MUMBAI: Shahrukh Khan has thanked director Ashutosh Gowariker for helming the 2004 critically acclaimed film ‘Swades’, which featured the superstar in the lead role. As the film clocked 12 years today, the 51-year-old actor posted a sweet message on Twitter, praising the entire cast and crew of the movie. “Yeh jo des hai mera, Swades hai mera. Can’t thank Ashutosh enough for such a lovely film. The whole cast/crew had such faith in goodness and Indianness,” he wrote. ‘Swades’, inspired by a true story, was a remake of Kannada movie ‘Chigurida Kanasu’ with Shiva Rajkumar in lead role. Swades – We, the People’ is a 2004 Bollywood drama film written, produced and directed by Ashutosh Gowariker. It stars Shahrukh Khan and Gayatri Joshi in the lead roles. The film received widespread critical acclaim and a cult following from Indian and other South Asian audiences around the world. The film received overwhelmingly strong critical acclaim from critics. Most of the critics felt that Shahrukh Khan’s performance in ‘Swades’ was his best until date. Subhash K Jha of Indiatimes Movies gave 4.5 stars out of 5 and said “Swades is a unique experiment with grassroot realism. It is so politically correct in its propagandist message that initially you wonder if the government of India funded the director’s dream.” Mayank Shekhar from Mid Day gave four stars and called it ‘bravo!’ and added, “I cannot think of a better film for the longest that deserved a stronger recommendation for both touring cinemas of India’s villages, and plush multiplexes of Mumbai or Manhattan.”