Tanhaji and Left intolerance: Why the Usual Suspects hate this period movie?

The historical movie Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior has received positive reviews from most of the movie critics. However, the usual suspects comprising the pseudo-liberal-secular forces have yet again found fallacies in the movie. The movie was called ‘Islamophobic’, ‘dressed up slice of the past’ and ‘deeply divisive’ by the usual suspects





The last few years in Bollywood have been pivotal in influencing the minds of the Indian and International audiences. Gone are those days when perverted, adulterated and misinterpreted versions of our Bharatiya History are produced on the Big Screen for the intoxication of the masses.

One such recent and undoubtedly successful example of the aforementioned point is the rip-roaring movie Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior. As the name suggests, Tanhaji was indeed an unsung warrior. There have been instances where children, subsequent to watching the film, are befuddled, flipping the pages of their History Book in dismay, to find to their surprise the absence of such a focal character of the 1600s. It is indeed, a shame, that our education system failed us to this extent, that it very swiftly and spitefully elbowed such a crucial and pivotal character out of our History Books.

Director Om Raut's period action drama, Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior very absorbingly explores the dynamics between the two characters, namely, Subedar Tanhaji Malusare and Udaybhan Rathod.

Tanhaji Malusare is a fierce Maratha warrior and one of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s closest aides & military leader.

The central theme of the film is the Battle of Sinhagad that took place on the 4th of February, 1670, which saw Tanhaji take on Udaybhan, a Rajput who fought for Aurangzeb against the Marathas.

“Chaalak Aalamgir ne apani sabse badi chaal chali, ek Hindu ke virudh Hindu ko khada kar diya” is a resonating dialogue that reminds us of one of the biggest mistakes our ancestors committed while facing foreign invasions. The recently released movie Panipat: The Great Betrayal also portrayed the divisions and rifts that existed in the social fabric of our society.

Under the Treaty of Purandar, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj (Sharad Kelkar) surrendered 23 forts to Aurangzeb (Luke Kenny), including the Kondhana Fort (now called Sinhagad), which was of strategic importance, as it overlooked the southern areas of the country.

Underwhelming response to Deepika’s long-awaited film Chhapaak is an alarming signal, that standing with nation breaking forces is not good for the business Rajmata Jijabai (Padmavati Rao) swore that she would walk bare feet till this fort is recaptured by the Marathas: “Jab tak Kondhana par phirse Bhagwa nahi lehrata, hum joote nahi pehnenge”. Four years later, Aurangzeb sends Udaybhan (Saif Ali Khan) with a huge army and a massive canon called 'Naagin', to ensure that Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj cannot reclaim the fort. While Shivaji Maharaj plans a campaign, he doesn't want to send his trusted lieutenant and dear friend, Subedar Tanhaji Malusare on the battlefield, as the latter's son is about to get married. When Tanhaji understands about the 'Mohim' (campaign), he implores Shivaji Maharaj to give him an opportunity to win Kondhana.

His wife, Savitribai (Kajol) proves to be his silent strength. Despite the evil intentions of some like Pisal (Ajinkya Deo), Tanhaji manages to make inroads into the fort that is considered impregnable. A fierce battle ensues where Tanhaji fights the deadly Udaybhan.

It is believed by intellectuals and historians that the battle of Sinhagad was one of the most significant chapters that would go on to shape the course of today's Southern Bharat.

Director Om Raut shows a flair for storytelling in his debut Hindi movie. He maintains a firm grip on the film and balances the emotions and drama with tact.

Ajay Devgn passionately plays an effective and electric Tanhaji, his inclination towards the subject and the cause is clearly visible from his undying effort.

Saif Ali Khan looked menacing as the arch-villain and has undoubtedly just delivered a performance that must rank among his career-best.

A special mention to Kajol, who plays Tanaji's wife Savitribai. Despite how trivial, Kajol makes her small part reverberate through her unparalleled screen presence and emotional intelligence. It is her first historical in an over 25-year-long career and the real-life couple have returned together on the Big Screen almost after a decade.

Kajol’s powerful dialogue delivery was evident from the trailer itself, “Jab Shivaji Raje ki talwar chalti hai, Aurton ka ghoongat aur Brahminon ka janeyu salamat rehta hai”. This dialogue was later edited out of the movie.

The rest of the supporting cast, namely Luke Kenny (as Aurangzeb), Kelkar (as Shivaji), Neha Sharma (as Kamal, Uday's love interest) and Padmavati Rao (Jijabai) have also uplifted the collaborative grandeur of the film.

Tanhaji is substantially enriched by its technical crew that has worked to create a splendid canvas for the cast to shine upon. The camera work, action direction, editing, music and not to forget, the visual effects. There is generous use of CGI, which is merged seamlessly in the narrative. It helps mount the film on a scale that it needed to create a solid impact.

The movie has successfully impressed the audiences with its visual delight, the unapologetically larger-than-life Tanhaji manages to craft the right spectacular impact.

As the trailer rightly points out, the Battle of Sinhagad was the Surgical Strike that shook the Mughal Empire. The film is graced with two really impactful and emotional dialogues, something that I wouldn’t miss to quote:

“Har Maratha paagal hai, Swaraj ka, Shivaji Raje ka, Bhagwe Ka”

“Tu kya mitayega us Bhagwe ko jiska ailaan khud aasman karta hai, din mein do baar, Sooraj ugne se pehle aur Sooraj dhalne ke baad” The audience’s overwhelming response can very well be fathomed from the film’s Box Office Collection, the film is expected to be the first to cross the 200-crore mark in 2020. It collected approximately 110 Crores in the first week of it’s release.

The historical movie has received positive reviews from most of the movie critics. However, the usual suspects comprising the pseudo-liberal – secular forces have yet again found fallacies in the movie. The movie was called ‘Islamophobic’, ‘dressed up slice of the past’ and ‘deeply divisive’ by the usual suspects, namely, The Wire, The Quint, Indian Express and NDTV.

Deepika Padukone’s Chhapaak, a resounding story of the Acid Attack Victim Laxmi Agarwal, which released on the same days as Tanhaji, however, did not receive the expected response. This was largely due to Deepika’s commercial stunt at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi. She attempted to show solidarity with JNU Left-Wing Students in the presence of the Tukde Tukde Gang Leader Kanhaiya Kumar.

#BoycottChhapaak trended on Twitter subsequent to her visit which was followed by the cancellation of a large number of pre-booked tickets of her movie.

I think such an underwhelming response to Deepika’s long-awaited film, because of her nefarious stand, will have a pronounced impact on rest of the artists of the industry, an alarming signal, that standing with nation breaking forces is not good for the business.

At 135 minutes, Tanhaji offers a vision, in terms of technical finesse and smart storytelling, accompanied by action-packed performances, that’s undoubtedly hard to resist. I am going for 4.5 out of 5 Stars for Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior.

(The writer is a documentary filmmaker and social activist from Mumbai)