The document discusses several films and the historical inaccuracies they contain. It provides details about films like Shakespeare in Love, Mughal-e-Azam, Gangubai Kathiawadi, Titanic, Pearl Harbor, and Neerja. While some of the characters and plots were fictionalized for dramatic purposes, the document also mentions aspects of the films that aligned accurately with history, such as the sinking of the Titanic and characters who went down with the ship. It analyzes the inaccuracies around events, people, timelines, and other details that the films distorted or changed from historical facts.

1. History on screen: True to
reality or distortion of Facts,
a cross section of western vs eastern screen
Presentation By:
Kaustuv Kali - 23202152
Anupam Aadarsh – 23202141
Nikita Pattanaik - 23202161
Prathoma Mondal – 23202166
Prateek Kumar Yadav – 23202167
Sanjana Dey - 23202176

2. SHAKESPEARE IN
LOVE
 It is a 1998 periodic romantic comedy film directed by John Madden,
written by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard, and produced by Harvey
Weinstein.
 It stars Gweyneth Paltrow, Joseph Fiennes, Geoffrey Rush, Colin Firth,
Ben Affleck and Judi Dench.
 The Film depicts a fictional love affair involving playwright William
Shakespeare (Fiennes) and Viola de Lesseps ( Paltrow) while
Shakespeare was writing Romeo and Juliet.
 Several characters are based on historic figures and many of the
characters, line, and plot devices allude to Shakespeare’s play.
 In 1998 this movie became the ninth highest grossing film amounting
to $289 million world wide.

3. HISTORICAL INACCURACIES
 Earl of Wessex - a lead character, did not existed for over 500 years in
Shakespeare’s time.
 Queen Elizabeth I never entered a public theatre as does in the film.
 Between Romeo and Juliet and Twelfth Night Shakespeare wrote ten
other plays in a period of six year which was not depicted in the
movie.
 Shakespeare in real life simply adapted an existing story of Romeo
and Juliet for theatre but in reel it was shown Shakespeare struggled
for the theme.
 It was preconceived during that period, no noble man would marry
any woman who has been in a physical relationship with any other
man. Controversy started when Voila’s fiancé accepted to marry her
even after Queen Elizabeth revealed about Voila’s infidelity towards
her fiancé.

4. Some distorsion of Facts in the name of cinematic liberty :
‘Gangubai Kathiawadi’ is a 2022 Indian Biographical film
Directed, Music and produced by Sanjay Leela Bhansali
 Ramniklal and Gangubai got married before going to
Bombay.
 She also had a serious gambling addiction and gambled
almost every day.
 There were no one named Razia Bai (played by Vijay
Raz).
 No rape on Gangubai by Karim Lala’s gang member.
 Before becoming sister to Karim Lala, Gangubai was
ready to be his mistress.
*facts are taken from several published news and interviews

5. Some facts which are true to reality and shown in the cinema
‘Gangubai Kathiawadi’ the Film is based on a part of S Hussain Zaidi and Jane
Borges' book Mafia Queens of Mumbai: Stories of Women from the Ganglands.
 Gangubai fought for making prostitution Legal.
 Gangubai adopted several children and took care of
them.
 Music by Sanjay Leela Bhansali is great.
 Set designing is what makes the film larger than life.
 ‘Gangubai Mahaan nahi thi, par gangubai
shaitaan vi nahi thi’ is actually a greate line to end
this film.
*facts are taken from several published news and interviews

6. TITANIC
Titanic is a 1997 American film directed, written, produced by
James Cameron.
The movie has shown many Historical Inaccuracies , some of them are as
follows –
 Jack and Rose were pretty much made up for a dramatic love
story effect .
 Will Murdoch wasn’t a Villain.
 There was not really any lifeboat discrimination.
 The water flooding the ship would have looked much dirtier.
 The Ship followed American Military traditions not the
British.

7. The Titanic movie’s accurate Portrayals
 The Iceberg impact was accurate.
 The ship did split in two parts.
 Captain Edward John Smith and Architect Thomas Andrews did go down
with the ship.
 There were not enough life boats to save all passengers.
 The elderly couple who pass away together in bed were real.

8.  Neerja, The Film Based On The Bravery Of Pan
Am Flight Attendant Neerja Bhanot. Who Saved
The Lives Of 359 People After The Plane Was
Hijacked.
 The Film Was Essentially Promoted As A Biopic
On Pan Am Flight Attendant Neerja Bhanot.
 Who Sacrificed Her Life While Saving Passengers
During A Hijacking Incident At The Karachi
Airport In 1986.
 Neerja Bhanot is India's true daughter. A gripping
and thrilling drama about a real brave hero.
 For her bravery, the Government of India
posthumously awarded Neerja Bhanot the Ashoka
Chakra Award, India's highest gallantry award for
bravery.
‘Neerja’ is a 2016 Indian Hindi-Language Biographical thriller film Directed by Ram Madhvani.

