Gadar 2 star Ameesha Patel talks about 'random sequels' in Bollywood: The actors are...

Ameesha Patel and Sunny Deol will be seen as Tara Singh and Sakina in Gadar 2. The actors will be reprising their roles from the 2001 film Gadar: Ek Prem Katha. The Anil Sharma directorial -- Gadar 2, is set to release in theatres on August 11. The action drama has created a buzz among fans and the advance ticket sales point towards a good opening for the film. 

Ahead of Gadar 2's release, Republic Digital's Mugdha Kapoor spoke at length with Ameesha Patel and discussed the nostalgia factor associated with the franchise. The actress also shared why Gadar 2 is different from other sequels.

3 things you need to know

• Ameesha Patel and Sunny Deol are promoting Gadar 2 nationwide ahead of its release on August 11.
• Gadar 2 will clash with OMG 2 at the box office.
• Utkarsh Sharma, who played young Jeete in Gadar, will also be seen reprising his role in the sequel.

Ameesha Patel on 'random sequels' in Bollywood

Gadar 2, which comes 22 years after the first part, is set against the backdrop of the Indo-Pak War of 1971. The film's patriotic theme, Sunny Deol's angry-man avatar in the trailer versus Ameesha's innocence as Sakina has not only made cine-goers nostalgic but also piqued the interest as they wait with bated breath to witness the OG pair cast their magic onscreen yet again.

This, however, is not a 'random' attempt at cashing in on the original film's brand value, says Ameesha Patel while adding that it is not easy to make a sequel to an 'iconic' film as Gadar. "The film is a difficult one to make a part two of. You have something so iconic and unlike other sequels where suddenly the actors are replaced and it's just a random part two. This is what normally happens in Bollywood," she said.

Ameesha Patel says the audience will relate to Gadar 2 storyline 

The events depicted in Gadar 2 take place nearly 17 years after what unfolds in Gadar: Ek Prem Katha. Ameesha Patel said that the setting of the sequel will make it easier for the audience to relate to it. She further said that this is a 'new concept' for Bollywood, to have a direct sequel to a film.

"This is the first time when an iconic film has retained the exact same characters and has gone ahead and taken the story forward. Gadar 2 is based in 1971, an important and historic year for India because it was the biggest Indo-Pak war post-freedom and that's when East Pakistan became Bangladesh," said the actress.

She went on to add that Gadar 2 will highlight the chaos that prevailed in India and Pakistan during the 1971 war. It will explore the incidents in Tara Singh's family against that backdrop. "The backdrop, like in the original, is a carry forward to an Indo-Pak war background and the chaos in both the countries and the incidents that happened in this family and the story goes forward," she said. 

Ameesha also drew parallels between Gadar 2 and Tom Cruise's Top Gun: Maverick which was released 36 years after the first part of Top Gun and largely featured the original cast. Ameesha said that the makers of Gadar 2 have pulled off something similar.

"In Hollywood, you had Top Gun which was released almost 30 years ago and then last year it came out with a sequel which was an extension of the film with the same characters and a carry forward of what happened to these characters years down the line. This is the first film I think in Bollywood that has had a part 2 that is connected to part 1 that has come so many years later," Ameesha concluded.