Some movies are known to leave a lasting impression on the audience, and ‘Gandhi My Father’ is certainly one of them. The film has recently completed 18 years, and on the occasion, filmmaker Feroz Abbas Khan got candid about the enduring legacy of the film. Even after almost two decades, the movie resonates deeply with the audience. Shedding light on how ‘Gandhi My Father’ is much more than a movie, Feroz, in an exclusive conversation with us, shared, “The film is becoming a cherished memory, but I am constantly reminded by people who are either making a period film, studying Gandhi, or students at film, drama, and media school. At Harvard and Oxford, it has found a place of respect, as told to me by professors teaching there.”“It is much more than a film. Recently, on my tour of my stage adaptation of Mughal-E-Azam, I met a bunch of students in New York who had visited India and were told that they were made to watch my film along with Attenborough’s movie as part of the orientation. It is hugely respected in academia. Ramchandra Guha was deeply moved by the film and praised it lavishly. Respect for its authentic and sensitive representation keeps pouring in.”The movie garnered love from every corner, but one particular recognition that stood out for Feroz Abbas Khan was the letter he received from Nobel laureate Nadine Gordimer and Nelson Mandela. He said their lavish praise remains a lifetime inspiration. In the letter she wrote, “I am happy to have the opportunity to express my admiration for ‘Gandhi My Father.’” Praising the film, she added, “A ground-breaking film in its originality and boldness. No one before in cinema has tackled like this one of the most difficult of human emotional situations.
Further, Khan also met Ms. Gordimer, and reminiscing about that moment, he shared, “When I visited South Africa, Ms Gordimer invited me to her home-made dinner with her own hands. She lived alone. We watched a play together, and that’s not all.” “She permitted me to make a movie of any of her works that she had not allowed anyone to. I cherish her generosity and humanity. She fought Apartheid till her last breath, sheltered rebels, survived physical attacks, but kept raising her voice. She is the closest living person to a saint I have experienced,” he concluded.
