''Bajirao Mastani'' is a 2015 Indian
Hindi
Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...
-language
epic historical romance
Historical romance is a broad category of mass-market fiction focusing on romantic relationships in historical periods, which Walter Scott helped popularize in the early 19th century.
Varieties Viking
These books feature Vikings during the Da ...
film directed by
Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Sanjay Leela Bhansali (; born 24 February 1963) is an Indian filmmaker, director, screenwriter, and music composer who is known for his work in Hindi cinema. He is the recipient of several awards, including four National Film Awards, ten Filmfar ...
, who co-produced it with
Eros International
Eros International Media Ltd (also known as Eros India) is an Indian motion picture production and distribution company, based and originated in Mumbai, India. Founded by Arjun Lulla in 1977, it is one of the leading production and distribut ...
and composed its
soundtrack
A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...
. The film stars
Ranveer Singh
Ranveer Singh Bhavnani (; born 6 July 1985) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi films. The recipient of several awards, including five Filmfare Awards, he is among the highest-paid Indian actors and has been featured in '' Forbes India''s ...
,
Deepika Padukone
Deepika Padukone ( or ; born 5 January 1986) is an Indian actress who works in Hindi films. She is one of the highest-paid actresses in India, and her accolades include three Filmfare Awards. She features in listings of the nation's most po ...
and
Priyanka Chopra
Priyanka Chopra Jonas (; ; born 18 July 1982) is an Indian actress and producer. The winner of the Miss World 2000 pageant, Chopra is one of India's highest-paid actresses and has received numerous accolades, including two National Film Awar ...
with
Tanvi Azmi
Tanvi Azmi is an Indian film and television actress.
Early life and career
She was born to Marathi-Hindi actress Usha Kiran and Manohar Kher.
Azmi portrayed a troubled doctor in the tele-series, ''Jeevanrekha'' and as a young widow in telefil ...
,
Vaibhav Tatwawaadi,
Milind Soman
Milind Soman (born 4 November 1965) is an Indian actor, supermodel, film producer, and fitness enthusiast. He was a contestant on '' Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi 3''.
Early and personal life
Soman was born on 4 November 1965 in Glasgow, ...
,
Mahesh Manjrekar
Mahesh Vaman Manjrekar (Marathi pronunciation: əɦeːʃ maːɲd͡zɾekəɾ born 16 August 1958) is an Indian actor, film director, screenwriter and producer who works primarily in Hindi films, alongside Marathi, Telugu and Bhojpuri films. H ...
and
Aditya Pancholi
Aditya Pancholi (born 4 January 1965) is an Indian actor, producer and playback singer working in Hindi cinema.
Acting career
1985–87: Television movies and serials
He was signed for a few television video films produced by Hiba, which ...
in supporting roles. Based on
Nagnath S. Inamdar's
Marathi
Marathi may refer to:
*Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India
*Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people
*Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece
See also
*
* ...
novel ''
Rau'', ''Bajirao Mastani'' narrates the story of the
Maratha
The Marathi people (Marathi: मराठी लोक) or Marathis are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group who are indigenous to Maharashtra in western India. They natively speak Marathi, an Indo-Aryan language. Maharashtra was formed as a M ...
''
Peshwa
The Peshwa (Pronunciation: e(ː)ʃʋaː was the appointed (later becoming hereditary) prime minister of the Maratha Empire of the Indian subcontinent. Originally, the Peshwas served as subordinates to the Chhatrapati (the Maratha king); later, ...
''
Bajirao I
Baji Rao I (18 August 1700 – 28 April 1740), born as Visaji, also known as Bajirao Ballal (Pronunciation: ad͡ʒiɾaːʋ bəlːaːɭ, was the 7th Peshwa of the Maratha Empire. During his 20-year tenure as a Peshwa, he defeated Nizam-ul-M ...
(1700–1740 AD) and his second wife,
Mastani
Mastani (29 August 1699 – 28 April 1740 Common Era, CE) was the daughter of Chhatrasal and Ruhani Bai Begum. She was the second wife of the Maratha Empire, Maratha Peshwa (Prime Minister) Baji Rao I. Her relationship within the Maratha Brahmi ...
.
Conceived as early as the 1990s, Bhansali announced the film in 2003 but production was delayed several times due to its changing cast. ''Bajirao Mastani'', a passion project for Bhansali, spent the next eleven twelve years in
development hell
Development hell, development purgatory, and development limbo are media and software industry jargon for a project, concept, or idea that remains in development for an especially long time, often moving between different crews, scripts, game engi ...
before being revived in 2014. Extensive research was done before moving into
pre-production
Pre-production is the process of planning some of the elements involved in a film, television show, play, or other performance, as distinct from production and post-production. Pre-production ends when the planning ends and the content starts ...
, which required the creation of twenty-two highly detailed sets, and numerous costumes and props to strengthen its opulence and high production value.
Principal photography
Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production.
Personnel
Besides the main film personnel, such as actor ...
took place on sets constructed in
Film City Film City may refer to
* Film City, Mumbai
* Noida Film City
* Ramoji Film City, Hyderabad
* Prayag Film City
The Prayag Film City, also known as the Midnapore Film City or Chandrakona Film City or Bengal film city is an i ...
, with some portions being filmed on location.
Visual effects
Visual effects (sometimes abbreviated VFX) is the process by which imagery is created or manipulated outside the context of
a live-action shot in filmmaking and video production.
The integration of live-action footage and other live-action foota ...
and
CGI were used in
post-production
Post-production is part of the process of filmmaking, video production, audio production, and photography. Post-production includes all stages of production occurring after principal photography or recording individual program segments.
The ...
to enhance a number of scenes.
The film was released on 18 December 2015 and was praised for Bhansali's direction, various technical achievements, and the performances of the cast. ''Bajirao Mastani'' has also been noted for its scale, grandeur and attention to detail.
Recipient of
several accolades, ''Bajirao Mastani'' won 7
National Film Awards
The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directorat ...
, including
Best Direction (Bhansali) and
Best Supporting Actress (Azmi). The film received a leading 14 nominations at the
61st Filmfare Awards
The 61st Filmfare Awards were held to honor the best films of 2015 on 15 January 2016 at NSCI Dome in Mumbai. The ceremony was hosted by Shah Rukh Khan and Kapil Sharma.
''Bajirao Mastani'' led the ceremony with 14 nominations, followed by '' ...
, including
Best Actress
Best Actress is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organisations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actresses in a film, television series, television film or play. The first Best Actress aw ...
(Padukone) and
Best Supporting Actress (Azmi), and won a leading 9 awards, including
Best Film
This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards.
Best Actor/Best Actress
*See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...
,
Best Director Best Director is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards. It may refer to:
Film awards
* AACTA Award for Best Direction
* Academy Award for Best Director
* BA ...
(Bhansali),
Best Actor (Singh) and Best Supporting Actress (Chopra). At the
Zee Cine Awards
The Zee Cine Award (ZCA) is an Indian awards ceremony for the Hindi film industry. They were instituted in November 1997 to award "Excellence in cinema - the democratic way".
They were first held in Mumbai until 2004, when the ZCA went internat ...
, Singh won
Best Actor –Male (Critics) and Padukone won
Best Actor – Female. It became the
29th highest grossing Indian film of all time.
Plot
In the early 18th century, the court of
Maratha
The Marathi people (Marathi: मराठी लोक) or Marathis are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group who are indigenous to Maharashtra in western India. They natively speak Marathi, an Indo-Aryan language. Maharashtra was formed as a M ...
Emperor
Chhatrapati Shahu
Chhatrapati Shahu Bhosale I (Pronunciation: aːɦuː CE) was the fifth Chhatrapati of the Maratha Empire founded by his grandfather, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Born into the Bhonsle family, he was the son of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Mahar ...
needs a new ''
Peshwa
The Peshwa (Pronunciation: e(ː)ʃʋaː was the appointed (later becoming hereditary) prime minister of the Maratha Empire of the Indian subcontinent. Originally, the Peshwas served as subordinates to the Chhatrapati (the Maratha king); later, ...
'', the equivalent of a prime minister. Ambaji Pant nominates a young
Bajirao
Baji Rao I (18 August 1700 – 28 April 1740), born as Visaji, also known as Bajirao Ballal (Pronunciation: ad͡ʒiɾaːʋ bəlːaːɭ, was the 7th Peshwa of the Maratha Empire. During his 20-year tenure as a Peshwa, he defeated Nizam-ul- ...
. As a test,
Bajirao
Baji Rao I (18 August 1700 – 28 April 1740), born as Visaji, also known as Bajirao Ballal (Pronunciation: ad͡ʒiɾaːʋ bəlːaːɭ, was the 7th Peshwa of the Maratha Empire. During his 20-year tenure as a Peshwa, he defeated Nizam-ul- ...
is asked to split a peacock feather with an arrow. He succeeds and is given the ''Peshwa'' title. Ten years later, his wife
Kashibai
Kashibai was the first wife of Bajirao I, the Peshwa (Prime Minister) to the fourth Maratha Chhatrapati (Emperor) Shahu. With Bajirao, she had four children, including Balaji Baji Rao and Ragunath Rao. Balaji succeeded Bajirao as Peshwa upon t ...
is visited by her widowed friend Bhanu, whose husband, accused of spying, was ordered to be executed by Bajirao. She predicts that just as she yearns for her husband, Kashibai will yearn for Bajirao.
