Raja Shivaji

Raja Shivaji — written, directed, and produced by Riteish Deshmukh — has released in both Hindi and Marathi. Interestingly, history repeats itself: back in 1952, the legendary Bhalji Pendharkar made Chhatrapati Shivaji, which was also released in both languages (and featured a cameo by Lata Mangeshkar). This new film similarly features a cameo by a major star, which stands out as one of its highlights — though the film itself otherwise follows a fairly predictable path. Worth noting: the Marathi version runs 8 minutes longer than the Hindi cut I watched, though the nature of those additions remains unclear.

Raja Shivaji leaves no stone unturned when it comes to recreating the bygone era. The production design and costumes are both eye-pleasing and appropriate for that period. The visual quality is further enhanced with the camerawork of the veteran cinematographer Santosh Sivan. However, the film suffers when it comes to the crucial aspects of writing and direction. The screenplay lacks proper flow as a large number of events are presented in a haphazard manner, especially before Riteish’s late entry. Things get streamlined once he enters the scene but only to some extent. The narrative comes somewhat on track once the battle lines are drawn between the protagonist and Afzal Khan but their all-important meet gets stretched.

पहले तो हम-आप इस बात पर हैरान हो सकते हैं कि इस फिल्म के नाम में ‘छत्रपति’ शब्द क्यों नहीं है। शिवाजी महाराज के बारे में हमें (महाराष्ट्र से बाहर वालों को) जितना और जैसा पढ़ाया गया है, उसके मुताबिक वह हमारे लिए ‘छत्रपति शिवाजी’ हैं जिन्होंने कम उम्र में ही तलवार उठा ली और ‘हिन्दवी स्वराज्य’ की स्थापना करते हुए इतने किले जीते कि उन्हें ‘छत्रपति’ की पदवी दी गई। शिवाजी की शौर्य गाथाएं भले ही हमने अधिक न पढ़ी हों, हम भारतीयों के लिए वह हमारे इतिहास के गौरवशाली नायक थे और हमेशा रहेंगे। फिर उन्हीं शिवाजी राजे की कहानी का नाम यूं सूखा-सा ‘राजा शिवाजी’ (Raja Shivaji) क्यों…?

The chapter of Maratha history that Raja Shivaji, a Marathi-Hindi bilingual written and directed by lead actor and co-producer Riteish Deshmukh, brings to the big screen is far more momentous than what Tanhaji - The Unsung Warrior and Chhaava have done. Both films drew elements gleaned from our school textbooks and served them up heated and heightened for an easy-to-sway mass audience to lap up. Not that Raja Shivaji does not intend to be a crowd-pleaser - it definitely does - but its many narrative flourishes, elaborate battle scenes and bloody duels are not as in-your-face as the ones that were mounted in Tanhaji and Chhaava.

Haven’t there been enough films made on Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in the last few years? Yes. Will there be more in the near future? Most probably. Is Raja Shivaji different? Yes and no. For starters, this Riteish Deshmukh’s directorial traces the story of the warrior king from his birth to a pivotal chapter in Maratha history, the slaying of Afzal Khan. In doing so, it focuses more on the emotions and instances that shaped Shivaji Maharaj’s quest for Swarajya. The trailer shows scenes from some of his conquests where he took the enemy head on and simply put, that has become a requisite for a big screen action film of late. But the gory battle scenes are not the focus in Raja Shivaji. Riteish, along with his writers (Ajit Wadekar and Sandeep Patil) create a story that focuses on the strategic aspects, not on the brute force of a king’s army - something that many films in this genre have done exhaustively before.

I wasn’t the biggest fan of Bajirao Mastani and Padmaavat back when they divided audiences, but I miss them now. A decade ago, the prospect of a lavishly mounted period drama about an iconic Indian warrior or king felt loaded with possibility. These much-revered figures could be accessed through the human dimensions of their personality — and I like that genre specialist Sanjay Leela Bhansali often used love and romantic tragedy as his medium. These days, they can be accessed (if at all) from a space of love too: but only if this love is a form of nationalism. Nothing less than reverence — slow-mo praises, spotless courage and heroism — will do. As a result, most releases arrive with an air of caution and compliance. Reviewing the storyline, its inaccuracies and omissions can be akin to reviewing the country. Raja Shivaji is the latest critic-proof spectacle in this series.