Abusaeed at 20:22, 5 April 2026

2026-04-05T20:22:55Z

New page

{{Short description|2024 Indian film by Kannan lyer}}
{{for|the 2018 song|Ae Watan}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2024}}
{{Use Indian English|date=March 2024}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Ae Watan Mere Watan
| image = Ae Watan Mere Watan poster.jpg
| alt =
| caption = Official release poster
| director = [[Kannan Iyer]]
| writer = [[Darab Farooqui]]<br />[[Kannan Iyer]]
| producer = {{Plain list|
*[[Karan Johar]]
*[[Apoorva Mehta]]
*Somen Mishra
}}
| starring = {{ubl|[[Sara Ali Khan]]|[[Alexx O'Nell]]|[[Emraan Hashmi]]}}
| music = {{Plain list|
* Mukund Suryawanshi
* [[JAM8|Akashdeep Sengupta]]
* Shashi Suman
}}
| cinematography = [[Amalendu Chaudhary]]
| editing = Sangeeth Varghese
| studio = [[Dharmatic Entertainment]]
| distributor = [[Amazon Prime Video]]
| released = {{Film date|df=y|2024|3|21}}
| runtime = 133 minutes<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/ae-watan-mere-watan-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0xmde5odi4|title=''Ae Watan Mere Watan'' (15) |website=[[British Board of Film Classification]] |date=10 March 2024 |access-date=10 March 2024}}</ref>
| country = India
| language = Hindi
| budget = 
| gross = 
}}

'''''Ae Watan Mere Watan''''' ({{Translation|Oh Country My Country}}) is a 2024 [[Hindi]]-language [[Historical film|historical]] [[biographical film]] about India's struggle for freedom in 1942, based on the life of [[Usha Mehta]], a brave young girl who starts an underground radio station to spread the message of unity, setting off a thrilling chase with the [[British Raj|British authorities]] during the [[Quit India movement]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ae Watan Mere Watan: Sara Ali Khan Pays Tribute To Unsung Heroes Of Quit India Movement|url=https://www.news18.com/movies/ae-watan-mere-watan-sara-ali-khan-pays-tribute-to-unsung-heroes-of-quit-india-movement-watch-trailer-8802796.html|date=4 March 2024|work=News18|access-date=4 March 2024}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title='Ae Watan Mere Watan' Trailer: Sara Ali Khan Highlights The Power Of Usha Mehta's Underground Radio In 1942|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/web-series/news/hindi/ae-watan-mere-watan-trailer-sara-ali-khan-highlights-the-power-of-usha-mehtas-underground-radio-in-1942/articleshow/108206426.cms|date=4 March 2024|work=The Times of India|access-date=4 March 2024}}</ref> It is written and directed by [[Kannan Iyer]] and produced by [[Karan Johar]], starring [[Sara Ali Khan]], [[Alexx O'Nell]] and [[Emraan Hashmi]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ae Watan Mere Watan' teaser: KJo retells braveheart Usha's fight against British|url=https://www.indiatoday.in/movies/bollywood/story/sara-ali-khan-ae-watan-mere-watan-teaser-karan-johar-retells-usha-fight-against-british-2509176-2024-03-01|date=1 March 2024|work=India Today|access-date=4 March 2024}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Ae Watan Mere Watan: Sara Ali Khan, Karan Johar, Emraan Hashmi's patriotic film gets release date |url=https://www.dnaindia.com/bollywood/report-ae-watan-mere-watan-sara-ali-khan-karan-johar-emraan-hashmi-s-parotitic-film-gets-release-date-to-stream-o-3077846/|date=13 February 2024|work=Daily News and Analysis|access-date=4 March 2024}}</ref> The film premiered on 21 March 2024 on [[Amazon Prime Video]] to mixed reviews from critics.<ref>{{Cite web|title=On World Radio Day, Sara Ali Khan announces release date of her film 'Ae Watan Mere Watan' on Amazon Prime Video|url=https://www.firstpost.com/entertainment/on-world-radio-day-sara-ali-khan-announces-release-date-of-her-film-ae-watan-mere-watan-on-amazon-prime-video-13720712.html/|date=13 February 2024|work=Firstpost|access-date=4 March 2024}}</ref>
==Plot==

In 1930, a young Usha Mehta witnesses her Gandhian schoolteacher being brutally beaten by British police during a protest. The fearless child tries to intervene, getting injured herself. Her father, Hariprasad, a loyal British-serving judge, locks her in a room to suppress her rebellious spirit but also introduces her to the radio as a window to the world.