While travelling to
Sironj
Sironj is a town and a municipality in Vidisha district in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.
Demographics
India census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a g ...
a, an
emissary
Emissary may refer to:
* Ambassador
* Apostle (disambiguation)
* Diplomat
* ''Emissaries'' (album), a 2006 album by black metal group Melechesh
* Emissary (hydraulics), channel by which an outlet is formed to carry off any stagnant body of wate ...
from
Bundelkhand requests Bajirao's help to fight invaders. She reveals herself to be
Mastani
Mastani (29 August 1699 – 28 April 1740 Common Era, CE) was the daughter of Chhatrasal and Ruhani Bai Begum. She was the second wife of the Maratha Empire, Maratha Peshwa (Prime Minister) Baji Rao I. Her relationship within the Maratha Brahmi ...
, the daughter of the Hindu
Rajput
Rajput (from Sanskrit ''raja-putra'' 'son of a king') is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating from the Indian subcontinent. The term Ra ...
king
Chhatrasal
Chhatrasal Bundela (4 May 1649 – 20 December 1731) was an Indian warrior and ruler from the Bundela Rajput clan, who fought against the Mughal Empire, and established his own kingdom in Bundelkhand during the 17th-18th centuries.
Early l ...
and his
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
Muslim consort Ruhani Begum. Impressed by her skills as a warrior, Bajirao assists her with his army and defeats the invaders. Chhatrasal is overjoyed and insists Bajirao to spend
Holi
Holi (), also known as the Festival of Colours, the Festival of Spring, and the Festival of Love,The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) p. 874 "Holi /'həʊli:/ noun a Hindu spring festival ...". is an ancient Hindu religious festival ...
with them. Mastani and Bajirao fall in love during this time and he gives her his dagger, unaware that it is a symbol of marriage among the Rajputs. Back home in
Pune
Pune (; ; also known as Poona, (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million ...
, Kashibai greets Bajirao with a tour of their newly built
Shaniwar Wada and the
Aaina Mahal (Hall of Mirrors), which allows her to see him from her room.
Determined to pursue her love, Mastani arrives in Pune but is treated harshly by Bajirao's mother Radhabai and accommodated in the palace for
courtesan
Courtesan, in modern usage, is a euphemism for a "kept" mistress or prostitute, particularly one with wealthy, powerful, or influential clients. The term historically referred to a courtier, a person who attended the court of a monarch or other ...
s, as Radhabai refuses to accept her as a daughter-in-law. Mastani tolerates this and adamantly expresses her desire to be with Bajirao; Bajirao chides in her persistence, reminding her he is already married and will never fully be hers; his court will also never respect her. Mastani agrees to these conditions so Bajirao declares her his second wife.
The Marathas prepare to attack
Delhi
Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...
, the capital of the
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...
, but must first ensure the
Nizam
The Nizams were the rulers of Hyderabad from the 18th through the 20th century. Nizam of Hyderabad (Niẓām ul-Mulk, also known as Asaf Jah) was the title of the monarch of the Hyderabad State ( divided between the state of Telangana, Mar ...
, the Muslim ruler of
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...
, will not attack them. Bajirao leaves to confront the Nizam,
Qamar ud-Din Khan, and returns successful. Through her Aaina Mahal, a pregnant Kashibai sees Bajirao embracing Mastani, who is also expecting. Heartbroken, she leaves for her mother's home, and returns months later with her newborn son, who is named
Raghunath. Mastani also gives birth to a son, named
Krishna Rao. After the
Brahmin
Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru ...
priest refuses to conduct the Hindu naming ceremony on the grounds that Krishna Rao is illegitimate, Bajirao renames his son
Shamsher Bahadur
Shamsher Bahadur I (1734 – 18 January 1761), was a ruler of the Maratha dominion of Banda in northern India. He was the son of Bajirao I and Mastani.
Early life
Krishna Rao was the son of Peshwa Baji Rao I and his second wife Mastani, daughter ...
, deciding he will be raised Muslim. A few years later, Kashibai and Bajirao's eldest son
Balaji Baji Rao
Baji Bajirao (8 December 1720 – 23 June 1761), also known as Nana Saheb I, was the 8th Peshwa of the Maratha Confederacy in India. He was appointed as Peshwa in 1740 upon the death of his illustrious father, the Peshwa Bajirao I.
During ...
, known as Nana Saheb, returns from
Satara and expresses his hatred of Mastani for breaking his mother's marriage.
Kashibai is informed of a plan to murder Mastani and her son during the
Ganesh Chaturthi festival. She saves Mastani by relaying this to an unaware Bajirao, who promptly rescues them. To keep Mastani safe and grant her a royal home, Bajirao builds a palace for her. He later leaves for the battlefield to defeat
Nasir Jung
Mir Ahmed Ali Khan Siddiqi Bayafandi, Nasir Jung, was the son of Nizam-ul-Mulk by his wife Saeed-un-nisa Begum. He was born 26 February 1712. He succeeded his father as the Nizam of Hyderabad State in 1748. He had taken up a title of ''Humay ...
, the vengeful son of the Nizam. Before leaving, he meets Kashibai in deference to the tradition that the wife see her husband into battle. In tears, Kashibai explains that Bajirao broke her heart and took her pride in what he has done, and compares their love with that of
Krishna
Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is one ...
and
Rukmini
Rukmini ( sa, रुक्मिणी, , ) is a Hindu goddess and the first queen and chief wife of Krishna. In Vaishnava tradition, she is described as Krishna's principal queen in Dvaraka, as well as the chief of his wives. She is an in ...
. She asks him never to enter her chamber again, and a teary-eyed Bajirao accepts, apologising for hurting her.
Once Bajirao leaves, his mother and Nana Saheb imprison Mastani and her son. After Bajirao receives the news, he singlehandedly defeats Nasir Jung's army in his rage but is grievously injured. At Bajirao's deathbed, Kashibai sends a letter pleading with his mother to release Mastani so that he recovers. Nana Saheb burns the letter, though Mastani's son is set free. Bajirao, delirious from his illness, hallucinates and dies as Kashibai helplessly watches; at the same time, Mastani dies in captivity. The ill-fated lovers are united in death.
Cast
The cast is listed below:
Production
Development
Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Sanjay Leela Bhansali (; born 24 February 1963) is an Indian filmmaker, director, screenwriter, and music composer who is known for his work in Hindi cinema. He is the recipient of several awards, including four National Film Awards, ten Filmfar ...
had conceived the historical romance about Maratha Peshwa
Bajirao
Baji Rao I (18 August 1700 – 28 April 1740), born as Visaji, also known as Bajirao Ballal (Pronunciation: ad͡ʒiɾaːʋ bəlːaːɭ, was the 7th Peshwa of the Maratha Empire. During his 20-year tenure as a Peshwa, he defeated Nizam-ul- ...
and his second wife Mastani even before he had directed his first feature ''
Khamoshi: The Musical'' in 1996.
Several other directors such as
Muzaffar Ali
Muzaffar Ali (born 21 October 1944) is an Indian filmmaker, fashion designer, poet, artist, cultural revivalist, and social worker.
Biography
Ali was born in Lucknow in 1944.
The eldest son of Raja Syed Sajid Husain Ali, the ruling prince of ...
,
Manmohan Desai
Manmohan Desai (26 February 1937 – 1 March 1994) was an Indian film producer and director. He was one of the most successful filmmaker of the 70s and 80s. Desai is now considered one of most influential film director of Bollywood and a pionee ...
and
Kamal Amrohi
Syed Amir Haider Kamal Naqvi (17 January 1918 – 11 February 1993), popularly known as Kamal Amrohi, was an Indian film director and screenwriter. He was also an Urdu and Hindi poet.
His Hindi films include '' Mahal'' (1949), ''Pakeezah'' (1 ...
had tried to make a film about the two historical figures but they were never made.
Bhansali had intended to make ''Bajirao Mastani'' after the release of ''
Devdas
''Devdas'' ( bn, দেবদাস, transliterated as ''Debdās'') is a Bengali romance novel written by Sarat Chandra Chatterjee. The story pivots a tragic triangle linking Devdas, an archetypal lover in viraha (separation); Paro, his forbidd ...
'' (2002) and had officially announced it in 2003, with filming scheduled to begin in May 2004.
The film, however, was shelved indefinitely. Reports about a possible revival had made headlines ever since; Bhansali had planned to revive it every other year but the project never came to fruition. In an interview with ''
The Telegraph
''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are popular names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include:
Australia
* ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaide, South Australia, publ ...
'', Bhansali spoke about his intention to make ''Bajirao Mastani'' after finishing every film he made in-between, saying "I kept trying to revive it over and over again, but if there is one thing that filmmaking has taught me, it's that every film has its own destiny. And I strongly believe that the souls of ... Bajirao, Mastani and Kashibai wanted us to make this film only now."
