Production Design is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the National Film Development Corporation of India. It is one of the several awards presented for feature films and awarded with Rajat Ka ...

References

External links

*
''Bose: The Forgotten Hero''
at

Allmovie AllMovie (previously All Movie Guide) is an online database with information about films, television programs, television series, and screen actors. , AllMovie.com and the AllMovie consumer brand are owned by RhythmOne. History AllMovie was ...

{{Authority control 2004 films 2000s Hindi-language films Indian war films Films about intelligence agencies Films directed by Shyam Benegal Indian biographical films Indian political films Films set in the Indian independence movement Memorials to Subhas Chandra Bose Films with screenplays by Shama Zaidi Films scored by A. R. Rahman Indian Army in films Films whose production designer won the Best Production Design National Film Award Best Film on National Integration National Film Award winners Indian National Army in fiction Cultural depictions of Mahatma Gandhi Cultural depictions of Hideki Tojo Films about Adolf Hitler Films about Subhas Chandra Bose Films shot in Uzbekistan Indian World War II films