The Valiant Unsung Maratha Hero

“Gadh aala pan sinh gela”

These famous lines seem like straight out of a movie, isn’t it? Well, they are but were, in reality, also spoken by the great Maratha King Chatrapati Shivaji on losing one of his valiant warriors Tanhaji Malusare after he won the Kondhana fort back from the Mughals.

This entire episode has been magnificently captured in the movie Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior that released in January 2020 and has so far broken many a box office records in terms of collections, beating many a magnum opus.

The movie is about a lesser-known general of the Maratha empire, someone who was considered the right-hand man of Shivaji –the life of Tanhaji Malusare. Tanhaji was a Maratha warrior and one of the closest aides of Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Not only was he close to the King but was one of his most trusted military generals. The movie has been wonderfully crafted to take us through the entire journey of how the Marathas won back the Kondhana Fort(now Sinhagad Fort) on 4^th Feb 1670 when Tanhaji fought the Rajput-warrior-turned-Mughal-ally Udaybhan Rathore, who fought the war against the Marathas for Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb.

Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj(played by the talented actor Sharad Kelkar) had lost 23 of his forts to the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb(played by Luke Kenny) under the Treaty of Purandar. Among the 23 forts was also the Kondhana Fort, which was of strategic importance to anyone who wanted to take hold of the Deccan. Four years after this seize, Aurangzeb sends his most a valiant warrior Udaybhan, a Rajput who changed his allegiance towards the Mughals, along with a very powerful canon named ‘naagin’ to capture Kondhana.

On hearing of this campaign by the Mughals, Shivaji decides to reclaim the fort. While Shivaji knows that his most trusted general Subedar Tanhaji Malusare would be able to win Kondhana back for them, he is unwilling to call him for it as the latter’s son is said to get married. However, when Tanhaji hears of this campaign from Pisal(played by Ajinkya Deo), he convinces Shivaji to let him lead the campaign saying the famous dialogue “Pahile lagin Kondhana chi, mag Raiba chi”, which translates to “First I’ll get Kondhana married and then my son Raiba”. Since getting into the Kondhana wasn’t easy, Tanhaji finds dangerous but alternate routes to get himself and his troops inside the fort. The battle begins between the Mughal troops and the Maratha warriors.

The role of Tanhaji, played by Ajay Devgan, can be described as one of his best career performances. Another milestone that Ajay Devgan achieved with this movie was that it was the 100^th film of his career. He does justice to the character of the fierce Maratha warrior and oozes patriotism and feelings of Swaraj. Tanhaji’s wife Savitribai (played by Kajol) was his silent support system throughout his life and is portrayed well even in the little amount of screen time she is given.

The character of Udaybhan (played by Saif Ali Khan) is one of power, valour, eccentricity, brutality and a bit of a cruel streak. Not only does he have ferocity in his eyes and ways but also some moments of madness that is rather evil but also comical when you suddenly see him laugh at his own jokes. This can also be acclaimed as one of Saif’s finest performances.

The story has been taken directly from history; of the battle that ensued on 4^th February 1670 on the outskirts of Pune, at the Kondhana fort. However, the writer took his creative liberty to add some components that are not mentioned by historians. The writer uses various components to keep the audience’s interest and engage them to be a part of the period drama by inciting feelings of patriotism, emotions, the undying spirit of the Marathas, and other dramatic devices. The movies background score is sure to further stir the inner spirit of patriotism in the audience.

The movie has lots of war scenes with the battle on the fort showing chopping, slicing, sword fights, all of which has been neatly and skilfully portrayed using CGI effects and adapting it to a 3D format. The director Mr Om Raut has used the original plot yet given them a twist. For example, the use of monitor lizards is disputed by historians but the movie shows a slight twist on the same. The dialogues have been written keeping in mind the emotions of the people and the real historical facts, for example, the movie ends in Shivaji’s famous words “Gadh aala pan Sinh gela” which translates to “we won the fort but lost the lion”.

The makers of the movie have chosen a great, albeit lesser-known story that needed to be told. The movie does great justice to the story of the great warrior Tanhaji’s victory over the Kondhana fort and is a visual treat to be able to appreciate the kind of skill the general and his warriors had using war techniques like the guerrilla warfare. The actors do great justice to their roles and the review is incomplete without commending the excellent casting of characters like that of Shivaji played by Sharad Kelkar. The story of Tanhaji Malusare is full of intense patriotism, passion, vigour and the want to freedom.

If you still haven’t had your share of this piece of history, book your tickets of the movie today!