In the process, the film became a passion project for him.
After spending eleven years in
development hell
Development hell, development purgatory, and development limbo are media and software industry jargon for a project, concept, or idea that remains in development for an especially long time, often moving between different crews, scripts, game engi ...
, Bhansali revived the project in 2014; the film was reported to be an adaptation of the Marathi-language novel ''
Rau'' (1976) by
Nagnath S. Inamdar.
After the project was shelved, Bhansali said he struggled to put the film together and that he considered the project impossible to make. Nevertheless, he clung to his ambition to make the film someday, saying, "there is magic to it".
Some film industry professionals believed it would never be made, calling it "jinxed".
Bhansali always believed in the project, assuring himself the script was so powerful he had to make it one day.
He told ''The Telegraph'', "Honestly, I want very few things in life ... so I know that I am resilient enough to get them all! Deep down, I kept asking for the universe to let me make this film. When you dream very genuinely, then I believe you also get the power to fulfill it. In pursuing ''Bajirao Mastani'', I have been resilient and very focused. I have sacrificed a lot of things".
Primarily known for making romantic dramas, Bhansali was intrigued about the romance between "two people who defied everything, just to be in love with each other", and was excited to tell a 200-year-old story.
He wanted to show the relationship between Bajirao and Mastani because it was rarely depicted in history books, and little was known about it.
He had long admired the Maratha backdrop and the different religions of the protagonistsBajirao was Hindu and Mastani was Muslimwhich further drove his interest towards knowing more and telling the story.
He saw it as a chance to comment on religion and love, saying, "In those times, people were offended by the same things that offend them today. Through this film, I want to show that love is the greatest religion."
Prakash R. Kapadia wrote the screenplay.
The makers acquired the rights of the novel and worked with historian
Ninad Bedekar
Ninad Gangadhar Bedekar (17 August 1949 – 10 May 2015) was a historian, writer and orator from Pune, Maharashtra, India, writing and speaking in Marathi. He was specialized in research of the rule of warrior-king Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj a ...
. Kapadia said writing the screenplay was a difficult task and a huge responsibility considering the historical context.
Kapadia and Bhansali had consistently worked on the script since its conception, refining several aspects of the film.
Considering the script was written twelve years before, several changes were made to it, such as the decreasing the length and increasing the pace to suit the modern audiences.
Although adapted from the novel, the romance between the film's protagonists has not been well documented in history books or archives and several versions of the story exist. Many cinematic liberties were taken to build drama and highlight incidents.
Casting
Bhansali originally wanted to repeat his ''
Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
''Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam'' () is a 1999 Indian Hindi-language romantic musical film directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. It was released internationally as ''Straight From the Heart''. The film stars Aishwarya Rai, Salman Khan and Ajay Devgn. B ...
'' (1999) pairing of
Salman Khan
Abdul Rashid Salim Salman Khan (; 27 December 1965) is an Indian actor, film producer, and television personality who works in Hindi films. In a film career spanning over thirty years, Khan has received numerous awards, including two Nation ...
with
Aishwarya Rai
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan ( Rai; born 1 November 1973) is an Indian actress who is primarily known for her work in Hindi and Tamil films. The winner of the Miss World 1994 pageant, she has established herself as one of the most popular celebriti ...
for the eponymous roles, but could not cast them together after their highly publicised break-up.
Khan then tried to suggest his then-girlfriend
Katrina Kaif
Katrina Kaif (; born Katrina Turquotte; 16 July 1983) is a British actress who works in Hindi-language films. One of the highest-paid actresses in India, she has received accolades, including four Screen Awards and four Zee Cine Awards, in a ...
for the role of Mastani but things did not materialise. When the film was finally announced in 2003, Bhansali had cast Khan and
Kareena Kapoor
Kareena Kapoor Khan (; '' née'' Kapoor; born 21 September 1980) is an Indian actress who appears in Hindi films. She is the daughter of actors Randhir Kapoor and Babita, and the younger sister of actress Karisma Kapoor. Noted for playing a va ...
in the titular roles, with
Rani Mukerji playing Baji Rao's first wife Kashibai.
However, the idea was scrapped when Khan and Kapoor signed other films together. Bhansali wanted to be the first director to showcase their pairing. Hence, the film was shelved and Bhansali went on to direct other films.
![Ranvir, Dipika at the press conference of ‘Bajirao Mastani’](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/68/Ranvir%2C_Dipika_at_the_press_conference_of_%E2%80%98Bajirao_Mastani%E2%80%99.jpg)
Over the following ten years, media speculation about the production and casting of ''Bajirao Mastani'' continued. After the film was revived in 2014, reports of
Ajay Devgn
Vishal Veeru Devgan (born 2 April 1969), known professionally as Ajay Devgn, is an Indian actor, film director and producer who works in Hindi cinema. Devgn has appeared in over a hundred films and has won numerous accolades, including four ...
and
Deepika Padukone
Deepika Padukone ( or ; born 5 January 1986) is an Indian actress who works in Hindi films. She is one of the highest-paid actresses in India, and her accolades include three Filmfare Awards. She features in listings of the nation's most po ...
being approached for the film made headlines in February. Devgn dropped out of the film, however, due to differences with Bhansali about several terms of his contract, such as dates and remuneration. The next month, it was reported that
Ranveer Singh
Ranveer Singh Bhavnani (; born 6 July 1985) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi films. The recipient of several awards, including five Filmfare Awards, he is among the highest-paid Indian actors and has been featured in '' Forbes India''s ...
was in talks to play Bajirao. The same month, reports suggested
Priyanka Chopra
Priyanka Chopra Jonas (; ; born 18 July 1982) is an Indian actress and producer. The winner of the Miss World 2000 pageant, Chopra is one of India's highest-paid actresses and has received numerous accolades, including two National Film Awar ...
was cast to play Kashibai, Bajirao's first wife. In July 2014, it was officially confirmed that Singh, Padukone and Chopra were finalised to play the principal roles.
Chopra was the first actor to be cast in the film; Bhansali wanted Kashibai to be cast first, only after which he could decide whom to cast for the title roles.
Bhansali, who produced Chopra-starrer ''
Mary Kom
Mangte Chungneijang Mary Kom (born 01 March 1983) is an Indian amateur boxer, politician, and former Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha. She is the only woman to win the World Amateur Boxing Championship six times, the only female boxer to ha ...
'' (2014), went on to that film's set in
Manali to narrate it with the writer Prakash Kapadia; Bhansali was adamant in his choice of Chopra, who recalled, "The rest of the film hadn't been cast yet. My picture would be there and the pictures for Bajirao and Mastani would keep changing."
Milind Soman
Milind Soman (born 4 November 1965) is an Indian actor, supermodel, film producer, and fitness enthusiast. He was a contestant on '' Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi 3''.
Early and personal life
Soman was born on 4 November 1965 in Glasgow, ...
joined the cast in the late August 2014. In late September 2014, it was confirmed that
Tanvi Azmi
Tanvi Azmi is an Indian film and television actress.
Early life and career
She was born to Marathi-Hindi actress Usha Kiran and Manohar Kher.
Azmi portrayed a troubled doctor in the tele-series, ''Jeevanrekha'' and as a young widow in telefil ...
was cast for the role of Bajirao's mother Radhabai;
Shabana Azmi
Shabana Azmi (born 18 September 1950) is an Indian actress of Hindi film, television and theatre. One of India's most acclaimed actresses, Azmi is known for her portrayals of distinctive, often unconventional female characters across several ge ...
,
Dimple Kapadia
Dimple Kapadia (born 8 June 1957) is an Indian actress predominantly appearing in Hindi films. Born and raised in Mumbai by wealthy parents, she aspired to become an actress from a young age and received her first opportunity through her father ...
, and
Supriya Pathak
Supriya Pathak (born 7 January 1961) is an Indian actress who works in Gujarati and Hindi films and television. She has received multiple awards including three Filmfare Awards for Best Supporting Actress. She is mostly popular for playing the ...
had also been considered for the role. The following month,
Aditya Pancholi
Aditya Pancholi (born 4 January 1965) is an Indian actor, producer and playback singer working in Hindi cinema.
Acting career
1985–87: Television movies and serials
He was signed for a few television video films produced by Hiba, which ...
joined the cast as an antagonist. In November 2014, the casting of Bajirao's sisters were finalised; Sukhada Khandkekar was ast as Anubai and
Anuja Gokhale as Bhiubai. The following month,
Mahesh Manjrekar
Mahesh Vaman Manjrekar (Marathi pronunciation: əɦeːʃ maːɲd͡zɾekəɾ born 16 August 1958) is an Indian actor, film director, screenwriter and producer who works primarily in Hindi films, alongside Marathi, Telugu and Bhojpuri films. H ...
was cast to play Maratha Emperor Chhattrapati Shahu. It was announced in January 2015 that
Vaibhav Tatwawaadi was chosen to play Bajirao's younger brother Chimaji Appa.