By 1942, during World War II, 22-year-old Usha (Sara Ali Khan) in Bombay is secretly deeply involved in India's freedom struggle, unbeknownst to her father. Leading a small group of young revolutionaries—including her love interest Kaushik (Abhay Verma), close friend Fahad (Sparsh Srivastav), and others—she joins the Congress party's Quit India Movement launched by Gandhi.

Inspired after meeting Gandhi, Usha takes a vow of celibacy (brahmacharya), upsetting Kaushik but not deterring him from the fight. When the British ban Congress, arrest its leaders, and suppress all communication, Usha conceives a bold plan: an underground clandestine radio station, "Congress Radio," broadcasting on frequency 42.34 every night at 8:30 p.m.

With help from her grand-aunt's gold jewelry (sold to fund the expensive transmitter) and engineer Firdaus, Usha, Kaushik, and Fahad begin broadcasting recorded messages from jailed Congress leaders. The broadcasts spread rapidly, reaching from Mangalore to Ajmer and gaining attention from socialist leader Ram Manohar Lohia (Emraan Hashmi). Lohia later collaborates with them, upgrading the setup to make Congress Radio a powerful nationwide voice that reignites the flagging Quit India Movement.

As the broadcasts become a major threat, British intelligence officer John Lyre is tasked with tracking the operators. Using triangulation and American detection technology, the police close in. Several comrades are arrested or abandon the cause; Kaushik briefly leaves, unable to watch Usha risk her life; and tragic sacrifices occur, including the death of their leader Balbir.

In a final act of defiance on Diwali, Usha and a reconciled Kaushik broadcast Lohia's crucial revolutionary message calling for nationwide uprising. They delay the police long enough for the declaration to air. The couple is arrested as "Vande Mataram" plays. Under torture, Kaushik breaks and implicates Lohia, while Usha remains steadfast.

Usha is sentenced to four years in prison. Her estranged father, moved by her courage and a visit from Lohia, finally renounces his British loyalties and writes her a proud apology. Upon her release, Usha is greeted by 20,000 admirers as a living symbol of revolution.

The film is a fictionalized tribute to the real-life Usha Mehta and the historic Congress Radio that operated secretly for nearly three months in 1942, keeping the Quit India flame alive against overwhelming odds.

==Cast==
{{Cast listing|* [[Sara Ali Khan]] as [[Usha Mehta]]
* [[Alexx O'Nell]] as John Lyre
* [[Anand Tiwari]] as Firdaus Engineer
* [[Sachin Khedekar]] as Judge Hariprasad Mehta, Usha's father
* [[Abhay Verma]] as Kaushik
* [[Sparsh Srivastav]] as Fahad
* [[Benedict Garrett]] as Corrigan
* Richard Bhakti Klein as [[Victor Hope, 2nd Marquess of Linlithgow|Viceroy Linlithgow]]
* Ashton Bessette as Cameron
* Rick McLane as Grant
* Ed Robinson as Captain Wily
* Godaan Kumar as Balbir
* Uday Chandra as [[Mahatma Gandhi]]
* Annuop Choudhari as Gaonkar
* [[Aditi Sanwal]] as Antara
* Pratik Yadav as Bhaskar
* Chrisann Pereira as Julie
* Siddharth Gollapudi as Shinde
* [[Sanjeev Jaiswal]] as Alok
* [[Emraan Hashmi]] as [[Ram Manohar Lohia]]<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/news/bollywood/emraan-hashmi-wraps-cameo-sara-ali-khan-starrer-ae-watan-mere-watan-report/ |title=Emraan Hashmi wraps up his cameo in Sara Ali Khan starrer Ae Watan Mere Watan: Report|date=13 February 2024|newspaper=[[Bollywood Hungama]]|access-date=4 March 2024}}</ref>
* Garrvil Mohan as Lieutenant Roy}}

==Production==
[[Principal photography]] commenced in October 2022 and first schedule ended in December. The second schedule began by April 2023<ref>{{Cite web|date=24 April 2023|title=Sara Ali Khan wraps Homi Adajania's Murder Mubarak; to resume Ae Watan Mere Watan shoot|url=https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/news/features/sara-ali-khan-wraps-homi-adajanias-murder-mubarak-resume-ae-watan-mere-watan-shoot/|access-date=4 March 2021|work=Bollywood Hungama}}</ref> and the film wrapped up in May 2023.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/news/features/sara-ali-khan-wraps-ae-watan-mere-watan-true-personification-strength-dignity-passion/|title=Sara Ali Khan wraps Ae Watan Mere Watan: "A true personification of strength, dignity and passion"|work=Bollywood Hungama|date=19 May 2023|access-date=4 March 2024}}</ref>

