Opinion | ‘Chhaava’: A Spectacular Journey Mounted On A Grand Canvas
‘Chhaava’ stays true to its genre, mounts its vision on a larger-than-life canvas, selects valour as its primary colour from the creative palette, and succeeds spectacularly
Sambhaji was the son of Maratha emperor Chhatrapati Shivaji and the successor to the Hindawi Swarajya that his father established in 1674. He ascended the throne upon his father’s death in 1680, at the young age of 24.
Vicky Kaushal-starrer Chhaava is based on Marathi novelist Shivaji Sawant’s 1979 eponymous novel. Sawant also wrote the renowned novel Mrityunjay, based on the Mahabharata character Karna. ‘Chhaava’ means lion’s cub and refers to Sambhaji in both the book and the movie. Mounted on a lavish scale, the film establishes its ambitions with an opening sequence depicting the newly crowned Sambhaji’s 1680 raid on the crown jewel of the Mughal Empire—the fort of Burhanpur—its sacking, and the unapologetic message of defiance and conquest it sent to Aurangzeb.
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Emboldened by Shivaji’s untimely demise and provoked by Sambhaji’s audacity, Mughal emperor Aurangzeb marched to the Deccan that same year, determined to crush the Maratha uprising and annex the kingdoms of Golconda and Bijapur. He spent the next 27 years in Aurangabad (now renamed Sambhaji Nagar), which became his new headquarters.
From the opening sequence, the viewer is introduced to Sambhaji’s wife, Yesubai, played with spirited charm by Rashmika Mandanna; Aurangzeb, portrayed to perfection by Akshaye Khanna; Ashutosh Rana as the Maratha general Hambirao Mohite; Diana Penty as Aurangzeb’s cold-blooded daughter; and Divya Dutta as Sambhaji’s scheming mother-in-law, Soyarabai, among others.
The film’s action sequences are its clear highlight. Though numerous, they are well-choreographed and keep the viewer engaged. The narrative swiftly shifts between Sambhaji, Soyarabai, and Aurangzeb, maintaining a pace that never lags. However, some sequences in the second half, particularly those depicting the Marathas’ guerrilla tactics, could have been trimmed.
A.R. Rahman’s music is a disappointment—its high-pitched monotony grates. Not a single song stands out, nor is any tune memorable. The dialogues, too, could have used more verve and sparkle. One would have liked to hear more from Ashutosh Rana, for instance.
Weakened by the death of his general, Hambirao Mohite, in 1687, Sambhaji was betrayed by Ganoji and Kanhoji Shirke. He was captured in February 1689 at Sangameshwar after a battle that began at midnight and lasted until the early hours of the next day. Taken prisoner, he was subjected to horrific torture—blinded with hot irons, his nails pulled out, limbs hacked off, and finally beheaded. According to some accounts, Aurangzeb ordered Sambhaji’s corpse to be stuffed with hay and paraded, both as a trophy for the so-called benevolent emperor and as a warning to wannabe upstarts.
Yet Aurangzeb failed to crush the Maratha kingdom. He spent his final years struggling in vain to subdue the Marathas and ultimately died in 1707 at the age of 88 in Ahilyanagar (formerly Ahmednagar), a frustrated man. The Mughal emperor’s demise marked the beginning of a terminal decline for the empire. Within a few decades, successive Mughal kings were reduced to the status of provincial satraps whose writ ran no farther than Mehrauli. The British would eventually establish unchallenged suzerainty over India only after fighting three major wars against the Marathas, beginning in 1775.
How the movie ends is neither a surprise nor a shock. The inevitability of historical fact cannot be glossed over by fantasy or fiction. Sambhaji is betrayed, captured, tortured, and killed. One of his betrayers, Ganoji Shirke, was his own brother-in-law. True to historical precedent, Indian rulers were often undone by insiders—a trait that remains alive and flourishing even today.
Vicky Kaushal is Chhaava, the lion cub. He wears the role like a second skin, and you see only Sambhaji the warrior, not Vicky Kaushal the actor. Akshaye Khanna fully inhabits the character of Aurangzeb, delivering what may well be the defining performance of his career. Ashutosh Rana leaves his mark as the Maratha general Hambirao Mohite, while a pleasant surprise is Vineet Kumar Singh as the bard and Sambhaji’s friend, Kavi Kalash, who is captured alongside Sambhaji and later executed.
Yes, Chhaava could have been shortened by twenty minutes, and the music needed a stronger—and perhaps different—composer. As for its critics, it is unfair to slot Chhaava into a genre like grim historical realism and then fault it for failing. Judge it for what it sets out to be, not what you would like it to be. Chhaava stays true to its genre, mounts its vision on a larger-than-life canvas, selects valour as its primary colour from the creative palette, and succeeds spectacularly.
Abhinav Agarwal is a columnist, writer and reviewer. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18’s views.
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