Atal Bihari Vajpayee: How Ranbir Kapoor's Sanju and John Abraham's Parmanu Portrayed Atalji in Two Different Outlooks

The former Prime Minister of India, Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee, passed away in the afternoon of August 16. He was 93. The three-time PM and the first president of the Bhartiya Janata Party, Vajpayee was a much-revered leader in the political circles. His demise is being mourned by the whole country. The current Prime Minister, Narendra Modi had tweeted, "India grieves the demise of our beloved Atal Ji. His passing away marks the end of an era. He lived for the nation and served it assiduously for decades. My thoughts are with his family, BJP Karyakartas and millions of admirers in this hour of sadness. Om Shanti."

Atal Bihari Vajpayee was one of the few Prime Ministers who had also left a legacy in Bollywood. One of his poems, Kya Khoya Kya Paya, was recreated as a music video in 2002, featuring Shah Rukh Khan. He had also rechristened the name of a film, Nidaan, that was directed by Mahesh Manjrekar and was based on AIDS awareness.

This year itself, Vajpayee had his influence in two big movies. One showed him in a positive light, while the other took a potshot at him.

John Abraham's Parmanu: The Story of Pokhran is, as you know, based on the 1998 Pokhran tests. It featured televised footage of Vajpayee swearing in as the then PM, as well as giving speeches in the Parliament. It was also shown that it was his regime that made it possible for the protagonists to conduct the Pokhran tests.

As for Sanju, the former PM is not mentioned directly. But there is a somewhat comical scene in the movie, where Ranbir Kapoor as Sanjay Dutt goes to meet a veteran politician in New Delhi to save him from jail in the '90s. The unnamed politician, played by Anjan Shrivastav, had the same walking gait and speech pattern like the late Vajpayee. The scene shows him dozing off with his eyes open when Dutt pleads with him and acts as if he is having some memory loss. Sanju then says that he is not sure if the politician is really having a medical condition or if he is faking it. Even though the movie doesn't really name him, many could guess that Sanju was taking a dig at the former PM.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 16, 2018 07:16 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).