== Soundtrack ==
{{Infobox album
| name = Ae Watan Mere Watan
| type = Soundtrack
| artist = Mukund Suryawanshi, [[JAM8|Akashdeep Sengupta]] and Shashi Suman
| cover =
| alt =
| released = 9 March 2024<ref name="jiosaavn">{{Cite web |date=9 March 2024 |title=Ae Watan Mere Watan – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack |url=https://www.jiosaavn.com/album/ae-watan-mere-watan/mvFboMwI8l4_ |website=[[JioSaavn]] |access-date=10 March 2024}}</ref>
| recorded = 2022
| venue =
| studio =
| genre = [[Film soundtrack|Feature film soundtrack]]
| length = {{Duration|m=23|s=52}}
| label = [[T-Series (company)|T-Series]]
| language = Hindi
| producer =
| misc = {{external music video| header = Official audio
|{{YouTube|ywngLeqUqHs|Ae Watan Mere Watan (Full Album}}
}}
}}

The music of the film was composed by Mukund Suryawanshi, [[JAM8|Akashdeep Sengupta]] and Shashi Suman while lyrics were written by Suryawanshi, Ravi Girri, Rohan Deshmukh, [[Darab Farooqui]] and Prashant Ingole.<ref name="jiosaavn"/>

{{Track listing
| headline = Track listing
| total_length = 23:52
| extra_column = Singer(s)
| title1 = Qatra Qatra
| extra1 = [[Sukhwinder Singh]]
| lyrics1 = Mukund Suryawanshi, Ravi Girri, Rohan Deshmukh
| music1 = Mukund Suryawanshi
| length1 = 5:11
| title2 = Ae Watan Mere Watan - Title Track
| extra2 = Romy
| lyrics2 = [[Darab Farooqui]]
| music2 = [[JAM8|Akashdeep Sengupta]]
| length2 = 4:53
| title3 = Julia
| extra3 = [[Divya Kumar (singer)|Divya Kumar]], Shashi
| lyrics3 = Prashant Ingole
| music3 = Shashi Suman
| length3 = 3:21
| title4 = Dua E Azaadi
| extra4 = [[Javed Ali]], [[Swaroop Khan]], Shashi
| lyrics4 = [[Darab Farooqui]]
| music4 = Shashi Suman
| length4 = 6:17
| title5 = Ae Watan Mere Watan - Title Track
| note5 = Female Version
| extra5 = [[Neeti Mohan]]
| lyrics5 = [[Darab Farooqui]]
| music5 = [[JAM8|Akashdeep Sengupta]]
| length5 = 4:10
}}

==Reception==
===Critical response===
''Ae Watan Mere Watan'' wasn't well received by critics.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Sara Ali Khan's aunt Saba Pataudi defends her performance in Ae Watan Mere Watan: 'Don't judge something until…' |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/bollywood/sara-ali-khans-aunt-saba-pataudi-defends-her-performance-in-ae-watan-mere-watan-dont-judge-something-until-9227917/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250212083232/https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/bollywood/sara-ali-khans-aunt-saba-pataudi-defends-her-performance-in-ae-watan-mere-watan-dont-judge-something-until-9227917/ |archive-date=12 February 2025 |access-date=12 February 2025 |work=[[The Indian Express]] |quote=Amidst the film opening to not-very-good reviews by film critics, Saba Pataudi has defended her niece’s acting in the movie.}}</ref>

A critic from ''[[Bollywood Hungama]]'' gave 3 out of 5 stars and wrote "''Ae Watan Mere Watan'' is worth watching as it presents an untold chapter of Indian history."<ref>{{cite web |author1=Bollywood Hungama News Network |title=Ae Watan Mere Watan Movie Review |url=https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/movie/ae-watan-mere-watan/critic-review/ae-watan-mere-watan-movie-review/ae-watan-mere-watan-is-worth-watching/|website=[[Bollywood Hungama]] |date=21 March 2024}}{{rating|3|5}}</ref> [[Sukanya Verma]] of ''[[Rediff.com]]'' gave 3/5 stars and observed "''Ae Watan Mere Watan'' tries to get a grasp on the mind of youngsters, shaped by the words of inspiring leaders, committed to the cause of independent India. It's significant because their support isn't based on 'andh bhakti' (blind devotion), but leadership that encourages questions".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ae Watan Mere Watan Review: Radio Ga Ga!|url=https://m.rediff.com/movies/review/ae-watan-mere-watan-review/20240321.htm |date=21 March 2024 |website=Rediff}}{{rating|3|5}}</ref>

