This Father’s Day, sit back and enjoy these heartfelt films that portray the reserved yet unconditional love Indian fathers have for their children.
Piku
This comedy-drama follows a Bengali father and daughter on a cab road trip from Delhi to Kolkata to prevent the sale of their ancestral home. Amitabh Bachchan plays the white-haired eccentric, hypochondriac father, constantly at odds with his strong-willed architect daughter, portrayed by Deepika Padukone.
The 2015 feel-good Hindi film was praised for its modern take on the bond between an Indian father and daughter, empathetically portraying the challenges of caring for ageing parents. The character-driven narrative led the film to win the National Film Award for Best Original Screenplay and Best Dialogues.
In an Instagram post, Deepika shared that Piku “is a film that will always have my heart” and announced its re-release in theatres across India on May 9 to mark its tenth anniversary. In Singapore, the film is currently available to buy ($20.98) or rent ($4.98) on Apple TV.
Hi Nanna
A single father selflessly cares for his six-year-old daughter who is diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. When the latter’s questions about her absent mother go unanswered, she runs away from home with the pet dog.
As fate would have it, she is rescued by a kind stranger. The rest of the story plays out like a soap opera with many dramatic twists and turns as the father recounts how he met her mother and the family’s eventual re-unitement.
Tollywood actor Nani, famed for the HIT trilogy, delivers an emotional performance as a father afflicted by personal tragedy while Kiara Khanna capably portrays his chronically ill daughter.
Released on Dec 7, 2023, the sentimental Telugu film was a commercial hit, earning around Rs 76 crores ($12.4 million) worldwide. The film is available to stream on Netflix in Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam and Hindi.
Dangal
The biographical sports drama is based on the true story of Indian amateur wrestler Mahavir Singh Phogat, who channels his unfulfilled dream of winning a gold medal into training his two daughters to compete at the Commonwealth Games.
Aamir Khan delivers a grounded performance as the doggedly determined father who, despite initial disappointment at not having a son, recognises his two older daughters’ potential when they return home after beating up some boys in response to derogatory comments.
The 2016 Hindi film is peppered with poignant father-daughter moments that evidently struck a chord with the global audience. Dangal, which refers to a wrestling arena, is currently the highest-grossing Indian film of all time – thanks in large part to a massively successful 2017 theatrical run in China. It earned an impressive worldwide total of US$311 million ($419.85 million).
