Introduction

Chhaava is an Indian historical period film that has been making headlines of late especially amongst fans of Marathi cinema especially the historical drama subgenre. The movie draws its theme from the life of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj the son of the prominent Indian king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. This article examines Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj life with an emphasis on his valor, military activities and the commitment to uphold the Maratha Empire. The word Chhaava, that means ‘The Lion Cub’, very perfectly explains what so ever the life of ‘Chhatrapati Sambhaji’ has been and is expected to direct a film about the life history of one of the most respected the legend in Maharashtra.

The film intends to document all the major events in the life of Sambhaji from childhood with his father, ascension to leadership and power and execution by UA Aurangzeb Mughals emperore. Targeting a period setup with fantastic graphics and biographied emotionally powerful tale, Chhaava is believed will be an arresting celluloid treat.

Release Date

Chhaava is scheduled to be released 6 December 2024. However, the filmmakers have not confirmed the exact release date. Nevertheless, there is a lot of excitement, thanks to the trailers and posters that have been working to advertise to fans of period dramas and Marathi films. This film is expected to be released during an important festival or nationwide celebration being organized to enhance the magnificence of the film.

Language

Chhaava is primarily incrusted with Marathi Language which is also the mother tongue of Maharashtra State. The beautiful ladies of Rajput clan are pictured so well, however, makers have made it a point that the film must be based in historie itself and no other language should be used or imagined that is not spoken by people of Maratha Empire. The conversations are textural and filled with speech with respect to the period it shows. The policy of ‘let the local language remain the prime language’ is salutary in the sense that it is more understandable to the audience who understands Marathi while there is some understanding for the part of non-marathi audience through the de-learned subtitles that have nothing or little to do with Indian history.

Genre

Chhaava sits comfortably in the historical genre, drama, action, or biographical fiction. The film equally highlights the political, military, and personal life of Sambhaji Maharaj. Here, the film is a historical drama, which details some important events of his rule and his contacts with contemporaneous sovereigns, such as his dad Shivaji Maharaj and his enemies. This movie also features some action regarding the société of Sambhaji, providing the audience with the scope of his military expeditions and fights.

Film Location

Chhaava was filmed in different cities within Maharashtra for the authenticity of the film and the beauty of the region. The epic battle sequences of the film were shot in places of historical significance such as Raigad, Pratapgad, and Sinhagad which formed the dot’s in the Maratha Empire. The Maratha imperial courts, war rooms and the capital of the Maratha Empire were recreated on locations and sets with historical value and expertise to bring back the architectural glory of the period. The use of restored interesting sites such as these will help the viewers of the film travel back in days, at least to the 17th century.

Cast

• Riteish Deshmukh takes on the role of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj and emerges brilliantly as the fierce leader and warrior. Deshmukh is expected to shine in the scenes that require him to play the warrior king and ride on a horse while projecting his anger.
• Yesubai played by Amruta Khanvilkar is Sambhaji’s spouse adding emotional dimensions into the story because of her being a supportive and stable personality in the film.
• Soyrabai, Amruta Khanvilkar’s character in the film is Sambhaji’s step mother who comprises political drama and her complicated bond with Sambhaji creates a conflict in the movie.
• An impressed and driven veteran actor Ashutosh Rana takes on the role of Aurangzeb the main villain in film who brings out the aggressiveness of Mughal emperor opposing all.
• Additionally, we have the supporting cast who includes talented thespians who portray well-known people throughout history asmost characters; large or small, are acted with expressiveness and believability.

Director

Ravi Jadhav is the director of Chhaava who is well known Marathi filmmaker for his powerful narrative and epic visuals. And talking about Jadhav who has a history of making popular flicks such as Natarang and Banjo, he is effective in portraying emotions through strong imagery. In Chhaava he makes a biopic of one of the important real life actors in Indian history interspersed with action sequences and the character of Sambhaji.

Writer

The script and dialogues of Chhaava have been penned down by Pratap Gangavane, who is essentially a historian and well-read about the Maratha Empire. Gangavane’s script is set in the mold more or less formed as per the biographical works on Sambhaji, particularly his relationship with his parent, the role played by him in the Maratha Empire and the opposition shown by him towards the Mughal regime. The screenplay is very well written in terms of factual accuracy and commercial viability hence making it suitable to all sorts of readers without undermining the seriousness of the matter at hand.

Cinematography

The film Chhaava has amazing cinematography directed by Mahesh Limaye, who is known for his visually rich and technically brilliant work. The combination of these wide shots with close ups framed in the emotional battle scenes creates a visual graph of the historical drama contained within the film. The design of the lighting, camera angles and colors enhances the period setting while also emphasizing certain emotional scenes.

Music

For Chhaava music has been composed by Ajay-Atul, one of the best music composer duets in the Indian film industry. The traditional Marathi instruments as well as the Oorchestral music are beautifully fused in their Chhaava’s score.Therefore, the film’s music, like the film itself, is big, epic. The soundtrack does feature mighty war songs as well as soft ones focusing on the internal conflicts of Sambhaji Maharaj.

Producer

Chhaava is produced by Ritesh Deshmukh and Genelia D’Souza Deshmukh under their banner Mumbai Film Company, which has a reputation of promoting good Marathi cinema. The production has left no stone unturned when it comes to the depiction of the history from the costumes to the sets, making the film a high budget affair, which shows their commitment to the story of Sambhaji Maharaj.

Production

Why was it important to make such a film? As per the production team of Chhaiwa, all efforts was to make a movie which would be a visual and narrative composition of one of the greatest legends of Maharashtra. Features such as the greatness of the unprecedented war sequences or the interiors of the royal courts were all catered for with attention to detail so as to preserve the integrity of the film. Chhaava promises to be an extravagant visual treat as its budget comprises of elaborate sets, painstaking research into history, and computer graphics design techniques to animate the action sequences.

Conclusion

Chhaava: Inspired by true events rather than just a film, Chhaava depicts the valor and spirit of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj who is one of the legendary figures from the history of India. This film wants to believe that, looking at the outstanding performances of the actors, brilliant camera work and an apt screen play will make one of the most landmark films in Marathi film industry. This movie pays homage to the Maratha Empire’s glory and the struggles of Sambhaji Maharaj who fought for the safety of his subjects and land. With time, the date comes closer and one can sense the ever increasing excitement for a period drama that is anticipated to create records in the recent times.