Twenty-five years after Lagaan changed the face of Indian cinema, one of its most memorable faces has returned to India. Actor Paul Blackthorne, who played the ruthless Captain Andrew Russell (often remembered as Captain Miller by fans), recently visited the country to celebrate the film’s landmark anniversary and took a trip down memory lane. In a candid conversation with SCREEN, Blackthorne recalled everything from nearly turning down the film and discovering Aamir Khan’s stardom to surviving dust storms in Bhuj and having one of the most surreal experiences of his life while running naked on a beach in Gujarat.
Back in 1999, Blackthorne had little idea what Bollywood was. “My agent called me in London and said, ‘There’s a Bollywood film they’re going to audition you for.’ I was like, ‘Bollywood film? That’s unusual.'” Curiosity got the better of him and he attended the audition, eventually landing the role. Yet accepting the offer wasn’t an easy decision. “I remember thinking, ‘Gosh, what am I doing here?’ I was just starting to get things going in Britain and I kept wondering whether this would help my career.”
His perspective changed after learning more about Aamir Khan. “I familiarised myself with Aamir and suddenly realised, ‘Wow, he’s quite something.’ Then I thought, ‘Are you kidding? I have the opportunity to spend five months in India, work with this incredible man and have this experience.’ It didn’t matter what happened afterwards. I just wanted to do my best and enjoy it.”
What followed, he says, was beyond anything he could have imagined. “It turned into this incredible phenomenon. It’s been an extraordinary gift.”
The moment he realised Lagaan was special
Despite the film’s eventual success, Blackthorne insists nobody knew they were making a classic. “Not at all. You respond to a script, a character and the people you’re working with. Then you get your head down and get on with it.” However, there were moments during filming that hinted something magical was brewing. One such moment came when legendary composer AR Rahman visited the set.
“They put speakers on the cricket field and Aamir said, ‘You’re going to hear the music now.’ I thought, ‘Lovely, let’s have a listen.’ Everybody sat down and listened. That was the first moment I thought, ‘Wow. Oh my gosh. That music is going to be on top of this.’ That’s when I started getting a sense that this could be something special.”
The second moment arrived much later when the cast received the film’s poster in London.
“We unrolled it together and saw each member of the team. Then Aamir’s face appeared with the title Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India. I remember looking at it and thinking, ‘Oh wow. This is going to be really good.’ The poster captured the tone of the film perfectly.”
Dust storms, locusts and life in Bhuj
Filming in Bhuj wasn’t always easy. “Bhuj was an extreme place to shoot, but in some ways it was also very controlled. If you’re shooting in the middle of a city, there are hundreds of distractions. Here, we had the desert to ourselves.” Nature, however, had other plans. “There were dust storms. I think we had a swarm of bees or locusts at one point. There were some crazy things happening all the time, not to mention the heat.”
The cast worked six days a week, but Sundays offered a chance to unwind. “Personally, I would head straight to the beach. That coastline in Gujarat, near the palace location in the film, is one of the most beautiful coastlines I have ever seen.”
The day flamingos flew past a naked Paul Blackthorne
Among all his memories from India, one stands above the rest. Blackthorne recalled a day when filming wrapped early at the palace location and he found himself with an hour to spare.
“I went down to the beach. There was nobody around. I took off all my clothes and ran into the ocean.” What happened next felt almost cinematic. “As I ran into the sea, these pink-and-black flamingos suddenly flew past me. They swooped right across the water in front of me. Then all these flying fish started jumping out of the waves around me.”
The actor burst out laughing while recounting the memory. “At that point, I thought, ‘Okay, let’s cover up the crown jewels and keep everything intact.'” Standing in the sea, surrounded by flamingos and flying fish, he realised he was witnessing a once-in-a-lifetime moment. “I just stood there thinking, ‘You know what? This is an experience.’ Then I got dressed and headed back. But those beach trips became my Sunday ritual.”
‘Taxi drivers go into euphoria’
A quarter of a century later, Lagaan continues to enjoy a devoted fan following across the globe, something Blackthorne still finds astonishing. “People get incredibly excited when they realise you’re part of the film. Taxi drivers in England suddenly start Facetiming their family members.”
The actor joked that the excitement can sometimes become a little overwhelming. “I’ll be sitting there thinking, ‘Can you just concentrate on driving the car, please, sir? We can take a selfie afterwards.'” Yet he admits the affection is deeply touching.
“It’s a beautiful thing. If somebody has enjoyed something you’ve been part of, that feels wonderful. It’s nice to bring something positive into the world. I feel very grateful to have had that opportunity.”
