Tanhaji movie reviewed

The Battle of Sinhagad was one of the most important turning points in the life of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj during his quest for Swaraj and a major milestone in the Maratha History. Not much is known outside Maharashtra about the brave commander of the Maratha Army, Tanaji Malusare, (a household name in Maharashtra) who led the Marathas to victory and in the process sacrificed his own life. 





The story starts with the childhood of Tanaji when he is trained to be a Maratha Soldier by his own father, then comes the point in his life where he leads the Maratha attack to win back the lost Fort Kondhana from the Mughals. Initially reluctant Shivaji gives in to the pleading of Tanaji and allows him to lead the charge to regain Fort Kondhana which is ably commanded by the all-powerful Rajput Commander Udaybhan.  Rest is the planning, leadership, battle strategy and ultimately the sacrifice of Tanaji.

Excellent screenplay, almost accurate story with minimal exaggeration, no unwanted romances or song and dance sequences, perfectly timed background score, extraordinary visuals and some solid performances by the lead actors makes this movie stand out from the scores of historical dramas made during the last decade, mostly by misrepresentation of facts. 




Ajay Devgan gives another power packed performance, this time as a fierce Maratha warrior, Sharad Kelkar does complete justice to his role of Chhatrapati Shivaji and Saif Ali Khan delivers a solid performance as the Rajput General of Aurangzeb, Udaybhan.

National award-winning director Om Raut does and excellent job by choosing the right actors to play the roles of Tanaji, Suryaji, Shelarmama, Udaybhan, Jijabai and Aurangzeb. The story, screenplay and dialogues written by Prakash Kapadia and Om Raut are very well researched and their attention to detail is definitely noteworthy. The film is fast, packed with all the necessary action and drama. The story has its own high points – Tanaji meeting Shivaji at Rajgad and then his mother Jijabai, Shivaji’s dilemma, The Delhi Darbar, Udaybhan’s quick rise within the Mughal court from an ordinary soldier to a top commander and finally the Battle itself. 

The climax is far from reality and fails to do justice to the two very important characters of Shelarmama and Suryaji Malusare. In order to glorify the principal character of Tanaji the director completely ignored these two brave warriors in the final battle of Sinhagad. It was actually Shelar Mama who killed Udaybhan and Suryaji stopped the retreating Maratha soldiers by cutting the ropes which led to a decisive Maratha victory. But other than these few aspects which should have been covered, the movie is an excellent action-packed period drama with some amazing fight sequences (especially the final fight between Ajay and Saif). Overall the movie is a visual treat. 

A must watch tribute to the forgotten Maratha General who chose his motherland over his family and changed the course of history!