On Republic Day, we look back at Rajiv Rai’s cult classic Vishwatma, where Bollywood took deshbhakti to the diaspora. The film, which released 28 years ago, gave us the greatest masala national integration song, “Dil le gayi teri bindiya,” and reminds us of a time when no one was asked to prove their patriotism.

Everyone remembers Manoj Kumar’s Clerk for that iconic scene where Ashok Kumar recovers from a heart attack thanks to a shot of nationalism. But Clerk, the story of a government servant who loves the system irrespective of all its ills, is like a beta stage for modern super patriots.

Kya calendar dekh kar aapke andar ka deshbhakt jaag jata hai? Fitoor aaj apko patriotism ke fundey samjhata hai!

As we step into our 72nd year as republic, and witness the elaborate Republic Day parade, we must ask: What does the Constitution mean to us today? As a wave of demonstrations and gatherings ebbs and flows across the country today, the popularity of the Preamble to the Constitution as a tool of protest has revived. But will it last?

The Republic Day Parade celebrates the Constitution, itself an expression of the spirit of our country and its diversity – of dances and songs, physical features, historical characters and incidents; the countless stories that make up this glorious republic.

Papa ka sach, Rakhi ke liye hua too much! Watch #TheGreatIndianConfession in association with #MediBuddy #AapkaHealthBuddy

Jeo Baby’s The Great Indian Kitchen does not minimise women’s hard work in the kitchen to “mamta aur pyaar”. Instead, it follows the “show don’t tell” route to narrate the story of women whose entire day revolves around the four meals demanded by the men who feel entitled to their labour.

Adarsh Gourav, in his debut feature film role, is up to the task of being the glue that holds The White Tiger together. His character is both the flawed hero and the unreliable narrator, existing on society’s underbelly first out of choice, and then out of compulsion.

The ambivalence toward exercising your franchise from younger voters baffles me. It’s almost as if they are afraid of the kind of commitment it requires to go to a polling booth and choose a candidate or NOTA, as if they do not want to be accountable for the vote they cast.

What does patriotism mean today? Does it lie in adhering to the Constitution? Does it lie in fixing “anti-nationals” with a ticket to Pakistan? Does it mean #BoycottChineseProducts? We revisit a few loved films that redefine deshbhakti for this age.