| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Ben Kingsley | ... | Mahatma Gandhi | |
| Rohini Hattangadi | ... | Kasturba Gandhi (as Rohini Hattangady) | |
| Roshan Seth | ... | Pandit Nehru | |
| Candice Bergen | ... | Margaret Bourke-White | |
| Edward Fox | ... | General Dyer | |
| John Gielgud | ... | Lord Irwin | |
| Trevor Howard | ... | Judge Broomfield | |
| John Mills | ... | The Viceroy | |
| Martin Sheen | ... | Walker | |
| Ian Charleson | ... | Charlie Andrews | |
| Günther Maria Halmer | ... | Herman Kallenbach (as Gunter Maria Halmer) | |
| Athol Fugard | ... | General Smuts | |
| Saeed Jaffrey | ... | Sardar Patel | |
| Geraldine James | ... | Mirabehn | |
| Alyque Padamsee | ... | Mohamed Ali Jinnah | |
In 1893, Mohandas K. Gandhi is thrown off a South African train for being an Indian and traveling in a first class compartment. Gandhi realizes that the laws are biased against Indians and decides to start a non-violent protest campaign for the rights of all Indians in South Africa. After numerous arrests and the unwanted attention of the world, the government finally relents by recognizing rights for Indians, though not for the native blacks of South Africa. After this victory, Gandhi is invited back to India, where he is now considered something of a national hero. He is urged to take up the fight for India's independence from the British Empire. Gandhi agrees, and mounts a non-violent non-cooperation campaign of unprecedented scale, coordinating millions of Indians nationwide. There are some setbacks, such as violence against the protesters and Gandhi's occasional imprisonment. Nevertheless, the campaign generates great attention, and Britain faces intense public pressure. Too weak... Written by gavin (gunmasterM@hotmail.com)
I have seen this movie many times . Each time i was focussing on certain fine aspects . Believe me when i say that any student of makeup / editing should have a look at this film . When Ben (Gandhi) was in Delhi to shoot this film , Attenbourough filled entire wall space in Ben's hotel room with photographs of Gandhi in various moods to get the mannerisms of Gandhi imbibed into Ben. And i certainly feel stories such as this accompany every great film .
Coming to makeup ... during closing stages of this film the old and aging Gandhi is seen ( through Ben) with the nerves on forehead clearly bulging and two of Gandhi's teeth missing. Yes ... they have gone to that length of accuracy ...
And the PIECE DE RESITANCE of the entire film is the particular scene in which row after row of Indian freedom fighters march towards a salt factory to stop government from running it . Each of these rows of people are lathi charged . They fall to ground --- are taken aside by volunteers and their wounds are attended to . But the new row of fighters are ready and march on.... this truly captures the non-violent nature of freedom fight...