Train to Pakistan (film)

Train to Pakistan is a 1998 Hindi film adapted from Khushwant Singhs 1956 classic novel by the same name set in the Partition of India of 1947 and directed by Pamela Rooks. The film stars Nirmal Pandey, Rajit Kapur, Mohan Agashe, Smriti Mishra, Mangal Dhillon and Divya Dutta.

The film was one of most anticipated adaptations of its time, especially being writer Khushwant Singhs most acclaimed work. According to whom several people in past has attempted to make the film, including Shashi Kapoor and Shabana Azmi, who even developed a screenplay, but owing to sensitivity of the subject, abandoned the project.Pamela Rooks first read the novel at 17, preparing for the title role of Nooran, which she was set to play in the prospective Ismail Merchant film, which never took off. The novel stayed with her, however, because growing up she had stories of the Partition from her parents. Initially the publishers of the book, Ravi Dayal, was hesitant to give the rights of the work to a new filmmaker, as this was only Rooks second feature, till Ravi Gupta, Managing Director of NFDC stepped in and a go ahead was given. Previously as her first feature, Rooks had adapted her own novel Miss Beattys Children, into a 1993 film by the same name, which won her the National Film Award for Best First Film of a Director. For her adaptation Rooks chose a slightly different narrative from the original novel.Thus the film begins with Hukum Chand, the District Magistrate, reminiscing about partition period. Though she has visually translated most of the lines from Khushwant Singhs narrative directly on to the screen. ........

Source: Wikipedia