9.  But According To One Crew Member, Nupur Abrol
Who Was Present At The Time, The Events Shown
Are Far From What Really Happened.
 Nupur Abrol Went To The Extent Of Saying That
Neerja Wasn’t Really The Hero, Unlike What Is Shown
In The Movie.
 The Film, Which Was Pitched And Promoted As A
Biopic On The Courageous Soul Through Various
Promotional Acts, Is Now Being Criticized.
 However, In The Filmmakers’ Defense, The Film
Actually Begins With The Disclaimer That “The Film Is
Not A Biography Or A Documentary On The Brave Pan
Am Air Hostess.”

10. Pearl Harbor 2001
• Pearl Harbor is a 2001 American romantic war drama
film directed by Michael Bay, produced by Bay and Jerry
Bruckheimer and written by Randall Wallace.
• It stars Ben Affleck, Kate Beckinsale, Josh Hartnett, Cuba
Gooding Jr, Tom Sizemore, Jon Voight, Colm Feore,
and Alec Baldwin.
• The film features a heavily fictionalized version of
the attack on Pearl Harbor by Japanese forces on December
7, 1941, focusing on a love story set amidst the lead up to
the attack and its aftermath.

11. ● The movie received generally negative reviews from critics, who criticized the story, long runtime, screenplay,
dialogue, pacing and historical inaccuracies, although the visual effects and Hans Zimmer's score were praised.
● The harshest criticism was aimed at instances in the film where actual historical events were altered for dramatic
purposes like
● In one of the film's scenes it shows Japanese aircraft targeting medical staff and the base's hospital. Although it
was damaged in the attack, the Japanese did not deliberately target the U.S. naval hospital.
● The inclusion of Ben Affleck's character in the Eagle Squadron is another inaccurate aspect of the film, since
active-duty U.S. airmen were prohibited from joining the squadron.

12. HISTORICAL INACCURACIES
 The movie is based on a legend rather than historical facts.
 Historians have suggested that Anarkali might have been a painter, dancer, a
courtesan, or one of Akbar’s wives.
 The real Salim was highly alcoholic and opium from the age of 18, but he was
not a mischievous boy as depicted in the film.
 He had put up an insurgence to replace his father
as an emperor. But the film attributed his act as
his desire to marry Anarkali.
 Variation in sets, costumes, dance forms.
MUGHAL-E-AZAM

13. MUGHAL-E-AZAM
● Mughal-e-Azam is a 1960 Indian epic historical drama film
produced and directed by K. Asif, written by Aman,
Kamal, and other co-writers.
● It casts Prithviraj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar, Madhubala, and
Durga Khote.
● The film portrays the love affair between Mughal Prince
Salim(Jahangir) and Anarkali, a court dancer.
● His father, Emperor Akbar, disapproves their
relationship, which led to a war between the two.
● Languages- Hindi, Urdu
● However, the characters are same as the
known history.
● Box office ₹110 million ($23.11 million).

14. Bibliography:
Gangubai Kathiyawadi:
1. https://www.scoopwhoop.com/entertainment/details-about-gangubai-missed-in-gangubai-kathiawadi/
2. https://www.thequint.com/entertainment/bollywood/alia-bhatt-film-gangubai-kathiawadi-hussain-zaidi-book-mafia-
queens-of-mumbai-the-matriarch-of-kathiawadi#read-more
3. https://www.filmcompanion.in/reviews/gangubai-kathiawadi-review-alia-bhatt-gangubai-kathiawadi-is-a-
celebration-of-the-art-and-anguish-of-being-a-woman-sanjay-leela-bhansali
4. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Y_9Ij1rfxI
5. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/hindi/bollywood/news/gangubai-kathiawadi-has-defamed-
gangubai-she-wasnt-a-prostitute-say-granddaughter-bharti-sonawane-and-her-lawyer-narendra-
exclusive/articleshow/89777816.cms
TITANIC
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titanic_(1997_film)
2. https://screenrant.com/titanic-james-cameron-historial-inaccuracies-right/
3. https://www.bustle.com/p/11-things-the-titanic-movie-got-wrong-about-the-real-life-tragedy-66287
4. https://www.thetravel.com/things-the-titanic-movie-got-right-wrong-right/
Pearl Harbor
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearl_Harbor_(film)
2. https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1108389-pearl_harbor
3. http://www.careeraftermilitary.com/faq/how-can-you-get-a-job-as-an-air-marshal-after-military-service/
Slide templet taken from
https://slidesgo.com/theme/high-school-filmmaking-program-silent-films#search-Movie&position-
3&results-140

15. Bibliography:
Shakespeare In Love
1. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Shakespeare-in-Love
2. https://m.imdb.com/title/tt0138097/plotsummary/
3. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shakespeare_in_Love#:~:text=Historical%20inaccuracies,-
The%20film%20is&text=A%20leading%20character%20is%20an,a%20period%20of%20six%2
0years.
Mughal-e-azam
1. https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2013/feb/14/mughal-e-azam-reel-history
2. https://medium.com/@abhrosingharoy/a-study-of-mughal-e-azam-51acedd4efc7
3. https://images.app.goo.gl/Cu4Sd51AsCu8epAh9https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0054098/reviews
Neerja
1. https://www.thenews.com.pk/magazine/100383-Neerja-criticised-for-being-more-fictional-than-
real
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neerja

16. Thank You