Irrfan Khan
Irrfan Khan () (born Sahabzade Irfan Ali Khan; 7 January 196729 April 2020), also known simply as Irrfan, was an Indian actor who worked in Indian cinema as well as British and American films. Widely regarded as one of the finest actors in In ...
was cast as the film's narrator.
All of the actors had to undergo training before filming began; Singh and Padukone learned sword-fighting, horse-riding and the ancient Indian martial art
Kalaripayattu.
Singh was also required to learn Marathi and shave his head for the part, whereas Padukone had to take
Kathak
Kathak ( hi, कथक; ur, کتھک) is one of the eight major forms of Indian classical dance. It is the classical dance from of Uttar Pradesh. The origin of Kathak is traditionally attributed to the traveling bards in ancient northern Ind ...
dance lessons.
In preparation for her role of Kashibai, Chopra had 15 days of language training in the Peshwai Marathi dialect spoken during the time of the ascension of the Peshwas to perfect the accent. Azmi shaved her head completely for her role.
Singh has described his character as a "true Maratha", saying, "The deeper I get into it the more I realise what a great man he was. It is a great honour to be selected to play this character." He has said he always wanted to transform himself into a character and playing Bajirao gave him that scope, which he said was "draining and tiring in every way".
For portraying Bajirao, Singh's preparations required him to isolate himself from his own being and living like Bajirao. He instructed the crew members to address him as Bajirao, which helped him to remain in his character.
Singh would not respond to people who used his real name. He said, "It takes a lot of work and effort to be different from whom I am, and two hours to get ready, complete with makeup and the heavy costumes. After all this, if someone just tells me, Ranveer, your shot is ready! all that goes to waste."
Padukone found her character to be very relatable, saying, "She was so brave, strong, determined and yet fragile and vulnerable".
She was also inspired by her character and found playing the role challenging; it was physically demanding and required a lot of dancing.
Padukone said the character had different layers; "One minute she goes on the battlefield, the next minute she's romancing him".
Chopra was drawn towards the film because of her character which she thought was "very heart-breaking".
She said playing Kashibai was "emotionally difficult" and a complete contrast to the strong women she has portrayed in most of her films.
She described her character as someone who is "heartbroken, a silent sufferer, dignified, resilient, can't take charge of her life, goes with whatever life throws her way. Just grace under fire."
Pre-production
Considering its scale, the film required detailed and extravagant pre-production work, which required extensive research and planning. Saloni Dhatrak, Sriram Iyengar and Sujeet Sawant worked as
production designer
In film and television, the production designer is the individual responsible for the overall aesthetic of the story. The production design gives the viewers a sense of the time period, the plot location, and character actions and feelings. Wo ...
s on the film.
Iyengar and Sawant had heard about the film while working on another film, when it was first announced. Having never met Bhansali, they started researching on their own by visiting Pune and
Satara and learnt about Maratha architecture.
When the film was shelved, they continued to research and formed a portfolio, hoping to approach other filmmakers for work. Several years later, when they heard about the revival, they met Bhansali, who was impresses by their research and presentation.
Bhansali wanted more research on
Mughals
The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...
; he engaged Dhatrak, who joined Iyengar and Sawant.
Bhansali then shared the script with the art directors and described his vision and the scale of the production.
Pre-production work started as early as February 2014, continued as the shoot progressed and lasted until the filming was complete in October 2015; it lasted nineteen months.
Before pre-production work started, the art directors discussed with Bhansali about how much of the film would be filmed on set and outdoor locations, giving them an idea to how many sets they needed to create. Once the number of sets and location shots was decided, the production moved forward.
![Shaniwarwada gate](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b5/Shaniwarwada_gate.JPG)
Along with the art directors, nineteen art assistant directors, including architects, designers, sketch artists and props artists, were involved.
Twenty-two sets were created in
Film City Film City may refer to
* Film City, Mumbai
* Noida Film City
* Ramoji Film City, Hyderabad
* Prayag Film City
The Prayag Film City, also known as the Midnapore Film City or Chandrakona Film City or Bengal film city is an i ...
following a flow chart that included around 960 sketches and countless layouts. The two biggest sets were the exact replicas of
Shaniwar Wada and the Aaina Mahal, both of which were "high on grandeur and intricacy".
The Shaniwar Wada set was the biggest set they had constructed; it took 45,000 planks and 600 workers a day to erect.
It was constructed on Sunil Maidan, one of the biggest open spaces in Film City and took forty-five days to build.
Kashibai's room was the first set to be constructed, which was approved after navigating through twenty-five designs.
The art directors did architectural research from Pune,
Nasik and Satara, studying fortifications, baston walls and city gates to understand the interior and exterior designs of the ancient period and incorporated those ideas into building Kashibai's villa. Lotus motifs on mud-clad walls and handmade textures were used to give the set a realistic appearance.
Aina Mahal took 4,500 planks, with a hundred workers per day. The set was given a lotus-like design, with walls, ceiling and floor made out of handmade mud embedded with sparkling mirror designs.
The replica of Aina Mahal was constructed in forty days, with more than 30,000 square feet of mirrors. More than 700 design stencils were used to decorate the hall.
Although the mirror hall was a Mughal concept, the art directors designed it to look like Maratha architecture. Mastani Mahal was built as an amalgamation of Rajput and Maratha architecture.
The exterior of Mastani Mahal was built as a part of Shaniwar Wada, whereas the interiors of were built on separate sets consisting of a courtyard and bedroom. Mastani's room in Bundelkhand was crafted using a mix of Persian, Mughal and Rajput motifs and architecture.
All of the sets were furnished with opulent objects and props to give the interiors a feel of the ancient
Maratha empire
The Maratha Empire, also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy, was an early modern Indian confederation that came to dominate much of the Indian subcontinent in the 18th century. Maratha rule formally began in 1674 with the coronation of Shi ...
. Only earthen diyas and torches were used to light the sets.
Silken saris were used, with bedsheets and hand-painted walls with 18th century motifs added.
Craftsmen were hired to recreate 18th-century textures, fabrics, weaponry, jewellery and furniture. Almost 30,000 oil lamps were made for the film and 500 suits of armour were designed for the war scenes.
There were also headgear and boots worn in that period. The armour and headgear weighed between ten-twenty kilos and two kilos, respectively.
The team also designed props including different types of tents, lighting props, and elephant and horse decors for the war sequences. The props were made in Mumbai and had to be taken to Rajasthan, the outdoor location.
Costumes
![Ravi Varma-Princess Damayanthi talking with Royal Swan about Nala](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/00/Ravi_Varma-Princess_Damayanthi_talking_with_Royal_Swan_about_Nala.jpg)
The film's costumes were designed by
Anju Modi
Anju Modi is an Indian costume designer who designed for Bajirao Mastani (2015) and Ram Leela (2013). She earned Filmfare Award for Best Costume Design in 2016.
She has been an integral part of the Indian Fashion Industry since the year 1990. O ...
and
Maxima Basu
Maxima Basu is an Indian fashion designer, actress and director. She was the assistant director of Oscar-winning film ''Slumdog Millionaire'' (2009). She has designed for popular Bollywood films like ''Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela, Ram Leela'' ...
.
Modi designed clothes for the three lead characters and Basu designed for the supporting cast. The costumes for extras and war extras were done by Ajay and Chandrakant, respectively.
Bhansali had detailed script-reading sessions with the designers to help them understand the characters, their emotions and personalities, which would mirror the costumes and the grandeur of the 18th century.
Basu started her research by visiting several ancient monuments such as the
Chowmahalla Palace
Chowmahalla Palace or Chowmahallat (from ''chār mahallāt'', in Dakhini Urdu) is the palace of the Nizams of Hyderabad State in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. It was the seat of the Asaf Jahi dynasty and was the official residence of the Niza ...
,
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, (CSMVS) originally named Prince of Wales Museum of Western India, is a museum in Mumbai (Bombay) which documents the history of India from prehistoric to modern times.
It was founded during Briti ...
,
Salar Jung Museum
The Salar Jung Museum is an art museum located at Dar-ul-Shifa, on the southern bank of the Musi River, India, Musi River in the city of Hyderabad, Telangana, India. It is one of the List of museums in India, notable National Museums of India. ...
and
Ajanta-
Ellora caves, which gave her some perspective of ancient Maharastrian culture.
She also travelled to cities such as
Indore
Indore () is the largest and most populous Cities in India, city in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It serves as the headquarters of both Indore District and Indore Division. It is also considered as an education hub of the state and is t ...
,
Chanderi
Chanderi, is a town of historical importance in Ashoknagar District of the state Madhya Pradesh in India. It is situated at a distance of 127 km from Shivpuri, 37 km from Lalitpur, 55 km from Ashok Nagar and about 46 km f ...
,
Paithan
Paithan pəɪ.ʈʰaɳ(), historically Pratiṣṭhāna ɾə'tɪʂʈʰana is a town with municipal council in Aurangabad district, Maharashtra, India. Paithan is located south of present-day Aurangabad on the Godavari River.
