LOC Kargil
| LOC Kargil | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | J.P. Dutta |
| Produced by | J.P. Dutta |
| Screenplay by | J.P. Dutta |
| Story by | J.P. Dutta |
| Starring |
Sanjay Dutt Ajay Devgan Armaan Kohli Puru Raajkumar Nagarjuna Saif Ali Khan Sunil Shetty Sanjay Kapoor Abhishek Bachchan Mohnish Bahl Akshaye Khanna Manoj Bajpayee Rani Mukerji Kareena Kapoor Esha Deol Raveena Tandon |
| Music by | Anu Malik |
| Cinematography | Karim Khatri |
Production company |
J P Films |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 246 mins |
| Country | India |
| Language | Hindi |
| Budget | ₹400 million (US$5.9 million)[1] |
| Box office | ₹689 million (US$10 million)[1] |
LOC Kargil is 2003 Indian war film based on the Kargil War fought between India and Pakistan, produced and directed by J. P. Dutta under his J.P. Films Banner. Featuring a large number of Bollywood stars and music composed by Anu Malik, the film recorded as Average at the box-office.
Upon release LOC received a mixed response critically and commercially. With a running time of 255 minutes, it is one of the longest Indian films ever made and fifth in terms of running time.[2][3] The film is based on the 1999, Operation Vijay and Battle of Tololing around the Line of control.[4][5]
Plot
LOC Kargil opens with a dramatic shot of an Indian soldier's wireless set chirping frantic commands from one of the army bases, calling a patrol to report in while the radio operator lies dead in the snow. After frantic attempts from battalions to locate their lost patrols, the Indian Army HQ in Jammu and Kashmir decides to deploy more troops. They suffer a rude shock when company and even battalion-sized attacks are beaten back by the largely unknown enemy sitting on top of the steep and treacherous peaks surrounding Kargil, Mushkoh Valley, Drass, Batalik and the Kaksar sectors. After these terrible and surprising reverses, the decision is taken to go ahead with maximum mobilisation and move its best fighting units into the area of operations.
The first unit deployed is 1/11 Gorkha Rifles (1st Battalion, 11th Regiment) who are specialists in high-altitude warfare. 1/11 is led by its commanding officer, Col. Lalit Rai (Sudesh Berry), and has the charismatic and brave Lt. Manoj Pandey (Ajay Devgan) leading one of its platoons. Subsequently, the 18th Grenadiers (which was in the Kashmir Valley guarding against terrorist infiltration when they were urgently summoned to help throw out the intruders) are deployed. The Grenadiers were led by Colonel Khushal Thakur (Raj Babbar). Among the officers and soldiers were men like Lt. Col R Vishwanathan (Mohnish Behl), Major Rajesh Adhikari (Karan Nath), Lt. Balwan Singh (Akshaye Khanna), Captain Sachin Nimbalkar (Vineet Sharma), and Grenadiers Yogendra Singh Yadav (Ashutosh Rana & Manoj Bajpai). Other units like the 17th Jat, 2nd Rajputana Rifles, 22 & 16 Grenadiers, 2 Naga, 1 Bihar, 8 Sikh, 18 Garhwal Rifles, 12 JAK LI, 3 Punjab and 13th J&K Rifles are inducted into the theatre of conflict.
The first assault is by the 1/11 Gorkhas advance platoon led by Lt. Manoj Pandey which links with the beleaguered and severely mauled Sikh Bn. They follow up to launch its attack on Kukarthang post, a very heavily defended enemy position supported by mortar units and artillery batteries on the Pakistani side of LOC. The Gurkhas take Kukarthang after suffering heavy casualties, revealing that the enemy is a trained army unit being given full-fire support from across the LOC.
The second battle is at the strategic Tololing mountain which sits astride National Highway 1, the main supply route for the entire Northern Kashmir sector including Siachen and Leh. Col. Khushal's 18th Grenadiers 1st company, led by Major Adhikari, attacks Tololing. The company is held up midway to the top due to heavy fog; it waits for clear weather. The men when half asleep suffer intense shelling from artillery and mortars, causing casualties and panic. They try to get to safety by moving up the mountain but are pushed down by heavy small-arms fire from intruders dug into the well-prepared position atop the mountain. Subsequent counter-attacks from the Indians are stifled by stiff resistance, in the absence of artillery support for the Indians, claiming the lives of Major Adhikari and Lt. Col. Vishwanathan.
