As Anil Sharma’s blockbuster Gadar: Ek Prem Katha approaches its 25th anniversary, actress Ameesha Patel has reflected on the film’s unprecedented success and the overwhelming love she received from audiences across borders. The actress, who immortalised the character of Sakina opposite Sunny Deol’s Tara Singh, revealed that the film’s impact was so profound that several parents named their daughters after her iconic character.In a recent conversation with NDTV, Ameesha recalled the response she received from Pakistan after the release of Gadar: Ek Prem Katha in 2001.“I got the biggest Pakistani fanbase due to Gadar, and I had women calling my secretary. Somehow getting the numbers, elderly women called and said, ‘Kya Ameesha ji, Pakistan ko apne rula diya, Sakina ne rula diya’,” she said.The actress further revealed that many parents were deeply moved by the film and her portrayal of Sakina.“Then parents calling and saying humne apne beti ka naam Sakina rakh diya hai. They loved Gadar,” she added.
‘I didn’t even have time to digest how big a hit it was’
Looking back at the film’s historic theatrical run, Ameesha said the scale of Gadar’s success was unlike anything she had witnessed before.“It became the biggest hit on the first day of release itself because it got 100% opening all over India, single screens. They just lapped it up. It was a single-screen audience,” she recalled.The actress admitted that she was juggling multiple projects at the time and could not fully process the phenomenon that Gadar had become.“It was such a hectic time because in those days, actors used to do five films at a time in a year. So I was juggling between set to set of other films. And I didn’t even have time to digest what a humongous, monstrous hit it had become,” she said.
Ameesha Patel compares Gadar franchise’s footfalls with Dhurandhar
As Gadar: Ek Prem Katha nears its silver jubilee, Ameesha expressed gratitude for being part of one of Indian cinema’s most successful franchises.Reflecting on the success of both Gadar films, she claimed that the franchise continues to enjoy unmatched popularity among moviegoers.“We’ve come to this journey 25 years later, and we’re still iconic. And we’ve had a part two that has created a tsunami at the box office and become iconic,” she said.Ameesha further claimed that the combined theatrical footfalls of Gadar and Gadar 2 surpass those of the Dhurandhar franchise.“Combined, Gadar 1 and Gadar 2 have the biggest footfalls, more than even Dhurandhar 1 and 2. Just purely on footfalls — that means the amount of people that have actually entered the cinema houses to watch both films. It is so heartening,” she stated.
‘Playing Sakina feels surreal even today’
The actress said she feels blessed to have been chosen to portray Sakina, a character that continues to resonate with audiences decades later.“To thank my audiences for that, God for it and the opportunity to be chosen to play Sakina, my most esteemed character and my toughest one at that time because I was too raw. It just feels surreal,” Ameesha concluded.
