Nikkhil Advani defends Jinnah's elitist portrayal in Freedom at Midnight: 'Took to religion only to become Quaid e Azam'

Nikkhil Advani talks to HT about Freedom at Midnight S2 and how the show portrays the prominent figures from India and Pakistan's past.

Nikkhil Advani’s Freedom at Midnight is concluding its run with the upcoming second season, which premieres on SonyLiv later this month. The first season earned acclaim for its production values and performances, particularly that of Arif Zakaria, who plays Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Pakistan’s father of the nation.

Arif Zakaria as Muhammad Ali Jinnah in Freedom at Midnight.

While many in India remarked about how accurately Zakaria portrayed Jinnah, across the border, critics and viewers criticised their Quaid-e-Azam’s depiction, claiming he was portrayed as too ‘snobbish and elitist’. Ahead of the release of season 2, creator Nikkhil Advani addressed this criticism and doubled down on his depiction of Jinnah.

Nikkhil Advani on Jinnah

Talking about how the criticism that Jinnah is portrayed as ‘too elitist’ on the show, Nikkhil said, “I find it a joke because he took to Islam and religion only because he wanted to become Quaid-e-Azam. I mean, he was a whiskey-drinking, sausage-eating, South Bombay elitist. Jinnah had become possibly one of the most powerful voices in the legal system in India in the 1920s, and he took great pride in being a resident of Malabar Hill.”

Jinnah lived in Bombay during his days as the leader of the Muslim League and was a prominent member of the city’s high society, before he moved to Karachi right before the Partition in 1947. After India and Pakistan gained independence, Jinnah served as Pakistan’s first Governor General and is regarded as Quaid-e-Azam (Greatest Leader) in Pakistan.

Talking about his portrayal on the show, Nikkhil added, “Arif Zakaria grew up in South Bombay. So it became very easy for me to say that he will get the small nuances that I wanted him to bring to the Mohammad Ali Jinnah character.”

About Freedom at Midnight S2

Adapted from the book of the same name by Dominique Lapierre and Larry Collins, Freedom at Midnight tells the story of Indian independence and Partition through the eyes of its founding fathers. The show stars Sidhant Gupta as Jawaharlal Nehru, Chirag Vohra as Mahatma Gandhi, Rajendra Chawla as Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Luke McGibney as Lord Mountbatten, Cordelia Bugeja as Edwina Mountbatten, Malishka Mendonsa as Sarojini Naidu, Pawan Chopra as Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Ira Dubey as Fatima Jinnah, Rajesh Kumar as Liaquat Ali Khan, and K.C. Shankar as V.P. Menon. Anurag Thakur and Abhishek Banerjee have joined the cast for season 2, which releases on January 9.