Gadar: Ek Prem Katha is a Bollywood film released in 2001, directed by Anil Sharma. The movie is set against the backdrop of the Partition of India in 1947 and tells the story of a Sikh truck driver, Tara Singh (played by Sunny Deol), who falls in love with a Muslim woman, Sakina (played by Ameesha Patel), during the turbulent times of the partition.
Now, after almost 22 years, Tara and Sakina are back to relive the old memories of their audience, but with some twists. Ever since the announcement of making the film, the patience of the fans has no limits, and finally only one day is left for the film to hit theatres. The audience has also started booking in advance, and 1.3 lakh tickets have already been sold for the first day of the show.
There is a lot of buzz and excitement, and if we add that the film Gadar you have seen and are going to see its sequel is a real-based story of an ex-soldier, Boota Singh.
Yes, you read it right! Sunny Deol’s character as Tara Singh is inspired by the life of the ex-soldier of the British Army, Boota Singh, who served on the Burma front under the command of Lord Mountbatten during World War II. He had a famous love story with a Muslim girl named Zainab that is well-known in both India and Pakistan. Boota Singh lived in Ludhiana, which is located in East Punjab.
According to reports, during the time of the partition between India and Pakistan, a number of Muslim families faced violence and were forced to run in East Punjab. In one instance, a young Muslim girl named Zainab was taken captive by a group of people heading towards Pakistan. However, a man named Boota Singh intervened and managed to rescue Zainab. As they spent time together, an affectionate bond developed between Boota Singh and Zainab, eventually leading to their marriage. They had two daughters, named Tanveer and Dilveer.
Soon their love story turned into a tragedy when the Indian and Pakistani governments signed an Inter-Dominion Treaty due to which it became necessary to recover as many women as possible from both countries.
Reports said, one of the search parties became aware of Boota Singh’s house when his nephews provided information about Zainab’s whereabouts. Zainab’s desires were not taken into consideration by the authorities. It is said that the entire village gathered to bid farewell to Zainab as she emerged, holding her young daughter, Dilveer. Zainab was reunited with her family, who resided in the small village of Nurpur, situated on the outskirts of Lahore.
Changes came in Zainab’s life when her parents died and her sister became the legal heirs of the property. And her uncle pressured her to marry his son. Later, Boota received a letter from Pakistan, which was written by Zainab’s neightour on her request. He went to the Delhi authorities and asked them to bring his wife and daughter back.
For his wife and daughter, Boota was left with no other solution than to convert to Islam. To get them back, he illegally entered Pakistan. But Zainab’s family refused to accept him and handed him over to the Pakistani authorities. Zainab also had no option due to family pressure; she refused to return with Boota Singh to the court and asked the officials to send his daughter with him.
Boota Singh was broken after going through such a difficult ordeal, and he and his daughter committed suicide by jumping in front of the train near Shahdara station in Pakistan, but she survived.
Having experienced such a harrowing experience, Boota Singh was profoundly shattered. He tragically took his own life by leaping in front of a train close to the Shahdara station in Pakistan, attempting to end his life along with his daughter, who fortunately survived. However, Boota Singh’s story didn’t end there. In his suicide letter, he expressed his desire to be laid to rest in the village where his beloved wife, Zainab, hailed from. But the family didn’t allow this wish. As a result, Boota Singh was ultimately buried at Miani Sahib in Lahore.
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