A grand documentary on Jawaharlal Nehru, based on parliamentarian-author Shashi Tharoor’s Nehru: The Invention Of India, will be announced by UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi in the capital on Tuesday. It is much needed at a time when there’s an attempt to “cut him to size”, says producer Sheetal Talwar.
The documentary will be co-directed by Onir and Bhavna Talwar. It will be announced at a private ceremony where Tharoor’s book will also be relaunched.
Why Nehru?
Talwar explains, “Because there is an attempt to demythologise him, cut him down to size and build up other national leaders from the Freedom Movement as the architects of Independent India. No one denies the place and position of Subhas Chandra Bose or Sardar Patel.
“By all means they must be given their place in history. But not at the cost of Jawaharlal Nehru’s reputation. He was quite simply the visionary and architect of Modern India. I don’t think we would be an evolving developing nation if it wasn’t for Nehru.”
The documentary on Nehru would make use of extensive footage from the archives to piece together the story of the man and the politician.
“There will be no fictionalised interpretation of Nehruji’s life. It will all be documented evidence,” promises Talwar, who is also showrunner on a web series based on Tharoor’s book Why I Am A Hindu.