Sony LIV has released the teaser for Ram Madhvani’s upcoming series The Waking of a Nation, which delves into the truth behind one of India’s darkest colonial-era events — the Jallianwala Bagh massacre of April 13, 1919.
The 58-second-long teaser introduces Mismatched actor Taaruk Raina as a fearless Indian lawyer, Kantilal Sahni, determined to expose the British conspiracy behind the massacre that claimed over 300 lives. Dev Raaz, Nikita Dutta, Sahil Mehta, Bhawsheel Singh, Alex Reece, Paul McEwan and Carl Wharton also play key roles in the upcoming six-episode series.
The official synopsis of the series states that the storyline follows Kantilal’s struggles with racism and his quest for the truth. Bound by an unshakable childhood friendship, Kantilal and his companions unravel a conspiracy that reshapes their fate.
“You know about the massacre, but you don’t know about the conspiracy. Creator and Director Ram Madhvani brings you a show inspired by true events,” wrote Sony LIV, sharing the teaser on X on Monday.
“I have always been deeply interested in colonialism and, by extension, the issues of racism and prejudice. Questions surrounding cultural, linguistic, social, and artistic colonization have long troubled me. As I was contemplating my next project, I knew it had to be rooted in our past, in the British Raj, and in our freedom struggle. That’s when the idea for The Waking of a Nation came to life,” said creator-director Ram Madhvani in a statement.
Jointly produced by Udayan Baijal, Ankita Batra and Sidhu Manpreet, The Waking of a Nation is set to stream on Sony LIV from March 7. The upcoming series is penned by Shantanu Srivastava, Shatrujeet Nath and Ram Madhvani.
Madhvani is known for helming Sonam Kapoor’s Neerja, the Sushmita Sen-led thriller series Aarya and Kartik Aaryan’s 2021 film Dhamaka.