BAJIRAO MASTANI THE MOVIE: FACTS AND FANTASIES, SCENE BY SCENE

Bajirao Mastani, a story that remains an unfathomable truth and an unbelievable fantasy at the same time. Throughout history, very little is known about the relationship between Bajirao and Mastani as public-display of affection was not accepted during that era, also, women of the family remained strictly confined to the verandas of their homes and spoke or acted only when asked to which means talking to them and getting to know about their personal lives was out of the question, until and unless you were a woman and belonged to the same caste and creed as them. Bajirao-Mastani remains as controversial as ever because the nature of their relationship was never known, some say that she was married to Bajirao’s sword at Bundelkhand and sent to Shaniwar Wada while some say she was simply a gift from Maharaj Chhatrasaal to Bajirao for helping him in winning a very crucial campaign against Bangash Khan.

The fantasization of Bajirao-Mastani began in the 1890s, about a century and a half after the couple’s death, due to a play written by NB Kanitkar; the story took so much time to reach the stage, hence it is stated to be a fantasy. Since then, various writers and producers started writing stories and acting them out adding their aroma and spice to them, and thus Bajirao-Mastani evolved. The movie Bajirao-Mastani was inspired by Rau, a fictional book written by N.S Inamdar; the movie grossed about Rs. 184 crores at the box office. it got insanely popular amongst millennials but at the same time, numerous questions were raised against certain scenes and sequences of the movie. The question that remains is that how much of the movie was made up and how much of it wasn’t and here is a personal interpretation of it.