The 18th Grenadiers are relieved by 2nd Rajputana Rifles, commanded by Col. Ravindranath (Ashish Vidyarthi), which moves in with an artillery battery of 110 mm field artillery and acclimatised troops. They launch a multi-pronged attack under artillery cover which ends in success but at the cost of losing many officers and ranks, including Capt. Vijayant Thapar (Amar Upadhyay), Maj. Padmapani Acharya (Nagarjuna Akkineni) and Maj. Vivek Gupta (Himanshu Malik). All this happens while the 13th J&K Rifles led by Lt. Col. Y K Joshi (Sanjay Dutt) stands by in case the 2nd Raj Rif fails.
The 13th JAK Rif is blooded at Rocky Mount where they take the field after suffering heavy casualties. They follow it up with another victory at Point 5140 where Lt. Vikram Batra (Abhishek Bachchan) distinguishes himself by taking the south face of Pt 5140 without any casualties and is promoted to captain.
The decisive phase of the war has come. 18th Grenadiers are assigned to take Tiger Hill, 17th Jat to Three Pimple complex feature, 1/11 Gorkhas to Khalubar Ridge and 13th J&K to Bunker Complex. The Grenadiers take Tiger Hill after a daring stealth attack by the elite Ghatak section, losing its lead Nk Yogender Singh Yadav (Ashutosh Rana). Only one of them Grenadier Yogendra Singh Yadav (Manoj Bajpayee) survives to link up with the rest of the battalion. 17th Jat suffers heavy casualties with Captain Anuj Nayyar (Saif Ali Khan) and several others killed and injured, but is able to secure Three Pimple complex.
1/11 Gorkhas link up with 22 Grenadiers at the base of Khalubar Ridge after braving an intense creeping barrage of artillery. Pandey somehow keeps the sagging morale of the weary unit up till the battalion begins its attack. The plans go awry as Gurkha CO Col Rai is injured by machine gun fire. Pandey volunteers to take out the bunkers which are holding up the attack. The machine guns are taken out, but Pandey is killed in action.
The last battle is fought by the 13th J&K attacking Bunker Complex, but the unit gets split up. Capt Batra is sent to link up with Captain Nagappa (Nagender Choudhary) who has been captured one bunker and surrounded by the enemy. Batra links up with Capt. Nagappa but is pinned down himself by heavy enemy fire. He single-handedly takes out two bunkers but is mortally wounded. The 13th JAK pursues the enemy to the LOC but stops due to orders not to cross the LOC. Finally, India declares 'OPERATION VIJAY' a success and victory and secures all its captured heights from the adversary.
Just like J. P. Dutta's previous war movie BORDER, the Indian Military provided technical and material assistance during its production and filming. Weapons used in Kargil War like different variants of INSAS rifle family as well as the Famous Swedish Bofors artillery guns and BM-21 multiple rocket launchers. Air Force planes like Jaguars in bombing role and helicopters like Mi-17s and Cheetah were shown in casualty evacuation roles. Pakistani artillery shown were Indian field guns and 81 mm mortars. SLR stood for G3 rifles used by Pakistani Army.
Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Sanjay Dutt | Lt Col. Yoghesh Kumar Joshi, 13 J&K Rifles |
| Ayub Khan | Major P.S. Janghu, 17 Jat |
| Ajay Devgan | Capt. Manoj Kumar Pandey, 1/11 Gorkha Rifles |
| Sunil Shetty | Rfn Sanjay Kumar, 13 J&K Rifles |
| Saif Ali Khan | Capt. Anuj Nayyar, 17 Jat |
| Sanjay Kapoor | Maj. Deepak Rampal, 17 Jat |
| Amit Behl | Maj. Ajay Singh Jasrotia, 13 J&K Rifles |
| Abhishek Bachchan | Capt. Vikram Batra, 13 J&K Rifles |
| Akshaye Khanna | Lt. Balwan Singh Pandial, 18 Grenadiers |
| Manoj Bajpayee | Gren. Yogendra Singh Yadav, 18 Grenadiers |
| Nagarjuna | Maj. Acharya Padmapani, 2 Rajputana Rifles |
| Amar Upadhyay | Capt. Vijayant Thapar, 2 Rajputana Rifles |
| Ashutosh Rana | Grenadier Yogender Singh, 18 Grenadiers |
| Karan Nath | Maj. Rajesh Adhikari, 18 Grenadiers |
| Raj Babbar | Col. Khushal Thakur, 18 Grenadiers |
| Mohnish Bahl | Lt Col. R. Viswanathan, 18 Grenadiers |
| Sudesh BerryCol. Lalit Rai, 1/11 Gorkha Rifles | |
| Avtar Gill | Sub. Digendra Kumar, 2 Rajputana Rifles |
| Milind Gunaji | Maj. Rajesh Adhau, 13 J&K Rifles |
| Kiran Kumar | Col. Umesh Singh Bawa, 17 Jat |
| Bikram Saluja | Capt. Sanjeev Jamwal, 13 J&K Rifles |
| Ashish Vidyarthi | Col. Magod Basappa Ravindranath, 2 Rajputana Rifles |
| Mukesh Tiwari | Lt. Col. Asthana, 1/11 Gorkha Rifles |
| Vineet Sharma | Capt. Sachin Annarao Nimbalkar, 18 Grenadiers |
| Nagender Choudhary | Capt. Nagappaa, 13 J&K Rifles |
| Armaan Kohli | Maj. Vikas Vohra, 13 J&K Rifles |
| Actress | Role |
|---|---|
| Rani Mukerji | Hema (Manoj Pandey's love interest) |
| Raveena Tandon | Deepak's wife |
| Kareena Kapoor | Simran (Anuj Nayyar's love interest) |
| Preeti Jhangiani | Balwaan's love interest |
| Mahima Chaudhry | Reena Yadav |
| Esha Deol | Dimple (Vikram Batra's love interest) |
| Isha Koppikar | Rifleman Sanjay's fiancee |
| Divya Dutta | Yogendra Yadav's wife |
| Priya Gill | Charulatha (Acharya Padmapani's wife) |
| Namrata Shirodkar | YK Joshi's wife |
| Akanksha Malhotra | Kiran Adhikari (Rajesh Singh Adhikari's wife) |
| Maya Alagh | Manoj Pandey's mother |
Soundtrack
| LOC Kargil | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Film score by Anu Malik | ||||
| Released | 2003 | |||
| Genre | Soundtrack | |||
| Length | 51:07 | |||
| Label | Saregama Music | |||
| Anu Malik chronology | ||||
| ||||
Music composed by Anu Malik. Lyrics written by famous Indian lyricist Javed Akhtar. Music released on SAREGAMA Music Company.
| No. | Title | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Pyar Bhare Geet" | Sonu Nigam, Shreya Ghoshal | 9:23 |
| 2. | "Main Kahin Bhi Rahoon" | Udit Narayan, Sonu Nigam, Roop Kumar Rathod, Hariharan, Sukhwinder Singh | 12:52 |
| 3. | "Ek Saathi Aur Bhi Tha" | Sonu Nigam | 8:32 |
| 4. | "Seemaaye Bulaaye" | Alka Yagnik | 7:59 |
| 5. | "Khush Rehena" | Roop Kumar | 6:35 |
| 6. | "Before We Forget" | Instrumental | 5:46 |
Total length: |
51:07 | ||
References
- 1 2 LOC: Kargil (2003) – Box office / business
- ↑ The Hindu : LOC-Kagil: How `real'?
- ↑ Patriotic films to watch this Independence Day – | Photo9 | India Today |
- ↑ LOC – KARGIL – Review | Movie Review | Ratings – Seemayen Bulaayen Tujhe Chal Raahi . . . – MouthShut.com – MouthShut.com
- ↑ 'LOC Kargil' (2003) – Biggest B.O hits of the Decade