History in The Rising

<div class="section1"><div class="Normal">The presence of a British royal on the sets of a film on a revolt against the Raj is not new. There''s a reason why it''s almost forgotten. <br /><br />There weren''t as many TV channels beaming the news live then, but there was as much trumpeting when Queen Elizabeth launched the project during India''s 50th Independence anniversary in 1997.<br /><br />This one is for those who love comparisons. <br /><br />The launch was of the film <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Marudhanayagam</span>, a grand project by actor-direcor Kamal Hassan. <br /><br />The film is about a real life freedom fighter, who revolts against the British. His reformist agenda alienates him from his own community and he finds himself nowhere. <br /></div> </div><div class="section2"><div class="Normal"><br />Nowhere is also where the ambitious project is right now. The film had been in the making for five years, the delay being attributed to a lack of funds. <br /><br />Though Hassan sounded very passionate about the project, in which he was to play the lead part, nothing has been heard about it for some time now. <br /><br />History was in the making once again on Tuesday when Prince Charles gave the clap for Ketan Mehta''s Indo-Brit venture <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">1857, The Rising in Mumbai</span>. <br /><br />Aamir Khan plays the lead role of Mangal Pandey, who led the revolt. There have been gleeful noises about the irony of a British royal launching a film on the Mutiny against the Raj. <br /><br />History may have come a full circle, but given <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Marudhanayagam</span>''s precedence, one hopes it doesn''t repeat itself.</div> </div>