India, Jan. 15 -- Contd. from pg 01 Hindi cinema has long told stories of the Army and defence forces, celebrating the courage of our heroes. While earlier films leaned heavily on drama, recent years have seen a stronger shift towards realism, thanks to officers brought on board as military consultants. On Indian Army Day, today, we speak to some of the leading war film consultants. Col Manish Sarin (Retd), who has worked as a consultant on Sam Bahadur (2023), Sarzameen (2025) and 120 Bahadur (2025), calls the rise of military consultants a positive shift, stressing the balance between story and realism. "For each scene, I make different tables - for weapons, uniforms and more. You don't want to compromise on storytelling or realism," he says. Major Sandeep Sangwan (Retd), who consulted on Pippa (2023), Emergency (2025) and Border 2, adds that their work begins at the scripting stage. "Some things are allowed under cinematic liberty, but there are non-negotiables too, and we make sure anything goes as per Army conduct," he says. For Brigadier Brijendra Singh (Retd), Ikkis was his first consulting project. "The Army is evolving. Our uniforms and manner of speaking have changed over time," he says. Praising director Sriram Raghavan, he adds, "I was happy he chose to portray the actual tanks of that era. Even I couldn't tell they were models." Even as Hindi films move towards realism, gaps remain. Pointing this out, Col Sarin says, "There are stereotypes of jingoism and loud patriotism carried over from older films, but the new generation of filmmakers understands it's not always about shouting. They're also open to feedback." Major Sangwan adds, "Earlier, a single grenade blowing up a tank was common, which doesn't happen in real life. Today audiences see that as a joke, so filmmakers have become realistic. It began with films like Lakshya (2004)." 120 Bahadur director Razneesh Ghai believes the clash between cinematic liberty and realism disappears when a film is made with honesty. "At times your vision doesn't align with theirs, and sometimes your research may differ... But if you want to make an honest film, you work together to find the solution." Ground Zero (2025) director Tejas Vijay Deoskar, says, "Film has to be made on the guidelines the military gives. You cannot take liberties that don't align with them," adding that their changes "don't hamper our creative process." Major Sangwan says, "Storytelling needs emotions, so creative liberty is important. But for the Army part, we try to keep in tandem with realism. The limits are decided through mutual discussion." The inclusion of military consultants also benefits the Forces. Brigadier Singh explains, "It helps when the portrayal is right. We don't want to be made a laughing stock. Consultants need to be there, regardless of how brief the defence forces' presence is in a film."...