Why I recommend watching movie #Tanhaji

I don't think I've to set any preface for this post. I recently watched the movie Tanhaji. It's a Bollywood movie that has imagined the historical dramatization of the life of Tanaji Malusare. There is no doubt that writers have taken creative liberty and made it a true Bollywood movie with creative action sequences as well as song & dance sequences. 

Why did I watch Tanhaji? Is it because of the 'hyper-nationalism' or 'revisionist history' or perhaps the binary portrayal of the Hindu-Muslim relationship during the 1600s? I beg to disagree with the film-critics who are using the crutches of JNU & AMU "activism" which started for fee hike and is seizing the debate on CAA & NRC for its' selfishness. 

So why is Tanhaji important?

1. It makes me ponder about the history of Southern India and realize how much of history is missing in the textual history books. It was surprising for me to found out the Vijayanagara Empire (you must have heard and seen about Hampi which is a UNESCO World Heritage site in Karnataka) which was finally defeated by Deccan Sultanates, and Shivaji was born in Pune district when it was ruled by Shahji Bhonsle which served the Deccan Sultanates. It shows the intricacies of Indian history which is full of foreigners who made India their home and locals who were always trying to make inroads to achieving self-rule. And how Deccan Sultanate fought with Portuguese to formally capitulate them for the first time in India!  It's just a crazy chapter of history. It may not have been a binary relationship between Hindus and Muslims, but it wasn't a comfortable one, to say the least. 

2. It makes me in awe about the Maratha Empire, details of which are again very limited in the history books. Sir Richard Temple, a civil servant in British India, in 1879 narrated to Viceroy Lord Lytton, that "It is commonly said," wrote Temple, "that it was Mahomedans whom British displaced as rulers in India. This is only true in a restricted sense. It would be nearer the truth to say that it was Mahrattas in the main, whom we displaced." (Ref: 1) And this is the empire from which emerged Peshwa Nana Sahib in 1857 who was denied his pension by East India Company (using Doctrine of Lapse) which eventually culminated into the sepoy mutiny of 1857 or as Savarkar finally called it with its real reference as The First Indian War of Independence. Amazing right? It was the events in 1857 which eventually capitulated the colonialism of British rule in India.

3. It was a hard-fought battle from a military history perspective. The battle of Sinhagad fort is described as a "spectacular success" for Shivaji. And I quote further, "it was taken by scaling very difficult walls by means of rope ladders in a night raid which culminated in hand-to-hand combat inside the fort. (Ref: 3) The raid was led by Tanaji Malusare, who was killed in the battle." And within six months Shivaji had captured four more forts. So as someone who is interested in war movies I would like to know (read) more about Tanaji Malusare who led this nighttime raid!

4. Shivaji as a legend is known but as a leader and a human being is unknown to a lot of us (including me). He is described as someone who is on a lofty pedestal in history, "not because he was a Hindu champion, but because he was an ideal householder, an ideal king, and unrivaled nation builder. In an age of religious bigotry, he followed a policy of the most liberal toleration of all creed. He endowed a Muhamedan holy man named Baba Yaqut with land and money and installed him at Keleshi." He also had a Muslim secretary named Qazi Haider. (Ref: 2) I would like to know more about what prompted a teenage Shivaji to think about Hindavi Swarajya i.e. self-rule of Indian people. It was the same idea that echoed centuries later by Vinayak Damodar Savarkar and Bal Gangadhar Tilak. And the former inspired the likes of Bhagat Singh as well.

So even with creative liberty taken by the writers to dramatize the events of the history of that century, I would like to explore more and Tanhaji is a first step in exposing millions of Indians like me to that era and historical figures that shaped India for centuries to come. All politics aside I want to know the history of India which is untarnished by any censorship or political correctness just because it doesn't suit somebody's agenda.

References:

1. Page 26: Savarkar by Vikram Sampath

2. Page 8: House of Shivaji by Sir Jadunath Sarkar 

3. Page 79: House of Shivaji by Sir Jadunath Sarkar (about the battle of Sinhagad Fort)

4. A whole of Google & Wikipedia.

Tanhaji (The poster art copyright is believed to belong to T-Series.)

 Sinhagad Fort (By Intelligent2 - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=21943352)

Shivaji Bhonsle