Rajasthan, a state that has fascinated people in India from ages. A state noted for it’s rich history, culture, traditions. A state that has given heroes like Rana Pratap, Udai Singh, Amar Singh Rathore, Sawai Man Singh, people of unimpeachable integrity, honor and courage. A state whose colors, folklore, people blend together in a rich tapestry. Yet beyond the rich history, its colors, it’s ornate havelis, lies a state that has been notorious for it’s caste clashes, it’s feudalism, where even today customs like child marriage and Sati, hold sway.
Ghulami is the story of oppression, feudalism, and a band of intrepid bravehearts who rebel against the tyranny. In a way it is the sort of epic drama, which mixes up all the ingredients- action, drama, romance, tragedy, pathos to come out with a masterpiece that does not let you go.
Set in the fictional town of Fatehpur, which lies somewhere near the border in Rajasthan, Ghulami is the story of Ranjeet Singh Choudhury( Dharmendra), a born rebel, who does not take things lying down. Thrown out of his home, by his father, after he dares to question the tyranny of Bade Thakur( Om Shivpuri), he leaves swearing never to come back. When he does come back, a grown up man after his father’s passing away, he finds that his people are in a perpetual state of oppression. The Thakurs make the farmers mortgage their lands, work in their fields, and take advantage of their illiteracy, to keep them in perpetual economic bondage, ill treating them, harassing them.
Ranjeet now educated, well aware of the ways of the world, refuses to take things lying down, and rebels against them. Bade Thakur and his sons Shakti Singh( Bharat Kapoor) and Jaswant Singh( Mazhar Khan) control the town, terrorizing the inhabitants, molesting the women along with their cronies, the corrupt Thanedaar( Raza Murad), and the munimji( Anjan Srivastav). Sumitra( Smita Patil), Bade Thakur’s daughter, is more sympathetic to the cause of Ranjeet and his people, and hates what her father and brothers do.
Ranjeet meanwhile marries Moran( Reena Roy), a girl belonging to his place, while Sumitra’s marriage is fixed with SP Sultan Singh( Naseeruddin Shah), which is where the turning point comes. On the eve of Sultan Singh’s marriage, he slaughters a buffalo as per their tradition, and the dead body is dumped in the village well, rendering it unfit for use. This results in many people dying of thirst as well as those who had drank the water. Ranjeet is furious, and takes on the Thakurs head on, which only further deepens the hatred. Sultan Singh, later on, slaps, a false case on Ranjit, declaring him a rebel.
Along with Ranjit are two other principal characters, Gopi( Kulbhushan Kharbanda), a thanedaar, who goes distraught, when his son is shot dead by the Thakurs for the crime of taking out a baraat on the horse, and Jabbar( Mithun Chakraborty), a happy go lucky Fauji, in love with Tulsi( Anita Raaj), who becomes a rebel, when false cases are slapped on him and he is declared an outlaw. Ranjeet, Gopi and Jabbar, together join hands now to take on the Thakurs, as well as the entire police force, who have declared them as bandits.
From the starting frame to the ending frame, Ghulami is a movie that spells E-P-I-C. Ghulami is the reason, why we go to watch a movie in a theater. It is the sort of epic drama that catches you by your collar, and never lets you go. For a Bollywood movie that was shot in the 80’s, the technical and production values are outstanding. The camera work is exceptional, and would do Hollywood proud. Ghulami has some of the best camera work ever scene on Indian screen, capturing the beauty of the vast Rajasthan desert. Be it the sun setting or the wide screen Sergio Leone style shots of the desert or the interiors of the havelis with their intricately carved art work or the action scenes, the camera work is world class. I remember watching this on the big screen, when it came in 1985, and i was just blow away.