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Published 18:18 IST, October 12th 2020

Where was the movie 'Gunga Din' filmed? See all the movie filming locations

Where was the movie Gunga Din filmed? See all of the Gunga Din movie filming locations. Gunga Din is a 1939 released RKO movie directed by George Stevens.

Reported by: Surabhi Sabat
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Gunga Din is an American movie loosely based on the Rudyard Kipling poem as well as his short story collection called Soldiers Three. The film was released in 1939. The story is about three British sergeants played by Cary Grant, Victor McLaglen and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr, along with their water bearer who is known as Gunga Din. The plot of the film is about Gunga Din who fights the murderous Indian cults during colonial British India. In Kipling's poem, the story is narrated by a wounded English soldier. Gunga Din is the Indian water-bearer which is referred to as Bhisti, who saves the soldier's life, but himself gets killed in the process. Read on to know more about the Gunga Din movie filming location

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Where was the movie Gunga Din filmed?

Alabama Hills, Lone Pine, California, USA

The main location for the filming of the Gunga Din movie was done in Alabama Hills region, which is located in Lone Pine, in the California state of USA. The plaque that could be found in the Alabama Hills region states that the location was indeed chosen for the filming of the 1939 released movie Gunga Din.

The plaque reads "In 1938, this hill area, among many others in these Alabama Hills, served as a stand-in for the hill country of northern India when RKO made the classic adventure film, 'Gunga Din,' on location in Lone Pine. Hundreds of horsemen raced across the hills and elaborate sets were built here and nearby while the cast and crew lived for weeks in a tent city off Movie Road. Directed by George Stevens, the epic starred Cary Grant, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Victor McLaglen and Joan Fontaine with Sam Jaffe as Gunga Din, the waterboy who wanted so much to be a soldier."

Sierra Nevada range

According to IMDb, the filing of Gunga Din took place in the sets made by RKO at Lone Pine and also the RKO's Encino movie ranch as well. Even though the movie's story was supposed to show Khyber Pass region, however, the whole film was made in the Lone Pine at Alabama Hills and the surrounding areas. According to the Museum of Western Film History portal, The narrowing regions of the Lone Pine helped the makers of the movie depict the Khyber Pass area. 

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Gunga Din movie cast

  • Cary Grant as Sgt. Archibald Cutter
  • Victor McLaglen as Sgt. MacChesney aka Mac
  • Douglas Fairbanks Jr. as Sgt. Thomas Ballantine aka Tommy
  • Sam Jaffe as Gunga Din
  • Eduardo Ciannelli as Guru
  • Joan Fontaine as Emaline Stebbins aka Emmy
  • Montagu Love as Col. Weed
  • Robert Coote as Sgt. Bertie Higginbotham
  • Abner Biberman as Chota
  • Lumsden Hare as Maj. Mitchell

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Promo Image courtesy: A still from Gunga Din

Updated 18:18 IST, October 12th 2020

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