It was the cap ...
and
Maheshwar
Maheshwar is a town, near Khargone city in Khargone district of Madhya Pradesh state, in central India. It is located on State Highway-38 ( Khargone city-Barwaha- Bandheri Highway),13.5 km east of National Highway 3 (Agra-Mumbai highway) a ...
to gather more knowledge about the history of clothing and textiles.
About 300 costumes were designed for the three leads alone.
Real
zari
''Zari'' (or ''jari'') is an even thread traditionally made of fine gold or silver used in traditional Indian, Bangladeshi and Pakistani garments, especially as brocade in saris etc. This thread is woven into fabrics, primarily silk, to make i ...
and gold wires were used to weave the costumes.
Since no pictures of Kashibai existed, the paintings of
Raja Ravi Varma
Raja Ravi Varma ( ml, രാജാ രവിവർമ്മ; 29 April 1848 – 2 October 1906) was an Indian painter and artist. He is considered among the greatest painters in the history of Indian art. His works are one of the best examples ...
were used as a reference for designing her looks and costumes.
Modi had designed eighty
nauvari or nine-yard saris with bright colours such as yellows, hot pink, emerald green and purple, inspired from the Raja Ravi Varma paintings, for Chopra.
The custom-made nine-yard saris were weaved by craftsmen from
Maheshwar
Maheshwar is a town, near Khargone city in Khargone district of Madhya Pradesh state, in central India. It is located on State Highway-38 ( Khargone city-Barwaha- Bandheri Highway),13.5 km east of National Highway 3 (Agra-Mumbai highway) a ...
,
Chander and
Varanasi
Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world.
*
*
*
* The city has a syncretic t ...
; they were made a little lighter than usual to avoid making Chopra look large on screen.
For making the saris, fabrics such as silk, muslin,
khadi
Khadi (, ), derived from khaddar, is a hand-spun and woven natural fibre cloth promoted by Mahatma Gandhi as ''swadeshi'' (self-sufficiency) for the freedom struggle of the Indian subcontinent, and the term is used throughout India, Pakistan ...
and chanderi worn in that period were designed.
For one song sequence featuring Chopra, Modi had created six sets of the same sari.
Peshwas used to wear ''
Dhoti
The dhoti, also known as veshti, vetti, dhuti, mardani, chaadra, dhotar, jaiñboh, panchey, is a type of sarong, tied in a manner that outwardly resembles "loose trousers". It is a lower garment forming part of the ethnic costume for men in the ...
s'', ''
Jamas'' and ''
Angarkha
Angarkha is an outer robe with long sleeves which was worn by men in South Asia. By the 19th-century it had become the generally accepted attire of an educated man in public. It had evolved from the Persian cape ''balaba'' or ''chapkan'' as a ...
s'' with a large flare in that period, so it was eminent for Bajirao's character.
A wide palette of solid colours, such as white and cream, were used for the sombre and emotional scenes whereas red, orange, blue and deep purple were used for the celebratory scenes.
For designing the Bajirao's armour,
chain mail
Chain mail (properly called mail or maille but usually called chain mail or chainmail) is a type of armour consisting of small metal rings linked together in a pattern to form a mesh. It was in common military use between the 3rd century BC and ...
, khaki and
steel grey were employed.
A
dandpatta sword was also made for him.
For Mastani, Modi used a mix of Persian and Muslim clothing of muslin, khadi and thin chanderi fabrics, with and
zardosi hand embroidery to depict her half-Muslim heritage.
Padukone was predominantly given
sharara
''Sharara'' is a 1984 Indian Hindi-language film directed by Rajendra Singh Babu, starring Raaj Kumar, Shatrughan Sinha, Hema Malini, Mithun Chakraborty, Tina Munim, Vijayendra Ghatge, Ranjeet, Shakti Kapoor and Kader Khan. The playwright of th ...
s and its derivatives such trailing shararas, shararas with less flare and crinkled shararas made of
chiffon. She was given a
lehenga The ''lehenga'', ''lehnga'' or ''langa'' (also known as a ''ghagra'' or ''gagra'', ''chaniya'', ''pavadai'', or ''lacha'') is a form of ankle-length skirt from the Indian subcontinent. Different patterns and styles of traditional embroidery are used ...
for just one scene.
She was also given Odhnis,
dupatta
The dupattā is a Hindu shawl traditionally worn by women in Indian subcontinent to cover the head and shoulders. The dupatta is currently used most commonly as part of the women's shalwar kameez outfit, and worn over the kurta and the gharara.
...
s,
veil
A veil is an article of clothing or hanging cloth that is intended to cover some part of the head or face, or an object of some significance. Veiling has a long history in European, Asian, and African societies. The practice has been prominent ...
s, floor-skimming
anarkalis and paired with
Farshi Pajama
Farshi Pajama (also Paijama) (Urdu: , Hindi: , Bengali: ) is a woman's dress that was worn between early 20th centuries in Muslim courts of Oudh by royalty and ladies from privileged classes of Uttar Pradesh (formerly United Provinces of Agra a ...
s.
Softer colours with Persian influences such as shades of powder blue, mint green, pale yellow, aqua blue, powder pink and other typical porcelain colours were used for her clothes.
A
turban
A turban (from Persian دولبند, ''dulband''; via Middle French ''turbant'') is a type of headwear based on cloth winding. Featuring many variations, it is worn as customary headwear by people of various cultures. Communities with promin ...
embellished with jewellery such as uncut diamonds and pearls was designed.
For one of the Mastani costumes, Modi designed a five-layered outfit consisting of an jacket, a woven
leheria
Leheria (or ''leheriya'') is a traditional style of tie dye practiced in Rajasthan, India that results in brightly colored cloth with distinctive patterns. The technique gets its name from the Rajasthani word for ''wave'' because the dyeing tech ...
dupatta, sharara and inner
kurti.
Expensive and real jewellery was used in the film.
The designers created the jewellery for each character.
Modi said they did not want to compromise, so the best materials such as real Basra
pearls
A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle (mollusc), mantle) of a living animal shell, shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pea ...
, antique stones and
uncut diamond
Diamond cutting is the practice of shaping a diamond from a rough stone into a faceted gem. Cutting diamonds requires specialized knowledge, tools, equipment, and techniques because of its extreme difficulty.
The first guild of diamond cutters and ...
s were used to give the royal look needed for the characters.
Traditional Marathi-style jewellery was used to style Kashibai, while for Mastani
Nizami and
polki
Diamonds were largely inaccessible to investors until the recent advent of regulated commodities, due to a lack of price discovery and transparency. The characteristics of individual diamonds, especially the carat weight, color and clarity, hav ...
Jewellery was used.
Several Indian jewellery designers, including
PN Gadgil from Pune and Shri Hari Jewellers from Delhi, were hired.
The costume and production designers also researched in museums, art galleries, history books, paintings, palaces, temples and forts to study the textiles, colour palettes and artwork of the ancient Maratha Empire.
Principal photography
Cinematographer
Sudeep Chatterjee shot the film using
Arri Alexa
The Arri Alexa (stylised as ΛLEXΛ) is a digital motion picture camera system developed by Arri. First introduced in April 2010, the camera was Arri's first major transition into digital cinematography after previous efforts such as the Arrif ...
XT lenses.
Chatterjee had done extensive research before starting the film.
Principal photography
Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production.
Personnel
Besides the main film personnel, such as actor ...
began on 9 October 2014 with Chopra on the set in Film City,
Mumbai
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
.
Later that month, Singh joined the shoot. Most of the film was shot on the highly detailed sets.
In late November, Chopra fainted on the set due to exhaustion while filming a scene that needed to be filmed ten times continuously. A doctor was called and filming stopped for some time but she later resumed the shoot. Padukone joined the cast for two days during late December 2014 and resumed shooting in April 2015 after completing work for her other projects.
Outdoor location filming began in February 2015 at
Amer Fort
Amer Fort or Amber Fort is a fort located in Amer, Rajasthan, India. Amer is a town with an area of located from Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan. Amber city and Amber fort were founded by ruler Alan Singh of Chanda dynasty of Meenas. Located ...
in
Jaipur
Jaipur (; Hindi Language, Hindi: ''Jayapura''), formerly Jeypore, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Rajasthan. , the city had a pop ...
. Crowd scenes were also filmed there. Singh fell off a horse while filming an action sequence and was rushed to hospital; he was not seriously injured. In May 2015, however, he injured his shoulder and needed surgery; he resumed shooting after break of two months.
Chopra resumed filming in the first week of April 2015 for a month. While working on ''Bajirao Mastani'', Chopra was simultaneously filming the American television series ''
Quantico'' in
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
, requiring much back-and forth travel. She would act for ''Bajirao Mastani'' at weekends and return to Montreal on weekdays for her series, returning to India in the second week of October to complete the final schedule.
Before starting the film, the team discussed which parts of it had to be filmed and which parts needed to be made using visual effects.
They decided that only sequences that were considered difficult or impossible to film would be created using visual effects in post production.
In one sequence, it was impossible to control the movements of the 300–400 horses standing at one position in a battle scene; this sequence was filmed with a small number of horses and was later enhanced in post production.
