The Peshwas who served as Prime Minister s of Maratha Empire of the Indian subcontinent in 18th and 19th Century find a special mention in Indian History. Our film industry has already projected The Bajirao Peshwa- I and Madhavrao Peshwa with period films on their lives. There have also been TV serials made on their lives. But now, Film maker Ashutosh Gowarikar has made a film suitably titled ‘Panipat- The Great Betrayal ‘ which has turned out to be a grandeur . .
Sadashivrao Bhau who was the son of Peshwa Baji Rao’s brother Chimaji Appa and served as Commander-in-chief during the historic 3rd battle of Panipat , on the directions of Nanasaheb Peshwa. The film revolves around Sadashivrao, to show his loyalty to Nanasaheb and his bravery act during the 3rd battle of Panipat which he fought for Maratha Empire against the invading Afghan army of King of Afghans, Ahmad Shah Abdali, supported by three Indian allies—the Rohillas Najib-ud-daulah, Afghans of the Doab region, and Shuja-ud-Daula-the Nawab of Awadh.
Besides Sadashivao’s clever strategies before the battle, director Ashutosh Gowarikar has also shown his strong bonding with Nanasaheb and his son Vishwasrao besides his marriage to bold and beautiful Parvatibai who later accompanied him during the Panipat battle. Period films based on historic facts are always open to criticism for the way the facts have been handled, but past history of Film makers has already shown that some cinematic liberties have to be taken to present some of the important characters, be it dances, songs, love stories and war scenes . Through this film which is longer in length( 170 mins) the director has not been able to introduce some of the important characters properly. Perhaps he has taken the audience for granted , thinking about their complete knowledge of Peshwas and their associates. But, one thing is sure that it is a grand film, as expected from a film maker like Ashutosh Gowarikar.
Besides selection of artistes for various important characters, he has made this film more presentable with technical perfection with the help of superb cinematography by C.K Muralidharan, perfect editing by Steven H Bernanrd, superior music by Ajay- Atul, perfect costumes by Neeta Lulla, suitable make up by Vikram Gaikwad and above all the wonderful art design by Nitin Chadrakant Desai. In the role of Sadashivrao Bhau Arjun Kapoor has tried his best to portray the brave hero from Peshwa family, while Kriti Sanon who plays his wife as done full justice to her character of Parvatibai with very good confident looking performance. As Ahmed Shah Abdali, Sanjay Dutt impresses with his looks. Mohnish Bahl has displayed his maturity while presenting the character of Nanasaheb the Peshwa in power, while in the role of his wife Gopikabai Padmini Kollapure perfectly fits into the character of a selfish woman. Another important veteran actress who has played the character of Sakina Begum is Zeenant Aman who also impresses through her small role.
There are many big names from Marathi film industry who have found significant roles in this film. Prominent among them are, Ravindra Mahajani, Gashmeer Mahajani, Pradeep Patwardhan, Shailesh Datar, Kashyap Parulekar, Krutika Deo and many others. Thanks to Rohan Mapuskar the casting director for hi perfect choice. All in all , ‘Panipat- The Great Betrayal ‘ has turned out to be perfect tribute to one such brave commander in chief – Sadashivrao Bhau from Pehwa family.
Rating ( ***1/2)