- Sunny Deols Batwara 1947 faces box office struggles despite positive reviews
- Investors deemed the film risky due to its Muslim character and Partition theme
- Director Rajkumar Santoshi noted financiers preferred a typical action film
Sunny Deol's Batwara 1947 is in theatres, and despite positive reviews from critics and fans, the film is struggling at the box office. Now, director Rajkumar Santoshi has revealed that investors considered the film “risky” for its subject.
During an interview with Galatta Plus, Santoshi said: “Most of the investors here in Mumbai came to know that Sunny Deol and I were doing a film; they wanted me to do a regular action film, a vigilante film. They were not ready to take this film, where Sunny is playing a Muslim character,” he revealed.
Rajkumar Santoshi also shared that the film's subject made many potential financiers cautious. “That became a major problem for us; investors didn't want to take such a risky subject. Now, the trend has become that even if you say Pakistan, you are considered anti-national. They wanted us to make a film like Ghayal or Ghatak where Sunny is beating everyone,” Santoshi shared, adding that Aamir Khan was aware of the subject and was very supportive. “He mentioned that he would produce it if nobody did,” Rajkumar said.
Speaking about Sunny Deol's character in the film, the director explained that he had been reading reviews describing Sunny as Pakistani but revealed that the actor's character is actually a Muslim man uprooted from India and migrated to Pakistan to save his life and protect his family.
Batwara 1947 marks Rajkumar Santoshi and Sunny Deol's reunion after nearly 30 years. The duo previously collaborated in various films, including Ghayal, Damini, and Ghatak. Batwara 1947 is based on Asghar Wajahat's 1989 play Jis Lahore Nai Vekhya, O Jmaya E Nai.
The film follows a married couple forced to migrate to Pakistan following Partition. After arriving, they are allotted a house where they find a Hindu woman residing there. Sunny Deol's character vows to protect the Hindu woman while also trying to keep his family safe. Alongside Sunny Deol, Batwara 1947 stars Preity Zinta, Shabana Azmi, Ali Fazal, and Karan Deol in other prominent roles.