[[NDTV]]'s [[Saibal Chatterjee]] rated the film 2.5 out of 5, opining in his review that, "''Ae Watan Mere Watan'' makes its points with clarity and directness. It tells a tale that has meat, but the storytelling style that the film adopts stops it significantly short of being either consistently riveting or memorably rousing". He criticized the lead performance, opining that, "Sara Ali Khan, playing the principal character, is way too porcelain and dainty to convey the remarkably doughty woman's fierce determination."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ae Watan Mere Watan Review: Neither Consistently Riveting Nor Memorably Rousing |url=https://www.ndtv.com/entertainment/ae-watan-mere-watan-review-neither-consistently-riveting-nor-memorably-rousing-2-5-stars-5280752 |access-date=2024-03-21 |website=NDTV.com}}</ref> Zinia Bandyopadhyay of ''[[India Today]]'' gave 2/5 stars and wrote that "''Ae Watan Mere Watan'' drowns in a lacklustre script despite having the potential to be an effective story."<ref>{{Cite web |title='Ae Watan Mere Watan' Review: School play with hammy script masquerading as film|url=https://www.indiatoday.in/movies/reviews/story/ae-watan-mere-watan-review-sara-ali-khan-emraan-hashmi-usha-mehra-biopic-2517569-2024-03-21 |date=21 March 2024 |website=India Today}}{{rating|2|5}}</ref>

[[Firstpost]]'s Lachmi Deb Roy, in her review, rated the film 2/5 and said that "Though the film was able to weave the freedom movement with enough human stories showing Usha’s contribution to the Quit India movement, but ''Ae Watan Mere Watan'' was unable to give us those goosebumps which a freedom movie generally does".<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-03-21 |title=Ae Watan Mere Watan Movie Review: Sara Ali Khan could have done a better job as freedom fighter Usha Mehta {{!}} Amazon Prime Video |url=https://www.firstpost.com/entertainment/ae-watan-mere-watan-movie-review-sara-ali-khans-was-a-total-misfit-as-freedom-fighter-usha-mehta-amazon-prime-video-13751172.html |access-date=2024-03-21 |website=Firstpost |language=en-us}}</ref> [[Shubhra Gupta]] of ''[[Indian Express]]'' called the film a "banal blur". She panned the film, opining that "nothing about this period drama breaks out of familiar moulds" and that "Sara Ali Khan leaves little impact." However, she called Sparsh Srivastav the "breakout star", praising his performance as a [[polio]]-afflicted young freedom fighter.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-03-21 |title=Ae Watan Mere Watan movie review: Sara Ali Khan leaves little impact in this banal blur |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/movie-review/ae-watan-mere-watan-movie-review-sara-ali-khan-leaves-little-impact-in-this-banal-blur-9225834/ |access-date=2024-03-21 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb title|tt19864942}}

[[Category:2024 films]]
[[Category:2024 Hindi-language films]]
[[Category:2024 Indian films]]
[[Category:Films set in the Indian independence movement]]
[[Category:Amazon Prime Video original films]]
[[Category:2020s historical drama films]]
[[Category:2024 biographical drama films]]
[[Category:Films set in the British Raj]]
[[Category:Indian biographical drama films]]
[[Category:Indian direct-to-video films]]
[[Category:Indian historical action films]]
[[Category:2024 direct-to-video films]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Mahatma Gandhi]]
[[Category:Indian historical drama films]]
[[Category:Films set in the 1940s]]
[[Category:Indian World War II films]]
[[Category:World War II films based on actual events]]
[[Category:Films set on the home front during World War II]]
[[Category:Films about radio]]
[[Category:Films about radio people]]
[[Category:Films set in Mumbai]]
[[Category:Films shot in Mumbai]]
[[Category:Films about disability in India]]
[[Category:History of the Indian National Congress]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of British people]]
[[Category:Films about polio]]
[[Category:Films scored by JAM8]]

Ae Watan Mere Watan - Revision history

Abusaeed at 20:22, 5 April 2026