Swades: we the people , a film by Ashutosh Gowarieker , starring Shahrukh Khan as the lead along with Gayatri Joshi as his leading lady, is a film that talks about how a NRI named Mohan, who after spending 12 years abroad decides to come back to India to find his Amma, Kaveri Amma. In the process he notices a number of harsh aspects of village life which include poverty, illiteracy, child labour ,caste discrimination and so on. A lot of others like Mohan had surely seen these aspects but none of them took that one step that could change the life of a thousand. It was Mohan who had the courage enough to dissuade villagers from shifting local schools to isolated premises. Followed by a visit to another village Mohan realized that there were problems being faced by almost every village. Mohan then takes the much needed initiative to talk to the village residents and guides them through the building of a reservoir beneath a perennial spring on a hill. He spends his own money to buy turbines and he sets up a hydro electric power plant to solve the problem of irregular electricity and he succeeds in making the village self sufficient. Its that one step which brought the whole change and benefitted the villagers for the rest of their life. In the same way we too need to realize the importance of taking 'that one step'. Just like Mohan we also need to have the will to change the wrongs to rights. As its said god helps those who helps themselves, some times, to see a change we have to be the change. After visiting the village Mohan had new views about situations , in the same manner after watching this movie I too began to not just look at problems but analyze them ,take the step & make the change. This movie inspired me and got me to think of myself in a much higher way. I realized that it isn't that Mohan was an extra ordinary person , nor was he a superhero but it was only his effort that made him seem like one. So did I need to be extra ordinary? No, I just needed to make the necessary efforts. This movie taught me that anything is possible if we just believe. Swades was inspired by the story of Aravinda and Ravi Kuchimanchi , but it is in the future that I will say that my life story was indeed inspired by Swades. - Rtr. Riddhi Raghani

- Rtr. Mustansir Merchant

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