The All-Time Classic : Border
Border was one of the most ‘felt’ movie of its time. Felt in the sense that it hit us all hard with the patriotism, sacrifice and the core emotion of courage. May it be “Shakti Ma, Shakti” or “Ye Dharti Meri Ma Hai” both hold the same level of impact among the audience. The movie had songs like “To Chalun”, “Humein Jab Se Mohabbat” and the all-time classic, “Sandese Aate Hai” which is now made into “Ghar Kab Aaoge”. These songs were not just a musical piece in the film, but they held the thread of human emotion woven into the quilt of life with line such as “Aye Guzarne Waali Hawa Ba
ta, Mera Itna Kaam Karegi Kya, Mere Gaaon Ja Mere Doston Ko Salaam De, Mere Gaaon Mein Hai Jo Vo Gali Jahaan Rehti Hai Meri Dilruba Usey Mere Pyaar Ka Naam De, Vahin Thodi Door Hai Ghar Mera, Mere Ghar Mein Hai Meri Boodhi Maa, Meri Maa Ke Pairon Ko Chhooke Tu, Usey Uske Bete Ka Naam De”.
Border depicted the battle of Longewala from the perspective of the soldiers, that captured the personal and individual battle of the soldiers which were parallel to their national duty. With Major Kuldeep Singh Chandpuri (played by Sunny Deol) being the centre of the film, the film has some other characters such as, Bhairon Singh (BSF) – played by Suniel Shetty, 2nd Lt. Dharamvir Singh Bhan – played by Akshaye Khanna, Wing Commander Andy Bajwa (IAF) – played by Jackie Shroff, Subhedar Rattan Singh – played by Puneet Issar, Havildar Bhagiram – played by Kulbhushan Kharbanda and Naib Subhedar Mathura Das – played by Sudesh Berry. The story captures the frien
dship and bond of the people posted at the Western Front and their commitment to protect the front at any cost. The dedication of these soldiers can be captured with this line alone said by major Kuldeep Singh “Agar iss faisle ke baad, tum me se kisi ek ne bhi bhagne ki koshish ki, toh mai usse goli maar dunga, Waheguru na kare, agar kahi mere kadam dagmaga gaye, aur maine bhagne ki koshish ki, toh tum sab mil kar mujhe goli maar dena”.
The ‘Heart’ of Border
The story of Dharamvir Singh Bhan (Akshaye Khanna), a young but competent officer pushed into the army by his father’s martyrdom, was a focal point of this movie. Veer Bhan abhors the very existence of the army, he finds army the culprit of his father’s death. His mother Sujata Bhakhri (Rakhee Gulzar) going blind after his father’s demise could be 
understood as an allegory to her sorrow. Although this does not stop him from joining the army because of his responsibilities to both, his nation and his household. His love interest Kamla Sodhi played by Pooja Bhatt is also shown in the movie.
Border had more stories like the one of Bhairon Singh (Suniel Shetty) who had to report to the front immediately after his marriage with Phool Kanwar Singh Rathore (Sharbani Mukherjee) and the story of Mathura Das (Sudesh Berry) who wanted to be with his wife because she had cancer but later came back to the battlefield to protect his motherland. All these parts together make the all-time loved Border. But when we compare it to Border 2 the movie has an upper hand.
Is Border 2 At Par with The Original?
Border 2 is set in the era of the 1971 Indo-Pak war. The film covers the army, navy and the airforce. Whereas Border 1 did not require the navy. The film is about 3 soldiers who become friends at the training site for the army, navy and airforce. Both the films featured Sunny Deol (in Border 2 as Fateh Singh Kaler) but he was in a more passive role com
pared to his performance in Border. Other cast members Varun Dhawan – Hoshiar Singh, Diljit Dosanjh – Nirmaljit Singh Sekhon, Ahan Shetty – Mahendra Rawat, Mona Singh – Simi Kaler, Sonam Bajwa – Manjit, Medha Rana – Dhanvanti, Anya Singh – Sudha Rawat, Paramvir Cheema – Nishaan Singh, Azad Chauhan – Balam Singh, Bhushan Vikas – Beniram Rao, Kartik Phogat – Ashfaq Ali, Vansh Bhardwaj – Santram, Saad Baba – Ved Prakash Airy.
The story is similar to original Border with the major part revolving around the battlefield, but it lacked deeper storylines from the original. The emphasis fell onto the romantic aspect rather than the patriotism as the three friends each had their own love interest. The built-up to the backstory of Hoshiar Singh took one half of the film and it had a lot of gravity to it. Here you can see a different side of soldier’s life which shows their patriotism but as well as their human side too with lot of emotions. 
Why Should You Watch Border 2 ?
It is a completely separate film from its predecessor and has its own moments with top notch screenplay and a very emotional storyline. The film is not only from the lens of a soldier but from the perspective of young individuals who were aspiring to be soldiers and serve the nation. Keeping this in mind the film paints a very realistic picture of friendship, and to a degree, loss of friendship. The film underlines all the components which forms our army and their significance in the Indo-Pak battle of 1971. The storylines feel well tied and not rushed by the director and the dialogues land very well. With friendship the film also captures the loss of a loved one as Fateh Singh has lost his son to the motherland. His part of the film gives the realism of human guilt. The lingering sorrow of advocating his son to join the army creeps on to him often which affects his faith in God. 
Final Verdict
‘Comparison is a thief of joy’ is a very true saying in this case. Comparing these two movies will spoil them both for you. Although being a sequel, Border 2 holds a place for itself on the big screen with a completely different story to tell.
You can watch Border on OTT platforms like Prime Video, Jio Hotstar and Airtel Xstream; and Border 2 is available to stream on Netflix.
