Free Bapu! Free Bapu!
Order order! Order in the court, I said! Order!
What is this exhibition?
How dare you make a mockery of my courtroom...
Proceed.
Mr. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi...
It is claimed that you are inciting an unrest
by encouraging the farmers to turn against the administration.
Your Honour,
farmers are being forced to grow indigo instead of food grains.
Most are dying of hunger.
Free Bapu! Free Bapu!
Order, order! Order, I said!
Furthermore, you have been accused of breaking the law
by refusing to leave the district
even when asked to by the District Magistrate.
How do you plead?
In obedience to the higher law of my conscience,
I plead guilty to breaking the lesser law of the British Raj.
Is it your wish to be imprisoned?
As you wish, Your Honour.
I shall order your release
subject to bail set at a hundred rupees.
I have no money to pay, Your Honour.
Nor do I have anyone to pay it for me.
Alright, then.
If this is truly the case
then I shall grant your release without any payment.
Case dismissed.
Victory to Gandhi-ji! Victory to Gandhi-ji!
Uh, Mr. Gandhi! Uh, Mr. Gandhi!
Excuse me! Sorry, one second! Excuse me, excuse me, excuse me, one second.
Mr. Gandhi! One second, one second. Mr. Gandhi. Mr. Gandhi!
Sir! Sir.
Victory to Gandhi-ji! Victory to Gandhi-ji!
Sir, I have been following your unique methods from your time in South Africa.
And I must say, satyagraha is a remarkable idea.
And what you just did inside was nothing short of a revolution!
You made the mighty British empire eat humble pie.
I can speak in Hindustani too.
You are Motilal-ji's son...right?
Yes.
This satyagraha needs more youngsters like yourself.
Please tell me... what can I do?
You have finished your studies abroad?
Cambridge.
Cambridge?
Do they teach you how to take 'shapath' in Cambridge?
Er... Shapath?
Oath.
Oath!
Come with me.
Victory to Gandhi-ji! Victory to Gandhi-ji!
The riots in Calcutta have now spread to the villages.
Hindus are being massacred in the Noakhali district of southeastern Bengal.
Over a hundred thousand Hindus find themselves
homeless in the 400 villages of Noakhali.
However, it is the women who have been subjected to the most cruelty
thousands have been raped, kidnapped, or forcefully converted.
Mr. Iyengar of the Congress has released
an official statement on the subject of this violence
The Muslim League government in Bengal
is either incapable of curtailing the riots, or unwilling.
And your government? What has Delhi done to curb the violence in Bengal?
Or is it that you think simply blaming the Muslim League will stop the riots?
300 people have been killed in Metiabruz,
and hundreds are injured and displaced in areas like Ramganj, Raipur, and Faridganj.
The casualties are no less than three or four thousand!
Could it be that the Congress perceives
a political advantage in the protraction of these riots?
Enough, I say.
Enough!
We cannot sit on the sidelines and watch more innocents lose their lives!
Bengal is drowning and the British haven't even left yet!
If they get Pakistan, things will only get worse!
I don't know how we will do it
but the provinces where the League has a majority we must break it!
Agreed.
But the League has won only 2 provinces Sindh and Bengal.
And that is not enough to get them Pakistan.
And as for the provinces Jinnah wants those are ours!
They will not have those provinces for long.
I want the 'P' in Pakistan.
Well, Punjab has always been ours.
Even today, the League has a majority in the assembly.
Hmm.
Without Punjab, our dream of Pakistan is incomplete.
It doesn't matter who has more seats...
as long as the Sikhs and the Congress are allied with Chief Minister Tiwana,
Punjab will continue to have a Unionist Party government.
The League is tempting our members in every way to break them away from us.
What they don't understand is, a man's principles cannot be bought.
Although I am a Muslim, I am strongly against the League's philosophy.
Besides, the Congress supports us completely.
Punjab is ours, and inshallah, it will remain so.
Don't worry.
Tiwana has betrayed his faith as well as his community
by jumping into bed with the Congress and the Akalis!
If we can't win Tiwana over, break him.
For shame, CM Tiwana!
Take the car ahead! Where is the police?
For shame, CM Tiwana!
Did you read this?
Five more members have deserted our party to join the League!
Jinnah will continue breaking our party until we comply with his idea of Pakistan!
For shame, CM Tiwana!
Jinnah sahab likes to talk about peace and progress...
but these are the true colours of the League!
Maulana sahab, please phone Tiwana.
You were right, Jawahar.
We cannot let Jinnah have his way.
We must win back Sindh and Bengal from the League, by hook or by crook.
We can form alliances with the smaller parties over there
and break some of the League's MLAs.
And we should speak with the new Viceroy
Governor's Rule must be instated in Bengal until the upcoming elections.
Bapu...
where are you going?
Noakhali.
Somebody must help put the flames out.
Bapu, you know it is extremely dangerous for you to be there at this time!
In my country,
among my people, where is the danger, Maulana?
Bapu, truth and non-violence are hard to come by these days!
Your country, your people have changed!
And so has the Congress!
I have been listening for two days now.
