Lakshya

 

Lakshya is a 2004 Indian Hindi-language war-drama film directed by Farhan Akhtar and produced by Ritesh Sidhwani, starring Amitabh Bachchan, Hrithik Roshan and Preity Zinta in the lead roles. Hrithik Roshan plays the role of Lieutenant (later acting Captain) Karan Shergill, who develops from an aimless young man into an army officer. It is a coming of age story set against a fictionalized backdrop of the 1999 Kargil War.

Plot

Karan Shergill (Hrithik Roshan) is a lazy and aimless young man from Delhi who has no goals for his future. His father (Boman Irani) is a wealthy businessman and his brother is a successful individual living in the United States. His girlfriend, Romila Dutta (Preity Zinta), also known as Romi, a student activist and aspiring journalist, out of well-meaning sincerity tells him he needs to find a goal in life. When his friend Parvesh announces he is going to join the Indian Army, Karan takes the Combined Defence Services Examination as well, despite his parent's disapproval.

Karan gets selected into the Indian Military Academy, although his friend backs out. However, he's undisciplined and unused to life there. He keeps receiving punishments from the training team due to his overconfidence and lazy attitude. Upset, he runs away from the academy and is forced to confront his parents' low opinion of him. His decision also causes Romi to angrily break up with him for not respecting his own decision. Devastated, Karan finally comes to terms with his situation and makes his decision. He returns to the IMA, takes his punishment, becomes a focused, disciplined officer cadet and eventually commissions into the Indian Army as a Lieutenant. Karan is posted to the 3rd battalion of the Punjab Regiment, commanded by Col. Sunil Damle (Amitabh Bachchan). The battalion is stationed in Kargil, Ladakh. Karan comes home on leave and is heartbroken to find out that Romi is getting engaged, but his leave is cut short and he's recalled to his battalion due to an outbreak of hostilities in Kargil.

He reports back to his battalion, where he is promoted to the rank of acting Captain. Col. Damle briefs the officers on the latest situation and reveals that a number of infiltrators have crossed the Line of Control (LoC) from Pakistan and currently occupy a series of mountain peaks on the Indian side of the border. The battalion has been assigned to secure Point 5179, a crucial vantage point dominating the army's main supply line, the National Highway 1D. The northern side of the mountain is on the Pakistani side of the LoC, the western side has a 1000-foot vertical rock cliff and the southern side has 3  km of empty ground with no cover. Therefore, the battalion decides to attack from the eastern side of the mountain. The first part of the assault is successful. The battalion destroys the enemy's screening units with Karan cited for his bravery in saving another officer's life. Meanwhile, Romi gets stationed to Kargil as a war correspondent.

Romi goes to Kargil where she meets a changed Karan and begins to fall in love with him again amidst the war. However, Karan remains reluctant to return her feelings as he’s still under the impression that she’s engaged. In the second phase of the assault, the battalion attacks the peak of the mountain but fails to capture it due to the strategic advantage and heavy weaponry the Pakistanis have. The unit suffers heavy casualties. Brigadier Puri (Amrish Puri) summons Col. Damle and gives him 48 hours to capture the peak – after that time period, responsibility for Point 5179 will be given to another battalion. Col. Damle then orders a group of 12 officers and soldiers (including Karan) to scale the 1000-foot rock cliff on the western side of the mountain and flank the enemy stronghold. They will be provided with artillery support from the eastern side. Karan realises that he has finally found his goal in the form of capturing the peak. Karan also learns of Romi’s failed engagement and expresses his feelings for her. Romi promises Karan she will wait for him whether he returns or not.

The unit sets off on their mission and while moving through a grass field toward the rock cliff, they come under fire. The unit discovers a Pakistani mortar unit in the field and destroys it, but loses their commanding officer and a number of other soldiers. The team's radios are also destroyed, so they cannot communicate with battalion HQ. Out of the initial 12, only 6 remain. They decide to continue with the mission. They successfully scale the cliff and attack the Pakistani position during the night. Their assault is successful although Karan is wounded, and the team loses 3 more men. The next morning, Karan limps to the peak, where he plants the Indian flag and fires a flare, signaling to Col. Damle that they captured the peak.

The film ends with Karan leaving a military hospital and reuniting with his parents and Romi. Romi asks him that having attained his 'Lakshya' what is his next goal. To which Captain Shergill replies, "you", and they embrace.

The movie ends on a poignant shot of Colonel Sunil Damle and Subedar Major Pritam Singh paying respect to martyrs of Operation Vijay.

 

Cast

·         Amitabh Bachchan as Col. Sunil Damle, CO 3 Punjab

·         Hrithik Roshan as Lt. (later Actg. Capt.) Karan Shergill

·         Preity Zinta as Romila Dutta Shergill

·         Sharad Kapoor as Maj. Binod Sengupta, OC A Company, 3 Punjab

·         Om Puri as Sub. Maj. Pritam Singh

·         Raj Zutshi as Maj. Kaushal Verma

·         Sushant Singh as Capt. Jalal Akbar

·         Parmeet Sethi as Pakistani Maj. Shahbaaz Hamdani

·         Nissar Khan as Pakistani Army Captain Bairam Khan

·         Boman Irani as Sanjeev Shergill, Karan's father

·         Lilette Dubey as Mrs Dutta, Romila's mother

·         Vishal Vijay as Capt. Saket Ahluwalia

·         Vipul Gupta as Capt. Rakesh Bhavnani

·         Nawab Shah as Maj. Satish Babbar

·         Aarav Chowdhary as Capt. Manjit Singh Dhingra

·         Aditya Srivastava as Lt. Col. Pradeep, 2IC 3 Punjab

·         Amit Behl as IMA Company Commander (Major)

·         Ranvir Shorey as Sep. Tarsem Singh

·         Kushal Punjabi as Rajiv Goel, Romila's fiancée

·         Prashant Chainani as Capt. Vishal Srivastav

·         Luke Kenny as Nk. Raj Tilak Singh

·         Abir Goswami as Capt. (Dr.) Sudhir Mishra, Army Medical Corps

·         Abhimanyu Singh as Lt. Col. Pratap Singh (Adjutant, IMA)

·         Ashok Kumar as Sep. Babulal

·         Surendra Pal as IMA Commandant

·         M K Raina as Akhilesh Dutta (Romila's father)

·         Amrish Puri as Brig. Gautam Puri