Sham Kaushal co-ordinated the action sequences for the war scenes.
Three war sequences were filmed in
Rajasthan
Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern si ...
,
Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, and Rewa being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the seco ...
and
Maharashtra
Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...
. Chatterjee found the war sequences challenging and faced many difficulties while filming in the deserts of Rajasthan. Wanting to break with norms, Bhansali wanted a night-time war sequence; lighting a large, open field became very difficult and visibility issues were inevitable. Bhansali wanted very clear images. Instead, they decided to shoot these scenes in the morning, aiming for a twilight look.
The main war scene featuring 800 extras, 500 horses and twenty-five elephants was filmed over twenty days near Jaipur.
The extras would begin costuming, which included beards for the Mughals, moustaches for the Marathas, armours, helmets and uniforms, at 04:00 for the start of filming at 08:00.
After finishing the shoot, the costumes would be washed in readiness for 04:00 the following day. Kaushal has said extensive research was done before filming the war sequences, and a rough graph was designed nine months before the filming.
However, the entire sequence could not be filmed in one take on location and was completed later in a studio in Film City, and was enhanced in post production.
Ganesh Acharya
Ganesh Acharya is an Indian choreographer, film director, and actor who prominently works in Bollywood.
He won the National Film Award for Best Choreography for his work on the songs "Hawan Kund" from Bhaag Milkha Bhaag (2013) and "Gori tu lat ...
,
Remo D'Souza
Remo D'Souza (born Ramesh Gopi Nair; 2 April 1974), is an Indian choreographer, actor, film director and producer, based in Mumbai. He is best known for his works in ''Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani'' (2014) and ''Bajirao Mastani'' (2016). In a career ...
,
Pony Verma
Rashmi Verma, known professionally as Pony Verma, is an Indian dance choreographer, who began her career in the year 2000. She has also done a dance reality show, ''Chak Dhoom Dhoom'' for Colors channel. Pony Verma married actor Prakash Raj on ...
, Shampa Gopikrishna and
Pandit Birju Maharaj
Pandit Birju Maharaj (born Brijmohan Nath Mishra; 4 February 1938 – 16 January 2022) was an Indian dancer, composer, singer, child molester and exponent of the Lucknow "Kalka-Bindadin" Gharana of Kathak dance in India. He was a descendant of ...
were the choreographers for the film's song sequences.
Bhansali chose D'Souza, who had only choreographed modern dance numbers at that time, to choreograph the song "Pinga", which took weeks to complete. Chopra and Padukone had to rehearse for several days before shooting. The filming was challenging for Chopra and Padukone; they had to shoot for the dance sequences multiple times whenever the
diyas
Zarina Diyas ( kk, Зари́на Ди́ас; born 18 October 1993) is a Kazakh professional tennis player. She has been ranked as high as No. 31 in the world by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA). Diyas has won one WTA singles title, at the ...
and torches used to light up the background would snuff.
The song was shot at night on an open-air set decorated with diyas and torches, many of which would snuff out while filming the song.
When it was suggested snuffed diyas should be corrected in post production, Bhansali outright refused. More than twelve people would run around the set with candles and oil to relight them.
The sound recording was done on location. Sound designer Nihar Ranjan Samal said they had to be careful that sounds of vehicles and honking did not make their way into the recording. A number of scenes needed re-recording because of some disturbance. ''Bajirao Mastani'' was shot in 217 days between October 2014 and October 2015.
Post-production
The film contains 1,400 visual effects shots.
The company that worked on the effects was
NY VFXWAALA; this was the biggest projects they had undertaken.
Prasad Sutar was the visual effects supervisor; the effects took eight months and a team of sixty artists to create.
Although the film was shot on highly detailed sets, visual effects and
CGI was incorporated in post-production to enhance the imagery for the scenes that were impossible to shoot in live action.
The effects included the creation of interior architecture, backgrounds, set extensions and war weapons; changes to lighting and time of day, weather effects and the multiplication of army soldiers.
The opening night-time war scene, which had 300 visual effects shots, was
filmed in bright daylight then converted into night.
Arrows flying over the battlefield were created using CGI whereas the army, soldiers and horses were multiplied. The war close-up shots were filmed in a studio but were later mixed with the war scenes to form a detailed scene.
In some shots, the sky was digitally replaced and CGI forts were added in others.
Similarly, the climax sequence, which was shot live in water, was enhanced using CGI horses, arrows and fireballs. The climax scene took around twenty days to complete with fine details.
Bhansali wanted a grand opening title design, which the team decided to create using animation.
They crafted hand-drawn storyboards and drew a narration of Bajirao and his kingdom, and designed it digitally using animation within a limited timeline.
A sequence in which Singh crosses the sea in a boat at night was created using visual effects. Splashing waves, falling rain falling (except for the water falling on Singh and the night sky were created in post production.
The scenes that were shot on set and featured outside views, such as views from windows, were completed in post production.
For dark, emotional scenes, a low-key background was created, whereas bright, colourful backgrounds were created with effects for light scenes.
The film was edited by Rajesh G. Pandey.
Soundtrack
The
original score of the film was composed by
Sanchit Balhara and the soundtrack album was composed by Bhansali.
The lyrics are written by Siddharth–Garima,
A. M. Turaz
A M Turaz (Aas Mohammed Turaz) is an Indian poet, lyricist, and script writer. He has worked in television, music albums and films. He has written the lyrics for a number of Bollywood films including ''Kudiyon Ka Hai Zamaana'' of 2007, ''The U ...
and Prashant Ingole.
The album consists of ten original songs with vocals by
Shreya Ghoshal
Shreya Ghoshal (born 12 March 1984) is an Indian singer and television personality. One of the highest-paid and most well-established playback singers of Indian cinema, she has received four National Film Awards, four Kerala State Film Awar ...
,
Arijit Singh,
Vishal Dadlani
Vishal Dadlani (born 28 June 1973) is an Indian singer, songwriter and music composer. He is one half of the duo Vishal–Shekhar, Front Man and vocalist of one of India's leading rock bands called Pentagram.
As a singer he has sung various ...
, Shashi Suman, Kunal Pandit, Prithvi Gandharva, Kanika Joshi, Rashi Raagga, Geetikka Manjrekar,
Payal Dev
Payal Dev is an Indian playback singer and music composer who sings and composes music for Bollywood films.
She sang "Ab Tohe Jane Na Doongi" from the film ''Bajirao Mastani,'' as well as "Bhare Bazaar" from '' Namaste England''. Dev made her de ...
, Shreyas Puranik,
Vaishali Mhade
Vaishali Made (born 21 August 1984) is an Indian singer and winner of Zee TV's reality series, '' Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2009''.[Javed Bashir
Javed Bashir ( Punjabi, ur, ; born 8 August 1973) is a Pakistani playback singer who mainly sings classical songs. Javed has sung songs for many Bollywood movies including ''Cocktail'', ''Kahaani'', ''Rush'', ''Bombay Talkies'', ''Bhaa ...]
, Ganesh Chandanshive and
Sukhwinder Singh.
The soundtrack was released by
Eros Music on 31 October 2015.
The soundtrack album was well received by music critics, who praised the soulful compositions and called them "melodious and fresh".
R. M. Vijayakar of ''India-West'' gave the album 4.5 out of 5, calling it "unforgettable" and complimented the use of musical instruments and orchestration, noting portions of the score as the most significant standout. ''
Firstpost
''Firstpost'' is an Indian online news and media website. The site is a part of the Network 18 media conglomerate owned by Reliance Industries, which also runs CNN-News18 and CNBC-TV18.
The ''Network 18'' group was originally owned by Raghav ...
'' gave a highly positive review, praising the "elegantly arranged and opulently orchestrated" songs and writing, "exhilarating soundtrack ... recreates an era gone-by through sounds that are authentic ... yet operatic, steeped in the classical ethos, yet contemporary". Joginder Tuteja of ''
Bollywood Hungama
Bollywood Hungama (lit. "Bollywood Madness" in Hindi), previously known as IndiaFM (or IndiaFM.com), is a Bollywood entertainment website, owned by Hungama Digital Media Entertainment, which acquired the website in 2000.
The website provides ...
'' gave a rating of 3.5 out of 5, calling it "high on classical base" and saying half of the compositions were situational and narrative-based that can "be expected to make a good impression on screen".
''
The Indian Express
''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932. It is published in Mumbai by the Indian Express Group. In 1999, eight years after the group's founder Ramnath Goenka's death in 1991, the group was split betw ...
'' also gave it a 3.5 out of 5, noting its distinct sound and its "balance between restraint and exuberance" and wrote, "''Bajirao Mastani'' sounds fresh, like carefully restored music from Bajirao's times".
Marketing and release
''Bajirao Mastani'' was one of the most anticipated releases of 2015. Special care was taken to avoid leaks during production; everything was done in secrecy. On 15 July 2015, a day before the teaser release, producers Eros International shared the first images of the three characters and a teaser poster of the film. The three-minute teaser trailer, with only one line of dialogue, was released on 16 July 2015.
