India, June 18 -- 15 June 2001 is a red-letter day for Indian cinema. Two big Hindi films released in theatres that day. This phenomenon is nothing new. There have been several 'clashes' at the box office over the decades that films have released in the country. But the two that clashed that day succeeded, not at the expense of each other but with each other. Long before Barbenheimer was a meme on the internet, Bollywood had its Gadar-Lagaan moment.

And while Lagaan has enjoyed continued cultural relevance (and international acclaim), many forget that it was Gadar that was the bigger hit of the two. In fact, so obscene was Gadar's success that translating it into today's terms would yield almost unimaginable box office collections. As th...