Candido, Arwald A.
BSBA-III; Mgt219-B
May 9, 2014

Insight Paper on Amir Khan’s Film “Lagaan”

Who would ever know that if you fight for what you believe in the present will soon be reflected in the future. I never thought that success will come from those who believe in change and those who are willing to take a big risk even if their life will be on stake. “Lagaan” simply conveys a message that if you keep your face to the sunshine, you will never see the shadow like the optimist who has a greater scope of possibilities. According to Helen Keller, “Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence.” Nonetheless, those people who believe in the power of their minds will make the impossible things possible. I have a doubt at first when I saw how the scenes are running. I’ve been overpowered by my pessimistic side like “what if” questions but in the long run it changes my perspective on things. Bhuvan, the main character in the story clearly shows the ideal leader that every nation should have. With the problem imposed to them which is they need to pay their tax twice, he was able to remove the imposition of tax by not paying it for three consecutive years. The root cause of all these can be traced back to the kind of government they have. It is weak and can be manipulated. For example is their Raja, overshadowed by fear, he doesn’t want to fight against the British Empire because he has this “utang na loob” to them. In the scene during breakfast together with Captain Russell where he was asked to eat the meat, he was able to refuse the command in the name of his religion. As a consequence of Raja’s action, the captain imposed that this citizen should pay the “Lagaan” twice. The Raja is such too weak because he took the consequence without rebutting his rights and the rights of his citizens. On the other hand, British Empire portrays overpowering of the state that they are invading. They are arrogant, cruel, manipulative, controlling, and almost like tyrants. That is why Bhuvan took the lead to remove the system of tyranny together with the citizens of India because it’s a matter of life and dead.
For the British, the challenge they are imposing was just a game but for Bhuvan and his co-citizens, it’s their life. If they will not take the challenge, they will still suffer paying “Lagaan” twice while taking the challenge with the possibility of winning the game will save them and the whole community. That’s why they took the challenge. In the end, all their sufferings and challenges in just mastering the game and beating all the opponents have paid off because of perseverance, courage, determination, teamwork, love, faith, fighting for their rights, and most of all their sacrifices just to play the game. According to Nelson Mandela, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” This quotation explains a verdict for what happened in the movie. Bhuvan, took the initiative to educate his co-teammates in mastering the game. Together with his kind-hearted friend, they were able execute the movements and procedures of the game although at first people don’t believe in him in his mission to save the community form tyranny. But because of his passion and heart to serve and show the people what he wants, he was able to convince the people to join him in his dream to save the whole community. Bhuvan is such a visionary man who just doesn’t dream a little but dreams big for the benefit of the all the people. A risk taker, who is willing to sacrifice everything for the greater glory of their god and their fatherland. The issue revealed in the movie is related in the Philippine situation before. During the 1970’s the Philippines came under a sort of tyranny form of government where President Marcos declared martial law. It was when the freedom of speech and assembly was taken, the rights of the people were abused, and fears overpowered the hearts of the Filipinos. No one has the power to question the government because if someone dares to challenge it, ergo, you’re silenced (dead). There were few who pursue for what they believed in but the fears of most of the people overshadows them. It came to a point where blood should be seen in the entire streets, where those people who opposed the dictatorship were killed including Ninoy Aquino, and others of like. Nevertheless it ended up with the People Power Revolution, a peaceful way to end the chaos. What is striking lesson I have learned in this movie is that the blood of being a hero circulates within us and it is a matter of how do we put this into action. I believe that everyone can be a hero in simple ways. It’s a felt need right?! I believe so. No one is born to proclaim themselves as a hero not like Marvel heroes or Epic heroes we’ve seen in the movies.
I couldn’t imagine if the only option for the Hindus is uprising against the British Government that would cause tremendous bloody war between them. This would be like the story of the heroes of the Philippines who fought for freedom and identity or the “Les Miserables”, a French novel who also fight for reforms in the government. Luckily, the novel promotes a peaceful way in solving the issue, a story that captures change management at its best.