First you count the casualties,
and then the seats.
Bapu, there is no way to stop these riots except by ensuring
a win against the League in every single province!
Winning the elections might bring you closer to power.
But it will not bring you closer to the people.
What the government cannot achieve,
the people will.
-Bapu, why don't you understand th -Bapu...
Whatever Noakhali needs
ration, medicine, clothes
we have made provisions for it to be delivered...
Can you deliver hope?
Then come with me to Noakhali.
Come.
Bapu,
it is important that I remain in Delhi to meet the new Viceroy
and prevent the League from causing even more havoc.
There was a time when you followed me everywhere, no questions asked...
but perhaps Congress president Pandit Nehru is too busy now.
If no one responds to your call,
then go your own way alone...
Lord and Lady Mountbatten have arrived from London
to New Delhi airport today...
Where they were welcomed by the military secretary
on behalf of the retiring Viceroy Lord Wavell.
The weight of history lies on their shoulders,
as they will be the ones to lead India into her freedom.
No, Mr. Patel! I cannot impose Governor's Rule in Bengal
because the League will assume I am biased in favour of the Congress.
Ah, welcome to India!
George?
George Abell, sir. I'll be serving as your aide-de-camp.
How do you do?
The Grand Master of the Order of the Star of India.
My great grandmother's legacy...
Beautiful.
Hope this is not your Koh-i-Noor, a curse on whoever wears it.
I doubt it. I'm not much for superstition.
Superstition! This damn country is full of it!
I only wish this instatement had come your way in better times.
I don't envy you the task you have to face.
If we move swiftly, perhaps it's not too late.
I am very much afraid it is.
Believe me when I say that I've tried everything.
As I see it, there is just no way of keeping this country intact.
We can only try our best.
India's unity is Britain's greatest legacy.
And I, for one, wish to maintain it at all costs.
"Operation Madhouse"?
When the dam breaks, and it shall, consider this your lifeboat.
I only wish I could give you more.
Surely there's some chance of salvation.
Salvation is for the righteous.
Bengal has already seen two bloodbaths.
And the people of Punjab are not ones to be outdone.
But, good luck!
One that stands with him, stands against Pakistan and Allah himself!
"TRAITOR"
"TIWANA IS A TRAITOR"
Pakistan, Pakistan! We will fight for our Pakistan!
"TIWANA ISSUES ARREST WARRANTS FOR MUSLIM LEAGUE LEADERS"
There will be no more rallies on the streets, Patel sahab.
All League leaders have been imprisoned.
You are right, Tiwana sahab.
However, the League newspapers are still spewing poison.
The streets are empty because the poison is already at people's doorsteps.
Have faith, Vallabhbhai.
We will not be strong-armed by the League into betraying our Hindu and Sikh citizens.
Good day.
Yes, beta?
It does not fit!
Oh no! What will we do?
Here you go.
Quaid, Tiwana is using all his might to quash our movement!
Liaquat, he is not quashing it.
He is fanning the flame!
If Tiwana wants to martyr us, let us be martyred.
Play the victim card.
And you will see more and more people mobilized.
We've got Tiwana exactly where we wanted him.
Now, break his spirit!
The new Viceroy should be aware that we mean business!
Right?
Oh, by all means, don't wait for me.
All I ever do, Dickie, is wait for you.
I merely asked for something to nibble on while I do so.
If Attlee
could see the portion sizes now he might not be in such a tearing hurry to leave!
It was a mistake to come.
"Operation Madhouse"?
Wavell's plan for British evacuation.
I mean, it's all standard procedure.
Women and children first.
Followed by civilian males. Then the troops.
I mean, he's got it all planned out.
Our capitulation and consequent withdrawal.
The man's a dinosaur.
Right. We've got some changes to make. Let's make a fresh start.
In truth,
I was thinking... what if we brought back the old pre-war pomp?
The swearing-in with all its grandeur and circumstance!
Why? It's already so frightfully formal here.
Charm. Tradition... and its rituals need not be overbearing.
It can be... seductive!
And Lord knows I need to seduce! I mean, what if we give 'em the ol' razzle-dazzle?
So, statecraft over cocktails?
Your detractors will not approve favourably!
Let them. It is their like that got us into this mess.
I must organise a press attach .
That's another novel pursuit.
I need to control the na no, no, sorry,
we need to control the narrative,
ensure that public perception remains favourable towards us.
It can be our own little operation, hm?
Call it, um...
[dramatically] Operation Seduction!
Yes, that's it.
Operation Seduction. Ha! Brilliant!
Where do you go for a piss around here? Hm?
Invite them.
To the inauguration?
Yes, Mr. Gandhi, I believe, is touring the jungle somewhere.
Please maintain some distance...
[speaking in Bengali]
Some people here were unlucky...
the ones that were lucky...
are dead.
Jawahar.
I know what you're thinking.
Bapu is in Noakhali and we are here, wasting our time.
Don't worry.
Bapu will be fine.
I, Louis Francis Victor Mountbatten,
swear that I bear true allegiance to his majesty,
King George VI ... Emperor of India,
his heirs and his successors...
