At the Red Lorry Film Festival in Mumbai, Aamir Khan and filmmaker Ashutosh Gowariker came together to celebrate 25 years of their landmark film Lagaan — a project that not only redefined sports dramas in Indian cinema but also overcame massive uncertainty at the time of its release.
‘An unusual film for Indian cinema’
Looking back, Aamir recalled how the odds were stacked against the film. “Seven to eight sports films had flopped before Lagaan released,” he said, calling it an “unusual film for Indian cinema.” The actor also opened up about creative disagreements with Gowariker, particularly over his character Bhuvan’s clean-shaven look in a drought-stricken village.
The shaving debate that never quite ended
Revealing who won the argument, Aamir admitted with a smile, “Eventually Ashutosh won the spat, but be honest, Bhuvan should have been how I look now.”Defending his choice, Gowariker explained, “Lagaan was an experimental film and script; I had to do fresh casting for other characters. I only had one Aamir Khan, and I thought he had to look handsome in the film. He was supposed to be clean-shaven, have a slightly different hairstyle, and no moustache. I thought that was more important for the film.”
‘Where was he getting water to shave?’
The banter didn’t end there. Aamir playfully pointed out a logical inconsistency in the film’s setting. “Tell me one thing, it wasn’t raining in that village, there was no water to drink, and this guy was shaving every day—how come the entire village didn’t beat him up?” he quipped.He added, “Bhuvan was getting water to shave every day, while other villagers didn’t even have water to drink. No one reacted to it that time, but it’s a logical question as to why he was shaving—that should be the last thing on his mind.” Released in 2001, Lagaan went on to become one of the most iconic films in Hindi cinema. It was also nominated at the Academy Awards in 2002, cementing its global legacy.
