After the 1962 Indo-China war, China and India were involved in clashes in 1967 at Nathu La and Cho La, alongside the border of the Himalayan kingdom of Sikkim, then an Indian protectorate. It is a little-known chapter of India-China wars. Major General Sagat Singh (Jackie Shroff) sends Lt. Col. Rai Singh (Arjun Rampal) to take charge at the Sikkim border.

JP Dutta, a Bollywood director whose forte is war films is back with an untold story about 1967 Sino-Indian war. The stand-off at Nathu La and Cho La passes along the Sikkim border that began with shoving and pushing ended up with four days of continuous shelling, causing severe casualties and killing many of our soldiers. The film hails the unsung heroes and tells a story, which not everyone is acquainted with. However, the major setback of this war drama is its length and clichd treatment.

Paltan, if you're lucky enough not to watch the trailer, you should know it is about a war based on Nathu La and Cho La clashes that happened in 1967. Movie starts with showing a flashback of 1962 war and how the Chinese army destroyed Indian army and killed many of ours.

At a 154 minutes running time, sitting through writer-director J.P. Dutta's war drama Paltan is a battle. There is an interesting idea in the beginning of the film, when a postman mechanically delivers telegrams leaving a street full of mourning families behind. But the voice-overs artists are so shrill and theatrical that it feels like a newcomer was in charge of directing a scene in a TV soap opera.

Director J P Dutta's distinction in grandiose sentiments, dramatic aggression and intensive star power led to many career highs as he shifted focus from Rajasthani feudalism to India's war scene. Of these, Border is certainly his most celebrated if not paramount.

J.P. Dutta's brand of war films has a set recipe: take a stale base of background stories, layer it with some moments of valour, sprinkle some sappy songs and toss it all up with a healthy serving of heavy-duty dialogues. We've seen him do this before with Border and LOC Kargil.

No, Paltan is not a film about the bloody Nathu La ambush of Indian soldiers by the Chinese in 1965. And it's not about the war in 1962, much as it might underline the link to it. It's actually about the series of minor skirmishes, and one major clash, on that border that got India some tactical advantage in 1967.

I'm mildly surprised JP Dutta hasn't yet used the National Anthem as background score. The cheerleading jingoism is so strong in his movies that a director like Dutta might be all too glad to have his audience forced to stand through the entire running-time of his long films, to parallel the way our brave soldiers remain standing at the border.

JP Dutta's contribution to managing the Indian army's image must be lauded. His filmography covers the pertinent wars that altered the country's history and geography but has forever subscribed to tested tropes and heightened jingoism. The spirited jawaans who are ever prepared to part with life and limb, are also trained in heavy-duty dialoguebaazi in this one.

Paltan is based on true events at the actual line of control between India and China at Nathu La pass - a strategically important corridor between India and Tibet. It is the story of bravehearts from Indian Army's Rajput battalion, who put up a spirited defense against their unreasonable Chinese counterpart in 1965.