The teaser garnered high praise from all quarters and was deemed "grand" and "epic".
''
News18'' called the teaser "regal, grand and breathtaking", and wrote that it had all the signature Bhansali elements such as "the big sets, larger than life characters, lots of colours and a tragic love story in the midst of all this grandeur".
''
India Today
''India Today'' is a weekly Indian English-language news magazine published by Living Media India Limited. It is the most widely circulated magazine in India, with a readership of close to 8 million. In 2014, ''India Today'' launched a new onl ...
'' wrote, "With its royal canvas, ''Bajirao Mastani'' teaser is a burst of colours and action reminiscent of the 18th century".
In early November 2015, characters posters of the three characters were also unveiled. The trailer was released on 20 November 2015 and was also well received.
As a part of the promotions, a multi-episode
graphic web series –India's first – titled ''Blazing Bajirao'' was released digitally in November 2015.
Featuring the animated
avatar
Avatar (, ; ), is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means "descent". It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, goddess or spirit on Earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appearanc ...
s of Bajirao, Kashibai and Mastani, the graphic series narrates the tales of Bajirao's heroism and his relationship with his two wives.
This was followed by a video game titled ''Blazing Bajirao – The Game'' the next month.
Released on the
App Store
An App Store (or app marketplace) is a type of digital distribution platform for computer software called applications, often in a mobile context. Apps provide a specific set of functions which, by definition, do not include the running of the co ...
and
Google Play
Google Play, also known as the Google Play Store and formerly the Android Market, is a digital distribution service operated and developed by Google. It serves as the official app store for certified devices running on the Android (operating sys ...
, the interactive game requires its players to fight enemies as Peshwa Bajirao.
A multi-city press tour, which saw Singh and Padukone visiting several cities, was designed to promote the film. Chopra, who could not be in India for the promotions as she was filming for ''Quantico'', promoted the film in the United States at a press conference in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
.
The descendants of Bajirao, Mastani and Kashibai expressed their disapproval of "Malhari" and "Pinga" dance sequences, the midriff-baring saris worn by Kashibai and Mastani in the song "Pinga", a dialogue deeming it "vulgar" and a "private moment" shown in the trailer, claiming excessive creative liberty was taken by the director.
Though not against the release of the film, the descendants publicly asked the makers to remove those two songs and screen the film for them so they could review and suggest Bhansali remove other "objectionable content" from the film.
Bhansali did not respond.
Additionally, a petition was filed by an activist in
Bombay High Court seeking stay on the film for the two aforementioned songs, accusing it of "distorting history"; the High Court rejected the petition and refused to interfere with the film's release.
One of the
most expensive Hindi films ever made, ''Bajirao Mastani'' cost 125 crore to make and an additional 20 crore for marketing and advertisements; its total budget was 145 crore.
Even before its release, the film recovered almost all of its production costs – 120 crore – from sales of its satellite rights,
music rights and overseas rights being sold for 50 crore and 70 crore, respectively. The film was released on 18 December 2015 on 2,700 screens worldwide.
Although the makers had booked the date a year in advance, the makers of ''
Dilwale'' decided to release their film on the same date, causing a highly publicized clash between the two films. ''Bajirao Mastani'' had to share the 5,000 domestic screens with ''Dilwale'' in a 40:60 ratio.
Distributed by
Eros Home Video, the film was released on
DVD
The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...
and
Blu-ray
The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of sto ...
on 18 March 2016.
The DVD version was released in all
regions
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...
as a two-disc pack in
NTSC
The first American standard for analog television broadcast was developed by National Television System Committee (NTSC)National Television System Committee (1951–1953), Report and Reports of Panel No. 11, 11-A, 12–19, with Some supplement ...
widescreen format; bonus content included documentaries about the
making of the film, its sets, costumes, music, movie images and deleted scenes.
A
VCD
Video CD (abbreviated as VCD, and also known as Compact Disc Digital Video) is a home video format and the first format for distributing films on standard optical discs. The format was widely adopted in Southeast Asia, Central Asia and the ...
version was released at the same time. The film was also released digitally on platforms such as
iTunes
iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...
. It is also available on the company's streaming service
Eros Now
Eros Now is an Indian subscription-based over-the-top, video on-demand entertainment and media platform, launched in 2012. It is owned and controlled by Eros Digital, the Indian digital media management arm of the Indian-American multinational ...
. ''Bajirao Mastani'' had its world television premiere on 23 April 2016 on
Colors
Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associa ...
.
Reception
Critical response
''Bajirao Mastani'' received highly positive reviews from critics.
Writing for ''Firstpost'', Subhash K. Jha gave it 5 stars out of 5, calling it a "masterpiece", and comparing it favorably with ''
Mughal-e-Azam
''Mughal-e-Azam'' () is a 1960 Indian epic historical drama film produced and directed by K. Asif. Starring Prithviraj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar, Madhubala, and Durga Khote, it follows the love affair between Mughal Prince Salim (who went ...
'' (1960).
Anupama Chopra
Anupama Chopra () is an Indian author, journalist, film critic and director of the MAMI Mumbai Film Festival. She is also the founder and editor of the digital platform Film Companion, which offers a curated look at cinema. She has written sev ...
from ''
Hindustan Times
''Hindustan Times'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper based in Delhi. It is the flagship publication of HT Media, an entity controlled by the KK Birla family, and is owned by Shobhana Bhartia.
It was founded by Sunder Singh Lyall ...
'' gave 4.5 stars out of 5, terming it "soaring, searing and visually sumptuous", and writing, "''Bajirao Mastani'' plays out a like an operatic, swooning, feverish love poem." She felt that Singh wasn't "instantly convincing", but nonetheless praised him (as the film progressed) for "combin
ngtowering strength with aching vulnerability and helplessness", Chopra for having the "maximum impact" despite fewer scenes, and called Padukone "riveting". However, she criticized Azmi's acting. ''
The Times of India
''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the third-largest newspaper in India by circulation and largest ...
'' also gave 4 stars out of 5, pointing out its "outstanding" cinematography and writing, "Every visual resembles a grand painting – courts with shadows and chandeliers, courtiers with tilaks and teers, chambers gleaming with mirrors, skies blushing with passion."
Taran Adarsh
Taran Adarsh (born 13 June 1965) is an Indian film critic and trade analyst. He is best known for giving trade figures and box office updates on social media.
Career
Taran Adarsh started his journalism career at the age of 15 with ''Trade Gui ...
from ''Bollywood Hungama'' gave 4 stars out of 5, describing it as "a cinematic gem", and wrote that "fascinating characters and inspirational sub-plots
n the film
N, or n, is the fourteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''en'' (pronounced ), plural ''ens''.
History
...
advances into a stunning culmination". ''
Zee News
Zee News is an Indian Hindi-language news channel owned by Subhash Chandra's Essel Group. It launched on 27 August 1999 and is the flagship channel of the Zee Media Corporation.
The channel has been involved in several controversies and has ...
'' also gave 4 stars out of 5 and said, "An outright outshining piece of art made unblemished, sprinkled with sincerity and discipline of acting – this love folklore will restore the drama lovers, back in their ‘expectation’ block". Shubha Shetty-Saha of ''
Mid-Day
''Mid-Day'' (stylised as mid-day) is a morning daily Indian compact newspaper owned by Jagran Prakashan Limited. Editions in various languages were published in Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore and Pune. In 2011, the Delhi and Bangalore editions were ...
'' gave 3.5 stars out of 5, and wrote, "Sanjay Leela Bhansali in his characteristic style narrates his version of the story in a ''Mughal-e-Azam''-esque scale of grandiosity, replete with breathtakingly beautiful sets, elaborate and well thought of costumes and accessories and dreamy cinematography", which transports the viewers to a "unique and stunningly beautiful world." Ananya Bhattacharya of ''
India Today
''India Today'' is a weekly Indian English-language news magazine published by Living Media India Limited. It is the most widely circulated magazine in India, with a readership of close to 8 million. In 2014, ''India Today'' launched a new onl ...
'' also rated the film t3.5 out of 5, calling it "an experience", and Bhansali "a master love-storyteller". She praised the performance, saying, "Singh, Padukone, Chopra shine ... while Azmi plays the intimidating matriarch with elan"; thought she thought the editing "could have been much crisper".
Writing for ''
NDTV
New Delhi Television Ltd is an Indian news media company focusing on broadcast and digital news publication. The company is considered to be a legacy brand that pioneered independent news broadcasting in India, and is credited for launching t ...
'', Saibal Chatterjee gave the film 3.5 stars out of 5, and said, "There isn't a dull moment in this colorful and dramatic film that embraces excess with unabashed abandon." Giving a rating of 3 stars out of 5,
Rajeev Masand
Rajeev Masand is an Indian film critic and journalist. He has worked for Noida based English language news channel CNN-Indian Broadcasting Network (CNN-IBN). He usually reviews Bollywood films and major Hollywood films released in India in his ...
described the film as "artistic, but exhausting" and was critical of the film's length. He praised the cinematography, production design and performances; he credited Chopra for bringing "grace to the character, and practically steal
ngthe film"; Padukone for bringing "heft" to her fight scenes, although he found her character to be "strictly one-dimensional and tedious"; and Singh for finding his character's hidden vulnerabilities.
