Gul Makai

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Gul Makai
Movie Poster of Gul Makai.jpg
Directed byH.E. Amjad khan
Written byBhaswati Chakrabarty
Screenplay byBhaswati Chakrabarty
Produced bySanjay Singhla
Preeti Vijay Jaju
Starring Reem Shaikh
Atul Kulkarni
Divya Dutta
Om Puri
Arif Zakaria
CinematographyMadhu Rao
Javed Ethesham
Edited byPraveen Angre
Music byAmar Mohile
Production
company
Tekno Films
Distributed by Pen India Limited
Release date
  • 31 January 2020 (2020-01-31)
Running time
130 minutes [1]
CountryIndia
LanguagesHindi
Urdu

Gul Makai is a 2020 Indian biographical drama film directed by H.E. Amjad Khan, written by Bhaswati Chakrabarty, and produced Tekno Films. The film is based on the life of Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani activist for female education and the youngest Nobel Prize laureate. [2]

Contents

Reem Shaikh stars as Malala. [3] The film also features the late Om Puri in his final acting role.

The film was released on 31 January 2020. [4]

Plot

Gul Makai accounts for the courageous journey and struggle of 2014 Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai, starting from her humble upbringing in the Swat Valley in northwestern Pakistan to her becoming the champion of free education for all women. When Swat Valley was seized by Taliban gunmen in 2009, Malala spoke out for the rights of girls, especially the right to receive a complete education. She started blogging on the BBC Urdu website under the pseudonym Gul Makai, against the oppression faced by them in the Swat Valley. As she continued her activism, gaining worldwide recognition and support, she was hunted down and shot by a Taliban gunman as part of the organization's violent opposition to girls' education.

Cast

Production

H.E. Amjad Khan decided to make a film on Malala's life and struggle in 2012, after the assassination attempt on her. [5] After the film was announced, Bhaswati Chakrabarty spent 4 years researching and writing the script.

Several hundred actresses had auditioned for the role of Malala by the time 16-year-old Bangladeshi student, Fatima Sheikh, was cast. [6] [7] Sheikh's casting resulted in severe backlash from religious extremists and despite efforts to conceal her identity, the actress ultimately had to turn down the role due to safety concerns. The role was then offered to child actress Reem Shaikh. [8]

Veteran Bollywood actors Om Puri, Divya Dutta, Mukesh Rishi and Arif Zakaria were revealed in supporting roles. According to Khan, physical resemblance to the characters' real-life counterparts was given special consideration during casting. [9]

Gul Makai went into production in late 2016 on location in Bhuj (Gujarat) and Mumbai. [10] Portions of the film set to shoot in Kashmir at the time were postponed due to the region's ongoing conflict. [11] Filming resumed in January 2018 and was completed the same month.

The film was edited by National Award-winning editor, Praveen Angre, and went through extensive VFX work to recreate the Swat Valley landscape and combat scenes.

Soundtrack

Gul Makai
Soundtrack album by
H.E. Amjad Khan
Released23 January 2020
Genre Filmi Soundtrack
Length20:04
LanguageHindi
Label Tekno Music
Producer Sanjay Singla
Preeti Vijay Jaju
External audio
Nuvola apps arts.svg Gul Makai on iTunes

The film's score was composed by Amar Mohile. The title song was written by Bhaswati Chakrabarty and the remaining songs were written and composed by H.E. Amjad Khan.

No.TitleSinger(s)Length
1."Maula Mere" Kailash Kher 7:22
2."Gudda Guddi"Azmat Hussain5:23
3."Haq Maula"H.E. Amjad Khan, Piyush Mishra 7:19
Total length:20:04

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References

  1. "Gul Makai (2019)". British Board of Film Classification . Retrieved 29 January 2020.
  2. "Malala Yousafzai biopic 'Gul Makai' being shot in Kashmir - Times of India". The Times of India.
  3. "TV actress Reem to play Malala Yousafzai in Amjad Khan's GUL MAKAI". glamsham.com. Archived from the original on 18 August 2018. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  4. "Malala Yousafzai's biopic 'Gul Makai' to release on January 31". The Economic Times. Retrieved 20 December 2019.
  5. "'Radio Mullah' sent hit squad after Malala Yousafzai | The Express Tribune". The Express Tribune. 12 October 2012. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  6. "Bangladeshi student Fatima Sheikh to play the role of Pakistani". The Independent. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  7. "Amjad Khan ropes in Bangladeshi girl to play Malala Yousufzai". Business Standard India. Press Trust of India. 31 May 2013. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  8. "TV Child Actor Reem Sheikh to Play Malala Yousafzai in 'Gul Makai'". The Quint. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  9. "Gul Makai's First Poster Has Reem Shaikh Bearing A Strong Resemblance With Malala Yousafzai". India.com. 2 September 2017. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  10. "Shooting of 'Gul Makai'- biopic on Malala resumes in September". thenews.com.pk. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  11. "The filming of Malala Yousafzai's biopic to resume from September". Deccan Chronicle . 8 August 2017. Retrieved 2 July 2018.