Gandhi Jayanthi Special: Ben Kingsley in Gandhi, Naseeruddin Shah in Hey Ram! - 10 Actors Who Memorably Portrayed 'Father of Our Nation' in Films

Today is Mahatma Gandhi's birthday, and more than being a public holiday, it is time for us to revisit the values the Father of Our Nation had taught us. And if you are too busy or lazy to go read about Bapuji, unlike Sanjay Dutt's Munna Bhai in Lage Raho Munna Bhai, might we suggest to check out some movies made on Mahatma Gandhi, ranging from the most positive to more humane to greyer shaded.

Considering that Mahatma Gandhi has been considered as the most well-known leader of our freedom fight internationally, he has even inspired the West to make a film on him. Bollywood, or rather Indian cinema, did not fall behind as we had several popular actors portraying different takes on Mahatma Gandhi, all sticking to principles that he had stuck rigidly his whole life. Check out 10 most popular cinematic versions of Gandhiji that we have seen and, hopefully, loved over the years.

Ben Kingsley in Gandhi

Of course, how can we start this list without the actor who is thought the most about when it comes to cinematic representation of Mahatma Gandhi. The Indian-origin Hollywood actor Ben Kingsley had played the lead in Richard Attenborough's epic 1982 film, Gandhi, that won him and the film Oscars.

Rajit Kapoor in The Making of the Mahatma

Rajit Kapoor won his first National Award for the Best Actor playing a younger Mahatma Gandhi in Shyam Benegal's The Making of the Mahatma.

Annu Kapoor in Sardar

While this Ketan Mehta film is focused on the life of Sardar Vallabhai Patel, played by Paresh Rawal, Annu Kapoor's Mahatma Gandhi also had an integral part in the movie.

Naseeruddin Shah in Hey Ram!

In this fictional narrative based on real-life incidents, Kamal Haasan is a man hell-bent on killing Mahatma Gandhi, after his wife is brutally raped and killed in partition violence. However, he later realises the follies of his future actions, but couldn't save Gandhiji from getting killed by Nathuram Godse.

Darshan Jariwala in Gandhi, My Father

For me, Darshan Jarivala's take on Mahatma Gandhi could be the best, most humane take on our Father of the Nation (though the movie disappoints in parts). Interestingly, Boman Irani has played the same iteration in the play that inspired the movie.

Mohan Gokhale in Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar

The late actor, Mohan Gokhale, played Gandhiji in this Jabbar Patel film, whose views often clashed with the titular freedom fighter and Dalit activist. Malayalam superstar Mammootty had played the lead role.

Dilip Prabhavalkar in Lage Raho Munna Bhai

The Gandhiji that was considered cool by the Generation X. Back by Rajkumar Hirani's director, Dilip Prabhavalkar's Gandhi taught the 21st century some very important lessons of Gandhigiri through Sanjay Dutt's Munna Bhai.

Surendra Rajan in Veer Savarkar, The Legend of Bhagat Singh and Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose: The Forgotten Hero

Surendra Rajan is the only actor who has played Gandhiji the maximum times. Interestingly, whenever he had played Gandhi, the movies have often been accused of showing him in a bad light.

Avijit Dutt in Dear Friend Hitler

In this strange film where Raghubir Yadav played the Fuhrer and Neha Dhupia his mistress Eva Braun, Gandhiji had a small but important role. The movie is reportedly based on the letters written by Mohandas Gandhi to the leader of the Nazi Party.

Neeraj Kabi in Viceroy’s House

Neeraj Kabi, who played the vicious ACP in Sacred Games, also played the benevolent Bapu in this. He had also played Gandhiji in the TV series Samvidhaan.

So whose portrayal of Mahatma Gandhi did you like the most? Share your thoughts in the comments section.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 02, 2018 10:00 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).