Swades

Swades poster for sale.

Featured here is an actual surviving original Bollywood poster of the cult 2004 Hindi film written, produced and directed by Ashutosh Gowariker that starred the “King of Bollywood,” superstar Shah Rukh Khan in the lead role.

Released on India’s Republic Day, i.e. 26 January 2005, Swades (2004) also starred Gayatri Joshi, Kishori Ballal, Rajesh Vivek, Daya Shankar Pandey and Makrand Deshpande in supporting roles.

Swades is inspired by the true story of Aravinda Pillalamarri and Ravi Kuchimanchi, an NRI couple who returned to India to serve society by developing a generator to power village schools. The film was inspired from a Kannada movie called “Chigurida Kanasu,” which was based on a novel of the same name.

Swades holds the distinction of being the first Indian film to be shot inside NASA’s headquarters. The film received widespread critical acclaim following it’s release and is counted as one of the finest performances of the Bollywood superstar’s film career, making this Swades poster, highly collectible!

Printed and circulated during the debut release of the film (somewhere in 2004), this Swades poster was originally designed for publicity of the film but never ended up being used.

This original SRK movie poster features an iconic still photograph from the film. Superstar Shah Rukh Khan, Rajesh Vivek and Daya Shankar Pandey are seen riding triple seat on a scooter. A rustic village landscape is seen in the background.

Typography used in this Shah Rukh Khan poster is completely in English. Capitalizing on filmmaker Ashutosh Gowariker’s earlier massive success Lagaan (2001), this Swades poster announces at the top, “From The Writer and Director of the Academy award nominated Lagaan.” The title of the movie appears in a soothing cloud white colour with the tagline, “We, The People” on the top of this Swades poster.

The story of Swades (2004) captured the selfless, sacrificial spirit of Mahatma Gandhi and is believed to have inspired several NRIs to return to their motherland and work towards social empowerment. The name of Shah Rukh Khan’s character in the film was “Mohan,” named after Mahatma Gandhi’s birth name “Mohandas.”

The soundtrack album of Swades (2004) was composed by the finest music composer in Indian cinema, A. R. Rahman, while lyrics were written by Javed Akhtar. It was a blockbuster hit upon it’s release. Songs like “Yun Hi Chala Chala” sung by Udit Narayan, Kailash Kher & Hariharan and “Yeh Jo Des Hai Tera” sung by A. R. Rahman are fondly remembered and played till today.