Tejas, streaming now on ZEE5 Global, a subtle portrayal of emotions and patriotism: Tejas Cast

Director Sarvesh Mewara debuted with Tejas, the much awaited film, streaming now on ZEE5 Global and when asked what his approach to portraying the subtle emotions, patriotism, and fortitude within the film was.

“It was simple,” he said.

“Whatever I write, it has to be emotional and dramatic, yet slightly more on the realistic side. So that’s why we got very clear from the word go that we will stay true to the entire Indian Air Force world. Hence, we enlisted the expertise of an IAF consultant, Abhijit Gokhale, who eventually became a friend. Upon reading the script, our approach involved sitting together and collaborating on the changes he proposed. This process aimed to refine the content, ensuring that the dialogues and expressions within the cockpit truly reflected authentic call signs and terminology. So, the approach was very dramatic because, at the end of the day, it is a film and not a documentary, yet it stays slightly true to the IAF world, the real world of the Indian Air Force. The other approach was to give the actors their freedom. I always believe that once the script is ready, you have to listen to everybody out there. Though it’s my vision, if anybody can add an extra edge to that vision, it always helps. Hence, I got a lot from even the technicians, the cameraman, the production designers, the sound recorders, and particularly the music director, Shashwat Sachdeva, whose youthful energy elevated the film’s music. This collaborative approach characterized the entire team’s efforts during both the post-production and filming stages,” he said.

When asked if he had to change one thing about the film or any character—

“I’ll probably add one or two more scenes in the first half of the second half. Because of COVID, I was unable to shoot one scene, and hence, sometimes, I feel that if that scene were there, it would have been much, much better. But anyway, you cannot write this right now. I just feel that whatever we did in COVID times and the challenges we had and the kind of resources I had, I think the entire team did a great job. But because, you know, as a filmmaker, you will always be dissatisfied with something or another. The point is to just move on and just work on the next, because the probability of that is that even if I work on the next, if you ask me that question again for the next film, I’ll be dissatisfied with something. So, but I’m personally very, very happy with all my technicians, production team, producers, and everybody who have consistently worked hard for 4 years because I was supposed to finish this film in a year.
Suddenly pandemic came, and it took me 3 and a half years to finish this film. To support me throughout this journey, be it Kangana or my team, I am full of gratitude. So yeah, I won’t change any characters, for sure. If anything, I needed to change; maybe there was something within me as a director that I could have done better,” he quipped.

Tejas is a film showcasing patriotism and the courage of men and women in uniform. Kangana Ranaut plays the lead as Tejas, the valiant Air Force officer with full conviction.

She called the film to be an ode to the defence forces. Indeed, it is.

Also read: Kangana Ranaut in and as Tejas

Actor Ashish Vidyarthi, who plays a major part in the film as a senior officer, said, “The ethos of the Indian Air Force is to provide leadership and to allow bravery to manifest, and that’s also what I have learned from this character.”