Kesari Veer

Kesari Veer: Legend of Somnath isn’t shy about what it wants to be. It’s a full-throated, slow-motion-laden ode to sacrifice set against the backdrop of 14th-century Gujarat. The film reconstructs the tale of Hamirji Gohil — likely a historical figure about whom not much is known beyond legends and folktales. But once the dust settles (and the background score finally fades), what does the ending actually mean? This is your Kesari Veer movie story and ending explained, and also learn about the cast of the movie, trailer, and more. The Kesari Veer movie is something of a historical epic account with an eye on a cultural assertion. It is stylised to a pitch of crescendo. It occasionally can stray beyond historical consensus — that, I would say, has never really been unusual in Bollywood. I mean, Chhaava was pretty recent and had its hero chucking a shield at the enemy like Captain America. At the heart of the Kesari Veer story is a man standing in the path of an invading army and an important Lord Shiva temple (Somnath).

I suspect this is going to be a short review. Not just because Kesari Veer is unwatchable in so many different ways that one is spoiled for choice. But also because I’m tired of writing the same thing about multiple Hindi period dramas — if one can call them that — over the last few years. As a critic, I’ve gotten to a point where I robotically tick off a mental checklist. Provocative? Of course. Islamophobic? Certainly. Hate-mongering? Obviously. Misinformation parading as creative license? Sure. Kesari Veer is a 162-minute inspired-by-true-events slog about a Rajput warrior who tries to defend the Somnath temple against the Tughlaq Empire in the 14th century, but it’s also another 21st-century excuse to demonise Muslims in a communally sensitive country through the elastic medium of history. In another era, it would’ve been banned. All of this goes without saying. It’s the starting point. Tell me something new.

The Moghuls are bad, they wear black. The Hindus are brave, they’re covered in saffron. The screen is red – with blood. “I wanted it to be green,” sneers Zafar (Vivek Anand Oberoi) who wears kohl in his eyes, eyes the throne in Delhi, dreams of being called Sultan and targets Somnath Mandir where the faith of the kaafir resides. Weaned on unwavering belief in ‘Har Har Mahadev’, Hamirji Gohil (Sooraj Pancholi) is courageous and chivalrous. It wins him the admiration of tigress Rajal (Akanksha Sharma) and her father Raja Vegdaji Bhil (Suniel Shetty), a devout Shiv bhakt. Together, Hamirji and the Bhils will guard Somnath against the wicked Zafar Khan. The battlelines between noble believer and cruel plunderer are so clearly drawn that Kanu Chauhan’s story and screenplay begins and ends there.