19-year-old who inspired generations

WHO was this Kartar Singh Sarabha who bears so heavy on my conscience, tugs at my heart and makes me shed tears of joy and honour? He was so young, had such lofty thoughts, this unassuming, gentle boy who took on the mighty British Empire. His ultimate sacrifice inspired the likes of Bhagat Singh, Udham Singh and hundreds more to stand at the threshold of their own destinies and wage a war for India’s freedom.

‘Sarabha’ is my tribute to the young hero and his compatriots of the Ghadar Movement. I was introduced to Sarabha and the Ghadar Movement while working in the fruit orchards of Yuba City in the US, picking peaches, as a 16-year-old. The Punjabi who owned the orchard had come to the country in 1913 and had been part of the movement. He had seen things firsthand. He would regale me with stories of the Ghadari Babe, and I absorbed every word. Still, even when I decided to make a film on Sarabha, it marked the beginning of years of painstaking research and the arduous process of building sets, and finding the right cast for the historic roles. Shooting took several months in locations spanning India, USA and Canada.

The ensemble cast shines in every frame. Every nuance and word has a meaning. Sarabha’s role is played by Japtej Singh (the young Milkha from ‘Bhaag Milkha Bhaag’), while Mukul Dev, Malkeet Rauni, Mahabir Bhullar, Jaspinder Cheema and Kanwar Garewal round off the splendid cast, bolstered by hundreds of supporting cast members. I myself have a role.

The Ghadar Movement is an epic story of the struggle for Independence that spanned several continents. About ‘Ghadar’ (revolt or rebellion), the young Kartar Singh Sarabha wrote in the first issue of their newspaper: “Today, there begins ‘Ghadar’ in foreign lands, but in our country’s tongue, a war against the British Raj.”

“What is our name? Ghadar. What is our work? Ghadar. Where will this Ghadar take place? In India. The time will soon come when rifles and blood will take the place of pens and ink.”

The Ghadar Movement was launched in a small milling town of Astoria, Oregon, in 1913. Its objective was to free India from the British. Of those who joined the movement, over 90 per cent were Punjabis. Countless men travelled back to India to fight for freedom. They had journeyed to the North American soil looking for a better life. Many were killed, jailed for life or hanged.

Kartar Singh Sarabha was one of the most fascinating and central characters in this movement. An aspiring engineer, he had travelled to study at Berkeley, but destiny carved a different course. It steered him towards becoming a forceful voice against the British. He was hanged in Lahore Central Jail at the age of 19.

‘Sarabha’ is a dream, a journey, a commitment. It is passion that cannot be explained, only expressed through emotions.

Kartar Singh Sarabha paid with his life for the dream he had. I felt compelled to tell his story, I owe him this. We all do.