'Har Har Mahadev' explores Shivaji's relationship with his commander

MUMBAI: 'Har Har Mahadev' director Abhijeet Deshpande talks about his latest film that is based on the relationship between Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and his relationship with his commander Baji Prabhu Deshpande who finally gave his life while helping his king during the Battle of Pavankhind.

Abhijeet says: "This film is about the relationship between Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and his warrior friend Baji Prabhu Deshpande. The whole point of this film is to show the human side of war and the human side of a warrior."

In 1659, after the death of the Bijapur general Afzal Khan, Shivaji took Panhala from Bijapur, however in 1960, Afzal Khan II of Bijapur sent his army but Shivaji even after five months of war was not successful in taking the fort back and thus decided to escape. Baji Prabhu gave his life in saving Shivaji from being captured.

"Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is always known to be a brave man and a great king but what sort of human being he was? What were the choices that he had to make and how his humanity led him to glory is the point of the film," he adds.

The director, who had written 'Shaitan', 'Shootout at Wadala' and others, asserts that whenever a story is written or focusses on the life of a warrior mostly people look at the number of people killed by them but there is a human side also that should be considered as well.

He says: "Also for Baji Prabhu Deshpande, we always look at the warriors for the number of people that they kill. We never look at the human side of them, what they were as people and what led them to war. So this film is largely about how they were as human beings and the relation between the two of them."

Produced by ZEE Studios and Directed by Abhijeet Deshpande, the film stars Subodh Bhave, Sharad Kelkar, Amruta Khanvilkar, and Sayli Sanjeev. It is all set to release on October 25.