Story outline: Raja Shivaji tells the story of Shivaji Bhosale (Riteish Deshmukh) from his birth to his coronation when he becomes Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. There are challenges galore for him right from his childhood. His father Shahaji Bhosale (Sachin Khedekar) is forced to work under the rule of Adil Shah (Amole Gupte) of Bijapur.
He, along with his father, mother (Bhagyashree) and elder brother Sambhaji aka Shambhu (Abhishek Bachchan) shares a dream of attaining Swarajya. The young Shivaji starts working towards the dream and this eventually brings him come face-to-face with the ruthless Adil Shahi commander Afzal Khan (Sanjay Dutt).
Review: Raja Shivaji leaves no stone unturned when it comes to recreating the bygone era. The production design and costumes are both eye-pleasing and appropriate for that period. The visual quality is further enhanced with the camerawork of the veteran cinematographer Santosh Sivan.
However, the film suffers when it comes to the crucial aspects of writing and direction. The screenplay lacks proper flow as a large number of events are presented in a haphazard manner, especially before Riteish’s late entry. Things get streamlined once he enters the scene but only to some extent. The narrative comes somewhat on track once the battle lines are drawn between the protagonist and Afzal Khan but their all-important meet gets stretched.
It seems that the main focus here was to present a masala entertainer, rather than a historical. This is seen the most during the fight sequences that very much have that south Indian feeling. The slow motion walks and loud background music during action scenes are no longer novel. This still would have been fine if the film had an impressive and engaging narrative.
The major impact comes only when Salman Khan enters the scene. He doesn’t appear at ease when it comes to mouthing dialogues but his antics are quite paisa vasool, which ensures that there is some salvage in the end.
From Ajay-Atul’s music, the theme track is the only impressive song. John Stewart Eduri’s background score is routine. The VFX isn’t up-to-the-mark.
To play the role of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was a litmus test for Riteish Deshmukh, especially since he is also the director here. He succeeds in the task and it appears that he has given a lot to the character. He shines the most in emotional sequences. However, the past portrayals of Maharaj by Sharad Kelkar and Chinmay Mandlekar appear better than his.
Abhishek Bachchan succeeds in being heroic. Genelia Deshmukh also impresses as Saibai. However, both actors struggle with their Marathi pronunciation. Sanjay Dutt is decent and better than what he did in Panipat in a similar role (Ahmad Shah Abdali). Bhagyashree is impressive as Jijau. Vidya Balan does well too in the negative role of Begum Khadija. Amole Gupte and Jitendra Joshi provide able support while Fardeen Khan is just average. The rest of the long list of supporting actors chip in with good to decent acts.
Overall: Raja Shivaji is an average historical that appears more in the masala entertainer zone. At the box office, it is expected to do well in the Marathi version.
Rating: 2.5 out of 5
Director: Riteish Vilasrao Deshmukh
Writers: Ajit Wadikar, Sandeep Patil, Riteish Vilasrao Deshmukh, Prajakt Deshmukh and Jaideep Yadav (additional dialogues)
Producers: Jio Studios and Mumbai Film Company
Cast: Riteish Vilasrao Deshmukh, Sanjay Dutt, Genelia Deshmukh, Bhagyashree, Abhishek Bachchan, Vidya Balan, Sachin Khedekaer, Amole Gupte
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