Excited to show 'Frontier Gandhi' to Indian president: Maker

Award-winning filmmaker Teri McLuhan is looking forward to show her documentary film 'The Frontier Gandhi', based on the life of legendary freedom fighter Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan, to President Pranab Mukherjee.
"In the coming week the President of India has asked for a private screening for Parliamentarians and his close friends. I am so excited about this. I am exited about it. When there is hope, there is light and vision," McLuhan said.
She feels that the documentary, which took her 22 years to complete, will bring back harmony in the three countries - India, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
"We had to do enormous amount of research. We are talking about three countries India, Pakistan and Afghanistan that are not necessarily in harmony. And this man spent his life in these three countries.

"My goal was to bring some kind of harmony back in these regions through the life of this remarkable individual. The film is about non-violence, justice and human dignity for all," she said.
McLuhan said she was struck with the three qualities of Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan also known as Badshah Khan - moral and spiritual side, uncommon courage and fearlessness and his profound absence of doubt.

The documentary filmmaker said it was during one of her visits to India that a professor gave her a book on Badshah Khan. She was so moved by the remarkable work that she decided to make a film on him.

The documentary showed rare pictures of Badshah, experiences shared by his family members, people of Khudai Khidmatgar group and other renowned personalities from India, Pakistan and Afganistan.
The documentary also presented how Mahatma Gandhi and Badshah Khan followed the same ideology of non-violence during the freedom struggle movement.
"There were cultural difference between them. But I didn't want to dwell on their differences in the documentary. I was interested in them being together. We all have our discreet nature," McLuhan said.