TO MARK Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s 150th birth anniversary next week, the government has commissioned a play on his life story, which will be staged in Gujarat’s Kevadia on October 30-31. The 90-minute play, being produced by the National School of Drama (NSD), will be taken to other cities across the country, including New Delhi and Ahmedabad, said sources.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to attend the inaugural show, besides Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and other leaders from the Centre and Gujarat, Sardar Patel’s home state. The play is part of the two-year-long 150th birth anniversary celebrations of Sardar Patel, which will conclude on October 31, 2026.
The Ministry of Culture had recently notified a high-level committee, chaired by PM Modi, to oversee the commemorations. The committee has more than 100 other members, including Union ministers, state governors and chief ministers. The committee also includes former presidents Pratibha Patil and Ramnath Kovind, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and former PM H D Deve Gowda as key members.
Those aware of the proceedings said the play has been planned as a magnum opus, with 200 cast and crew members, and extensive use of lighting effects and augmented reality technologies. Three different actors will play the leader, starting with a 14-year-old Patel who rebelled in school when textbooks were sold at 5 paisa instead of actual cost of 2 paisa.
“Various aspects of his life hold relevance today, and this is what the young generation needs to see to understand the man,” said a source.
“We are grappling with commercialisation of education, and this instance from Patel’s childhood will highlight how he stood up against it.”
Another issue, the source said, is how Sardar Patel strictly told his family members, especially his children, not to join politics since he didn’t want them to leverage his name to their advantage. “In today’s time, there is so much conversation about nepotism; Patel’s life demonstrates the importance of individual merit,” said the source privy to the concept.
Story continues below this ad
Presently, rehearsals for the play are going on. The play will showcase Sardar Pate’s return to Ahmedabad as a barrister after studying law in London, and how a 1916 speech by Bal Gangadhar Tilak marked the turning point in Patel’s political consciousness.
Patel was so moved by Tilak’s message of Swaraj (self-rule) that it inspired him to erect a statue of Tilak, despite British opposition. His relationship with Mahatma Gandhi will also be highlighted; how in 1946, just ahead of Independence, Patel didn’t flinch when asked by Gandhi to withdraw his candidacy for the Indian National Congress presidency in favour of Jawaharlal Nehru.
Nehru then went on to become the country’s first Prime Minister, Patel was the Deputy PM and Home Minister. The play will conclude with his last days and months, and how deeply Gandhi’s assassination in 1948 affected him.
