1971 - Beyond Borders

Director Major Ravi echoes the soliloquy of each soldier--the futility of war, in "1971 Beyond Borders". War initiates pangs and sustains the impact of its brutality in a soldier and his family. Capitalising on Mohanlal's famous army character Major Mahadevan (here his father Major Sahadevan hogs the limelight), he exposes how a war affects soldiers emotionally. Most of the soldiers we come across in the film are emotionally bound to their personal lives even though they are on the fierce battlefield.

The plot is set in the backdrop of Indo-Pak war in 1971. In Georgia, Major Mahadevan (Mohanlal), who is now working for the UN peace mission, bumps into Major Ajmal Raja from Pakistan and this meeting leads us to Major Sahadevan, father of Major Mahadevan. Now Major Sahadevan has a reason to pay homage to Lieutenant Akram Raja of Pakistan on every December 17. The flashback scenes reveal about the two souls in both sides, who fight with a heart full of pathos and compassion. Ultimately, the soldier who earns respect from his opposition here for his bravery, compassion and courtesy has been projected as a true warrior.

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