How Nikkhil Advani’s Freedom at Midnight uses Mahatma Gandhi assassination not as a polarising event, but a unifying one

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Would history take a different course if Mahatma Gandhi was killed by a Muslim? Freedom At Midnight strips down the primary cause of Gandhi’s attempted assassination to a rather relatable, rampant existential phenomenon — Daddy issues. Richard Attenborough’s 1982 biopic Gandhi ends with the Mahatma saying his last words, “Hey Ram,” as the screen goes black. But in Freedom at Midnight, Advani zooms in on Gandhi as he takes the bullet on his chest. There’s a reason why the day of the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi is celebrated as Martyrs’ Day.