Namrata Joshi of ''The Hindu'' called the film a "historical leap", and wrote, "Bhansali returns with another visual spectacle that willfully takes liberties with the past that it depicts. But it does manage to engage even as it exhausts." Conversely, Raja Sen of ''Rediff.com'' was unimpressed with the film for favoring visual splendour over storyline, rating it 2.5 stars out of 5. He praised Chopra and Singh, calling them "terrific", but criticized Padukone's performance, writing "Padukone look giddily entranced, there are times when she appears completely lost. It doesn't help that she's entirely eaten up by Chopra, who, while not in the title, owns ''Bajirao Mastani''." Shubhra Gupta of ''The Indian Express'' was also disappointed with the film, writing, "''Bajirao Mastani'' had the potential to be a terrific historical. You want to be transported. What it ends up being is a costume drama: too many costumes, too much revved-up, empty drama, and too little plot."
Box office
''Bajirao Mastani'' was a major commercial success, grossing over 254 crore in India and over 102.2 crore in the overseas market for a worldwide box office gross of over 356.2 crore.
The overseas collections comprised earnings from five major markets; United States and Canada, United Kingdom, Middle-east, Australia and the rest of the world; with earnings of 44 crore, 13.8 crore, 20.2 crore, 5.7 crore and 18.5 crore, respectively.
As of September 2017, it is the List of Bollywood films of 2015, fourth-highest-grossing Bollywood film of 2015, the third-highest-grossing Bollywood film in overseas markets in 2015, the ninth-highest-grossing Bollywood film and one of the List of highest-grossing Indian films, highest-grossing Indian films of all time.
The film collected 12.8 crore nett on its opening day, which was the tenth-highest of the year. On its second day the film saw growth in its collection as it collected 15.52 crore nett. The film showed further growth on its third day as it collected 18.45 crore nett to take its first weekend total to 46.77 crore nett. In its opening weekend, the film debuted at number 10 at the U.S. box office and at number 7 at the UK box office.
The film's worldwide opening weekend earning was over 91.5 crore.
The film remained very strong on its first Monday, dropping by only 15% and earning 10.25 crore nett.
The film maintained its strong box office run on weekdays. ''Bajirao Mastani'' earned 84.36 crore nett in the first week at the domestic box office, while the first-week worldwide collections were over 160 crore.
Its first week domestic collection was the fourth-highest of the year. Revenues grew nearly 20% on its second Friday, earning 12.5 crore nett. The film earned over 31.1 crore in its second weekend and collected a further 5.25 crore on the second Monday for an eleven-day domestic total of 141 crore nett. In the second week, the film earned approximately 55.2 crore. The film registered the fourth-highest third-week collections of all time, earning a 27 crore. After its fourth week collection of 7 crore, the film's domestic earnings stood at 175 crore nett. In its fifth weekend, the film continued to perform well in India, with the best fifth-weekend collections of all the 2015 releases.
Accolades
''Bajirao Mastani'' received 5 nominations at the 10th Asian Film Awards, including Asian Film Award for Best Film, Best Film, and won Best Special Effects. At the 63rd National Film Awards, ''Bajirao Mastani'' received 7 awards, including National Film Award for Best Direction, Best Director for Bhansali,
Best Supporting Actress for Azmi, National Film Award for Best Cinematography, Best Cinematography for Chatterjee, and National Film Award for Best Art Direction, Best Art Direction. It received a leading 14 nominations at the
61st Filmfare Awards
The 61st Filmfare Awards were held to honor the best films of 2015 on 15 January 2016 at NSCI Dome in Mumbai. The ceremony was hosted by Shah Rukh Khan and Kapil Sharma.
''Bajirao Mastani'' led the ceremony with 14 nominations, followed by '' ...
and went on to win a leading 9 awards at the ceremony, including
Best Film
This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards.
Best Actor/Best Actress
*See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...
,
Best Director Best Director is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards. It may refer to:
Film awards
* AACTA Award for Best Direction
* Academy Award for Best Director
* BA ...
for Bhansali,
Best Actor for Singh, and
Best Supporting Actress for Chopra. ''Bajirao Mastani'' received 13 nominations at the 22nd Screen Awards, including Screen Award for Best Film, Best Film, and Screen Award for Best Director, Best Director for Bhansali, and won 7 including Screen Award for Best Actor, Best Actor for Singh, and Screen Award for Best Supporting Actress, Best Supporting Actress for Chopra. It also won a leading 13 awards (from 18 nominations) at the 17th IIFA Awards including IIFA Award for Best Director, Best Director for Bhansali, IIFA Award for Best Actor, Best Actor for Singh, and IIFA Award for Best Supporting Actress, Best Supporting Actress for Chopra.
Historical inaccuracies
The film was adapted from the novel ''
Rau'', whose accuracy has long been questioned.
Bhansali consulted historian
Ninad Bedekar
Ninad Gangadhar Bedekar (17 August 1949 – 10 May 2015) was a historian, writer and orator from Pune, Maharashtra, India, writing and speaking in Marathi. He was specialized in research of the rule of warrior-king Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj a ...
, who is regarded as an authority on the Peshwas.
According to an article published by ''Quartz (publication), Quartz'', the "love story" of Bajirao and Mastani is "almost entirely fictional", writing that even the most reliable sources do not give details about the nature of their relationship.
There has been controversy over Mastani's true lineage; two accounts of Mastani exist one which says she was a courtesan and Bajirao's mistress or concubine, and another that is depicted in the film.
According to historian Saili Palande-Datar, very little is known about the women of that era due to the orthodoxy; women were not given many privileges and rights, and most of the sources from that period are accounts of political battles, revenues and socio-economic records.
Palande-Datar also said that there is no evidence of the way Bajirao and Mastani's political marriage became part of folklore and was later transformed into a symbolic representation of great romance.
Historian Prachi Deshpande notes in her book ''Creative Pasts: Historical Memory and Identity in Western India, 1700–1960'', that the public fascination started after their romanticisation began in the 1890s, more than 150 years after they had died, after Marathi playwrights began writing a series of nationalistic plays based on the historical figures. The first such play that portrayed them as a Star-crossed, star crossed couple was ''Bajirao-Mastani'' (1892) by N B Kanitkar.
''Quartz'' also said the play portrayed them as star crossed lovers and others playwrights followed Kantikar, making it as familiar to Marathi audiences as that of other epic romances.
By the 1930s, a number of historical novels that also added to the "myth-making" were written, fascinating another generation.
The film gives a more of a personal account of Bajirao's life, which is hard to prove since it has not been covered much by the historians.
Bhansali has said it was his interpretation of how Bajirao was in his home and in personal life, and there was no way to know that.
Because of this lack of information, Bhansali took liberties with historical facts and exaggerated a few things for cinematic effects.
A disclaimer on the film's credits stated it does not claim to be historically accurate.
The dance sequences have been widely seen as "fictional" and "out of place" in historical context.
Bajirao's dance sequence in "Malhari" has been criticized, saying a chief minister such as Bajirao would never dance in public.
Similarly, the "Pinga" dance sequence between Kashibai and Mastani has been deemed "inappropriate" for women of that era.
Some historians have said that apart from the inappropriateness of a woman of Kashibai's stature dancing in public, she suffered from a type of arthritis and that dancing was not physically possible for her.
While some historians have claimed both women met socially only once; others have said they never met at all.
Mastani was put under house arrest by Balaji while Bajirao was on military campaign, as opposed to film's depiction of Mastani's imprisonment. The film shows Bajirao and Mastani dying at the same time in different places, which did not happen in reality.
Bajirao died a few days earlier than Mastani; however the cause of her death is not known. Some have claimed she died from shock; other accounts say she committed suicide. The film portrays Mastani being chained at the time of her death but she was never chained and she and Kashibai were both present at Bajirao's last rites.
After the death of Mastani, Kashibai raised Mastani's son as her own, which is not shown in the film.
Other inaccuracies include Mastani playing a mandola, an instrument that originated in Europe during the 19th century.
See also
* List of Asian historical drama films
*List of highest-grossing Indian films
References
External links
*
*
*
*
{{good article
2010s Hindi-language films
2015 biographical drama films
2010s historical drama films
2015 films
Films about royalty
Films based on Indian novels
Films directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Films featuring a Best Supporting Actress National Film Award-winning performance
Films set in the 18th century
Films shot in Rajasthan
Films whose cinematographer won the Best Cinematography National Film Award
Films whose director won the Best Director National Film Award
Historical epic films
Indian historical romance films
History of India on film
Indian biographical drama films
Indian epic films
Indian interfaith romance films
Romantic epic films
Films whose production designer won the Best Production Design National Film Award
Films that won the Best Audiography National Film Award
Films featuring a Best Choreography National Film Award-winning choreography
Films set in the Maratha Empire
Films set in the Rajput Empire
2015 drama films
Films adapted into comics
Films adapted into television shows