According to the law,
so help me God.
There has been a massacre!
A lot of blood has been shed.
Countless people have died. A lot of farmers have been butchered.
Where do I even begin?
-You are already talking too much. -You keep quiet!
STOP!
What's all this?
Bapu... Bapu...
Stop right there! Go away from here!
-Bapu, don't go ahead. -Please don't go ahead!
-Don't go, Bapu! -Turn back, Bapu!
STOP!
-Bapu, please don't go ahead! -Please don't, Bapu!
-Take a step back, Bapu! -Don't, Bapu!
Come back! Come back!
-Bapu! -Bapu!
Come back!
Bapu! Bapu!
-Careful! -Bapu!
Bapu...
Bapu, come carefully...
Ah! There was once a man, unlike anyone.
Though he won in the end, he was left with no friends.
Because he was a grump, who could never have any fun!
A penny for your thoughts, Vallabhbhai?
I am wondering... which side of the fence this new Viceroy will come down on.
Ours, or the other?
Are you alright?
Your Excellency...
Your Excellency!
May I?
Ah, yes.
You can call me Edwina!
Excuse me,
I am intruding.
I am so sorry, Your Excellency, I've just been...
Edwina!
I've... I've been a little
anxious.
Bengal...
I hear Mr. Gandhi is there now... Going door to door, appealing for calm.
It's where he feels he's most needed.
And you...?
He is the reason I joined politics.
He is my mentor,
a friend, philosopher,
guide.
A father figure, really... In a manner of speaking...
I should have gone with Bapu.
Sorry?
Excuse me...
All the other students are always on time, but never you two. Why?
You have been playing with that ball all day, now get inside!
Can we stay here tonight?
It is very late and Bapu has hurt himself...
A lot of people have been hurt here...
A lot of people!
Bapu?
Bapu...?
Where the mind is without fear
and the head is held high
Where knowledge is free
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments By narrow domestic walls
-Bismillah! -Bismillah...
-A... -A!
-B... -B!
Where words come out from the depth of truth
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake!
[offering namaz]
The head of the Muslim League in Punjab, the Nawab of Mamdot,
has made a statement from prison
calling CM Tiwana the biggest hurdle on the path to Pakistan...
I have told you a hundred times, stop listening to this abomination!
Tiwana is a traitor!
Death to Tiwana!
Tiwana is a traitor!
Take the children indoors!
And phone the police! How did they come inside?
-Security! Please leave! -Tiwana is a traitor!
All of you please leave!
-Tiwana is a traitor! -Security!
Well, it took 200 years for the British to develop an appetite for spice.
But better late than never! Right, Vallabhbhai?
We are vegetarians.
It's okay.
Couldn't do this without you.
[Kripalani gargles loudly]
200 years and they still refuse to be civilised...
Lord Mountbatten and I are here on behalf of His Majesty's government
to make changes long overdue.
I suggest anybody finding it difficult to cope,
perhaps return to London.
To this day
the English have been guests in and of India,
and perhaps we might have over-stayed our welcome by a small margin
and I do say a very, very small margin of 200 years!
During that time,
if we're honest with each other,
we have taken much from their culture
and given little in return.
Now that we are finally leaving,
and I'm sure you'll be glad to bloody see the backside of us,
the least we can do
is show the hospitality that you have so gracefully shown us.
If I may...
an uncertain future lies ahead.
For all of us.
It will take the goodwill of all present
to see it through!
Tonight,
Edwina, my beautiful wife,
and myself
extend our sincerity to you.
And hope it will be met in return!
To new India!
Reports from eastern Bengal suggest that the riots in Noakhali have come to a stop...
...and a press release from the Governor's office provides an assurance
that should there be no more violence over the next 48 hours,
the curfew will be lifted as well.
Gandhi-ji has once again proved that
the common man can bring about change in a day
that governments fail to bring over years.
We will now take a short break. Until then, please enjoy Sangeet Mala.
"I, Jawaharlal Nehru, solemnly declare
that I shall earnestly endeavour to be non-violent in intent,
since I believe that
non-violence alone can help and result in the attainment of purna swaraj
and consolidation of unity among all the races and communities of India."
Bapu has performed a miracle in Noakhali.
But can he perform one more in Punjab?
Still awake, kids?
Abbu, what is a 'trailer'?
It's 'traitor', not 'trailer'.
It's what everyone calls Abbu.
My man, are you certain?
If you do resign, you realise the League will make a bid for Punjab.
To place her under Pakistan.
We were fighting for our grandchildren and their children, Patel sahab...
But if my own children think I am a criminal,
who is left to fight for?
I can't lose my family to win the country.
It is best if I resign.
The future of Punjab is up to God's will now.
Tiwana was not able to protect Punjab.
The "P" in Pakistan is back.
It happened just like you said, Quaid!
The last hurdle to Pakistan has been removed.
Now, we're unstoppable!
What is that silly thing they chant on the roads here, Liaquat?
We will fight for our Pakistan, Quaid!
Hmmm.
We will fight for our Pakistan!