Bajirao Mastani, A Forbidden Love Story

Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s 15-year dream project Bajirao Mastani, which he had been conceiving since his Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam days, finally saw the light of day in December 2015. This epic historical romance stars in its principal cast, Ranveer Singh in the eponymous role of Peswa Bajirao I, Deepika Padukone as Mastani Bai, his love interest and the warrior princess of Bundelkhand, and Priyanka Chopra as the Peshwa’s first wife, Kashibai.

The film, adapted from the Marathi novel Raau by Nagnath S. Inamdar, relates the trials and tribulations faced by lovers from two different religions – while Bajirao hails from a staunch Hindu sect, Mastani belongs to a Muslim cast.  Though their tragic love story is heart-wrenching in countering extreme religious intolerance, the film also portrays the wrongs done to Kashibai, whom the Peshwa, in his pursuit and fierce defensiveness of Mastani, completely sidelines. Bhansali thus proves successful in producing a dichotomy in the minds and emotions of the viewers. On the one hand, a viewer is full of awe and admiration for Bajirao’s skills as a warrior and administrator, as well as his earnest feelings towards Mastani. On the other hand however, the same hero becomes hateful for his injustice towards his loyal and loving wife. One is bound to applaud Kashibai’s prudence – she makes sacrifices but they are not blinded by love for her husband. Yet at the same time, a viewer is forced to praise Mastani too, for her undying courage and perseverance in uniting with her beloved, despite repeated obstacles, taunts, insults and even fatal threats from the Peshwa’s family.

Irrfan Khan’s voice over narrates, at the beginning of the film, the political context of Bajirao Mastani, the hero’s conquests and his prowess as an able warrior and leader. The cinematography is certainly worth a mention, with panoramic and long shots of the battlefield, combined with close-ups of Bajirao and Mastani, as they fight intensely and save each other’s lives. A slow motion movement of the camera makes their actions even more heroic, as they leap up and swerve around to defeat the enemy. The wars off the battlefield, like those between Bajirao and the Brahmins, or Nana Sahib’s plotting against Mastani, are equally intensely captured. The visual effects, especially those at the very end, when the Peshwa goes into the water trying to fight enemies visible to him alone, are convincing.

 Set against the backdrop of 18^th century royalty, Bhansali’s set designs and costumes are grand, to say the least, and the dialogues are overelaborate, though befitting of the era. Ranveer Singh’s crisp Marathi accent is commendable, and the poetical shayari-like dialogues are enjoyable. Mise-en-scene with the rich use of colour , lighting, shadows and props such as chandeliers , fountains and the palaces themselves, is well replicated in this period drama. The dance sequences are somewhat reminiscent of Mughal-e-Azam and the music, along with the background scores, are in perfect sync with their corresponding scenes.

The film is fraught with religious significance and addresses, in a subtle way, the issues of war, love, marriage and religion in the same context. In this respect, a particular scene comes to mind, where Kashibai and her mother-in-law Radhabai – who is most forthcoming in her hatred of her son’s Muslim bride – are sewing a flag in preparation of a war. They sew an orange coloured cloth, but in a moment of pathos, they are seen to helplessly laugh, discussing how they should have sewn a green flag instead, green being the colour of Mastani’s Muslim faith.

Therefore, Bajirao Mastani is not only a commercial entertainer or a drab replica of history – the film in fact, specifically claims not be completely accurate from a historical point of view – but is also a critique of religious obstacles in the course of love , in the garb of a political period drama.

The film has to its credit several awards, won at various award ceremonies through the year, both in the critics’ choice and popular choice categories, including those of Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Film.