Making a historical drama is a big responsibility. Bigger even, when the subject is one of the bloodiest chapters of Indian history. Creator Ram Madhvani is aware of the responsibility he is shouldering as he makes The Waking of a Nation, a six-part series centred on the Hunter Commission that was established in October 1919 to investigate the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. The creator-director, however, points out that his series is historical fiction. 

“There were five British and three Indians in the Hunter Commission. The Indians walked out, saying that what they called investigation was, in fact, white-washing. So, this series looks at that investigation,” he starts, when we get on a call. “There is this term called historical fiction. If you go into a bookshop, there will be a whole range of books [under the genre of] historical fiction. I suppose they are inspired by true events. This is a story [told] from our characters’ point of view.”
Researching a historical subject can be strenuous. More importantly, it can be a tricky affair. Madhvani agrees, noting that a critical factor in the genre is the lens you view the story from. He explains, “There are so many versions of [history]. Our tale is, in some ways, fictional. But I read and did my due diligence. I’m interested in that part of our colonial past. Many years ago, I did a short film called This Bloody Line, which was about Sir Cyril Radcliffe. The fact that he drew a line in one month and divided this country, when he had never been to India before, was fascinating to me.”