A battle
must first be won in the mind then in the field…
HAR
HAR MAHADEV
DIRECTOR-
ABHIJIT SHIRISH DESHPANDE
CAST
– SUBHODH BHAVE, SHARAD KELKAR, AMRUTA KHANVILKAR AND OTHERS
Now that
the Hindi movie industry’s propaganda sultanate is being challenged by a lot of
proud Non-Hindi rebels, the golden era Indian cinema has truly began. Telugu, Tamil
and now Kannada industry have made their mark all over India with movies that
are rooted in the common cultural grounds of this country. Not only that, but
their story-telling is technically very superior to Bollywood (or whatever
remains of that once mighty empire now). Marathi film industry has always been
great at story-telling but its reach has been limited by its language.
Har Har
Mahadev is the Marathi industry’s first Pan-India attempt. The movie is being
released in 5 languages – Hindi, Marathi, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada. The story
is something that should appeal to every Indian- the tale of Chhatrapati
Shivaji Maharaj, particularly one of his brave commanders – Veer Baji Prabhu
Deshpande.
The tale of
Baji Prabhu Deshpande is known to EVERY Marathi at least in brief if not in
detail. Baji Prabhu Deshpande and his 300 men stood against a 10,000 strong
Mughal army in the pass of Ghodkhind while Shivaji Maharaj travelled from Fort
Panhala to Vishalgad. A battle of near impossible odds. Fought not only with the
mind, but with sheer unstoppable will. 2 years ago, a great Marathi movie -
Pavankhind- was released on the same subject. So, other than the grander scale
of release and the cast, what makes Har Har Mahadev different?
What makes
the movie different is it concentrates on what makes Shivaji Maharaj truly
great. While Subodh Bhave with his soft features is admittedly not the best
choice for portraying the Lion of the Sahyadris, he makes up for it with his performance.
In the opening sequence, (narrated in Marathi by Raj Thackerey, who in my
opinion should do EVERY Marathi movie voiceover ever. His voice is fantastic),
it is told to us that this is the story of before when a man turned into a God.
Just like the
Nolan Batman movies or something like Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel, this movie
attempts to deconstruct our legendary heroes and humanize them. The movie’s
greatness lies in its ability to interpret what Swarajya truly means. While it
does over concentrate sometime of the sexual harassment of women prior to
Shivaji Maharaj’s arrival, it does so to drive the point home. Raje was one of
the first modern kings to truly codify a lot of anti-harassment laws which
included laws against slavery, rape etc. Our modern concepts of secularism,
equality, civil service, people rule, fair taxation laws etc. were actually
introduced by Shivaji Maharaj in his administration. It was good to see a movie
show those aspects other than the usual tales of glamourous valor.
The story being
that of Baji Prabhu Deshpande also gives us an idea of why would one who choose
to devote their entire lives to fight for Shivba’s Swarajya. Baji Prabhu’s
character as compared to the usual stories we see or hear is given a beautiful
arc where he goes from not trusting Shivaji Maharaj to becoming his employee to
his friend and finally a martyr for his cause. The arc is delivered
deliberately slowly but beautifully. Also, other than the chest thumping tales
of sacrifice gives us these little moments of courage that went into the
massive structure that was Shivrai’s vision of Swarajya. A wife being brave for
her husband while she knows she’s never going to see him again, a mother asking
a daughter-in-law to do the impossible etc. There is a scene in the second half
where Chattrapati Shivaji confesses that it’s the most difficult thing in the
world for him to place his vision of Swarajya for all above his own emotions
and that is where having Subodh Bhave in the role makes sense for me.
This scene
and how it later shapes Baji Prabhu’s vision is what makes this deconstruction
of the glorious tale of blood and sacrifice absolutely worth it. However, the
movie has its share of pacing issues. The first half seems like it has a lot of
scattered threads in it even if you are a history buff and Shivaji Maharaj
devotee like me. While its understandable since a movie about one particular
battle can seem a bit limiting, it could have done with a bit more focus. The
second half is where the movie begins to shine. While the action and the
obvious tributes to 300 are great visually, it’s not the movie’s highpoint.
A great
director once said that action is also a means of character development and not
just a bunch of cool visuals (Honestly am paraphrasing but you get the point).
The action in here seems a bit, for lack of a better word, soulless because
there is no pause or character development that happens in the action barring
maybe one scene between Baji and his brother. There are also some scenes which
seem a bit too melodramatic.
Having said
that, the movie is definitely a theatre experience. While my theatre was
houseful, it was a bit of a cold crowd. Masala moments which would have
otherwise been welcomed with hoots and whistles were relatively silent. I am
not sure whether this is the effect of the movie or a crowd on a particular
day. But the movie is definitely worth watching in theatre. The soundtrack is
great and the “Wah re Shiva” (sung by Srivalli fame Sid Sriram) is very good.
Me and my
brother have always wanted a 300 -style movie for the story of Baji Prabhu
Deshpande and Pavankhind- not only coz we share the same surname but also
because it is a story worth telling the same way. Har Har Mahadev attempts the
same for the action but of course lacks the magical touch of Zack Snyder which
made 300 a classic. HHM’s success is not in the masala moments or the action
(which I reiterate is better than 90% of Bollywood stuff) but it’s in the
character moments. Sharad Kelkar and Subodh Bhave deliver a great performance.
Their chemistry together is especially good. Bhave as Shivaji Maharaj still
looks a bit odd to be honest. All the supporting cast including Amruta
Khanvilkar are fantastic. Marathi actors have this certain ease about them in
ANY role they do and this shows here. There is no air of pretentiousness, every
moment or even look is there for a reason. Kudos to the director Abhijit
Deshpande for this.
The script
however could use less melodrama and more tightening. There is a particular
twist which is delivered which the script brings out of the blue for anyone who
doesn’t know that particular incident. The siege of Panhala and Shivba’s daring
escape was honestly better portrayed in Pavankhind…but this is the only movie
in my memory which captures the essence of what Swarajya means.
The movie
is definitely – WORTH WATCHING ONCE!!