• The story begins from the point where Bajirao is appointed Peshwa (Prime Minister) and the scene is staged appropriately apart from the part where Bajirao is tested by the Pratinidhi; he is told to cut a peacock feather using a bow and arrow and he passes this test in the first attempt. The reason that this can’t be held true is that Bajirao was made the Peshwa not just because of primogeniture; he had defeated Emperor Faruqsiyar with the help of the Sayyad brothers at the age of eighteen and accompanied his father at various campaigns since the age of eight; he didn’t need to do anything else to prove his worth.
• In the following scene when Bajirao walks down the aisle to be seated on the Peshwa throne, the camera pans to Kashibai, Bajirao’s first wife which is a loophole ignored while filming. Bajirao was appointed as Peshwa right after his father (Balaji Vishwanath’s) death; the entire family was in mourning and wasn’t allowed to leave their home for about 13 days after the death and hence, the ceremony of the crowning of Bajirao was held on a small scale and Kashibai along with the other members of the family could not have been present. Also, Bajirao became Peshwa at the mere age of 20, which meant that Kashibai should have been 16 at the time, but Kashibai remains the same throughout the movie.
• Bajirao was not summoned to Bundelkhand by Mastani; it was entirely romanticized by the director. The atmosphere in the 1700s was quite conservative; women weren’t even allowed to interact with stranger men let alone the fact that Mastani even placed a sword at the Peshwa’s neck. Once again, the part where Mastani fought Bangash Khan along with the Peshwa is not true.
• The movie contradicts itself when the so-regarded daughter Mastani fights alongside the Peshwa and at the same time, dances in the court to entertain the palace guests. Daughters of the royal family were not allowed to dance or sing freely at courts.
• The return of Bajirao from his Bundelkhand campaign is indeed represented aptly, that was the royal regalia of the Peshwa! Though he was usually in the deepest of debts, he never thought twice while pouring money in, even loaning at times, to conduct the grandest of processions for himself, his family, his community, his campaigns, and obviously for Swaraj.
• Radhabai, Bajirao’s mother has also been represented astutely. She was a truly powerful lady, having raised a strong warrior like Bajirao. Bajirao had gotten his adamance from Radhabai; hence no matter how hard Bajirao tried to make Mastani a part of the Peshwe family, it failed because Radhabai was a strict adherent of the Brahmin code of conduct and despised Mastani with her whole heart. The Peshwe family, though Kshatriya by profession, was Brahmin by religion and had sworn to monogamy unlike the Kshatriyas and was also supposed to marry within their own religion. She could not tolerate the fact that a Muslim woman who was born out of wedlock would even be entertained in the Shaniwar Wada let alone the Peshwa’s heart.
• Kashibai, though a side character, played a major role in the relationship of Bajirao-Mastani. Her condition was even worse than Radhabai when she came to know of Mastani; she consoled herself but never found the courage to confront her beloved Shrimanta. Kashibai wasn’t as brave and courageous as she was shown in the movie, how-so-ever incapacitatingly wonderful performance Priyanka Chopra had put forth as Kashibai, accurately showing the pain and valor in her eyes and voice while she confronts the Peshwa and prohibits him from entering her chambers, that never could have happened; Kashibai gave birth to her second son Raghunath after Mastani joined the family which is enough proof that the Peshwa was allowed to enter her chambers. Kashibai did not just want the Peshwa, she needed him, didn’t know what to do if the Peshwa deserted her, hence always supported his relations with Mastani. Even after Mastani’s death, she continued to raise her son, Shamsher Bahadur with utter love and respect, after all, loving she was.
• Chimaji Appa, also known as Appasaheb, was the younger brother and regent of the Peshwa, he was the one who maintained the Peshwa’s minister duties when he was at warring campaigns. The Shrimanta/Peshwa was the provider of the Peshwe family, and Chimaji remained truly grateful for it. His only issue with the Peshwa was the Peshwa’s unachievable desire to include Mastani in the Peshwe family and provide her permanent residence at the Shaniwar Wada. But, even Chimaji couldn’t muster the courage to stop Peshwa; he couldn’t cross paths with his provider that too in open court, hence the scenes where Chimaji Appa argues with his elder brother about Mastani didn’t happen in real life.
• Mastani was blamed for the Peshwa’s change in attitude, though all she did was love him with all her heart, it was his family members who had changed and turned on the Peshwa, their sole provider who had fought countless battles while they relaxed in luxury. They had rejected his love for Mastani by treating her disrespectfully countless times which was over-adequately represented in the movie.
• According to the movie, no midwife helped Mastani in the delivery of her first son which again could never have been possible. He was the first-ever son of the Peshwa from his second wife and no midwife or medico would have dared to reject the offer to deliver him, not because they feared the Peshwa’s short-tempered and fierce persona but because they absolutely adored him for being the way he was. He never believed in the atrocities of the caste system and hence treated everyone equally which drew the public towards him.
• All the harassing attacks on Mastani simply can’t be considered true. Though staunch Brahmins, the Peshwe family, and the priest community were not cruel, they wouldn’t stomp down to the level of separating a mother from her 5-year-old son. Killing someone was against the Brahmin code of conduct, adding to that, Brahminism was a dominant religion in the 18th century hence killing a human could have led to the ex-communication of that person from his or her religion. Also, they wouldn’t dare to commit such a crime as long as the Peshwa was in power, he was indeed the strongest and bravest warrior in Swaraj at that time.
• The only one who dared to rebel against Shrimanta Bajirao was Nanasaheb, his eldest son; though in the grasp of youth he was no less of a warrior than Bajirao. But the only thing Nanasaheb dared to do was put Mastani and Shamsher Bahadur under house arrest not imprison her and grab her son out of her arms. The scene was completely misrepresented and was disrespectful not only towards Nanasaheb but also Mastani.
• As unbelievable as it may seem, Mastani and Bajirao did die on the same day or at least in the same week. At the time of his death, Bajirao had his sword and his sardars beside him and not Kashibai and Radhabai. Growing debts, immense work pressure due to continuous campaigns, and increased emotional distance from his family took a toll on his mental health which finally reached its peak leading to pangs of fever and finally death. Shrimanta fought 41 battles throughout his career and won all of them but lost an important one, his family. Mastani followed suit along with her beloved Rao, leaving her son in the responsibility of Kashibai, the cause of her death remains unknown to date but one thing is for sure; she wasn’t killed due to imprisonment and torture.
• The songs in the movie, which were ostentatiously loved by the elite public, offended the descendants of the Peshwe family who saw the movie. ‘Malhari’, which is a song where the Peshwa celebrates with his army after successfully striking a deal with the Nizam isn’t considered appropriate as it uses slang language. Also, given that the Peshwa fought about 41 battles in his career of 20 years, he didn’t at all have time for such celebrations and neither did his army. ‘Pinga’, a dance which is a part of the Maharashtrian culture was not something that was allowed to perform in huge places, like the main arena of the Shaniwar Wada, these processions took place only in the antechambers of the mansions and hence the song was considered controversial.
• The movie was named “Bajirao Mastani: The Love Story Of A Warrior” but it did not interpret the warrior part of his life appropriately. There was not enough mention of his trusted sardars like Malhar Rao Holkar who collected taxes from Malwa as well as Kanhoji Rao Angre who was his naval commander. Instead, he is shown entering the battlefield, riding on a horse, two dandpattas in each of his hands, fighting an entire army all by himself. Drama and fantasy might be necessary for a movie to grow its essence over the audience but while filming a historical movie, there is a limit to which this façade should go on and that is crossed in the movie. His wars with Mughal emperors Faruqsiyar and Muhammad Shah, his thoughtfully created treaties, wars, and campaigns, are simply ignored.

Bajirao was the most underrated warrior in the Hind Swaraj. No proper credit was given to his work as a Peshwa till the 20th century. He was known for 2 things: one was his war spirit and quick decisions and the second was Mastani, while the former was his love, the latter was his inspiration. The way that his love for Mastani is honored and exaggerated, his efforts in expanding Swaraj and breaking the caste system should be equally honored in the same way. Apart from the romantic aspect of his life, there is much more to know about his life and one day there will surely be a movie based on it. In the hearts of Maharashtrians, he has always remained a rebel and someone who not just thought the system was wrong but also tried to change it. Hence, his life as a warrior will be loved as much as his life as a lover.

Movie: Bajirao Mastani

Release date: 18 December 2015 (India)

Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali

Adapted from: Rau

Starring: Deepika Padukone, Ranveer Singh, Priyanka Chopra

References: Google articles, Bajirao Mastani by Indrayani Sawkar