The trailer of one of the most awaited Marathi films, ‘Pawankhind’, was released on 10th February 2022. The third Marathi film in Digpal Lanjekar’s ‘Shivraj Ashtak’ (a series of eight films on Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj) is set to hit the big screens on 18th February 2022, that is a day before ‘Shivjayanti’.
Digpal Lanjekar is a Marathi film director well known for his grand project of eight films based on important incidences in Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s life. While the first two films in this series have already been major hits in the Marathi film industry, ‘Pawankhind’, the third episode in line, is all set to be released this month. The trailer of the film was released on 10th February 2022.
The film is based on the greatest rearguard fight in the medieval history of India. This fight is regarded as the epitome of the integrity and the obedience shown and the promise kept by Veer Baji Prabhu Deshpande, the commander of Shivaji Maharaj who rearguard his way when he had broken the siege of Siddi Jauhar to the fort Panhalgad and heading towards the fort Vishalgad via a route through a very narrow mountain pass called ‘Horse Pass’ as barely a two or three horse riders could comfortably pass from it at once.
Baji Prabhu Deshpande had blocked the pass for five and half hours with a company of 300 soldiers and had ensured a safe passage to Shivaji Maharaj who was being chased by a mighty Adilshahi army of 10000 led by Siddi Jauhar. Baji Prabhu Deshpande sacrificed his life only after listening to the cannon fires from the fort Vishalgad as promised to Shivaji Maharaj.
The trailer of the film
The trailer full of the action scenes of this historic battle opens with the lines of the ballad of Baji Prabhu Deshpande written by Veer Vinayak Damodar Savarkar. In his poetry Veer Savarkar has written “आले आले गनीम खिंडित चवताळुनि आले, झाले झाले सज्ज मराठे सरसावुनि भाले, संख्या दुप्पट रिपुची परि ते निकराने लढती, हर हर गर्जुनि समर रंगणी तुटोनिया पडती, खड्गाचे खणखणाट त्या मधि शर सणसण येती, मारण मरणावीण नेणती वीर रणी रंगती” which means “The enemy, angry and fierce, has arrived in the mountain pass. The Marathas are ready to face the enemy with their piercing spears. They fought with valor against countless enemies. The chants of Har Har Mahadev echoed as they charged into the battlefield. The sound of attacking arrows passing by is clearly heard even in the noise of the fighting swords. They charged in such a battlefield either to kill with vengeance or to die while protecting their dignity.”
With power-packed background scores and inspiring music tracks of war anthems, the trailer gives a sneak-through of the film that depicts the battle that took place in the raining full-moon night of 13th July 1660 (Guru Pournima) between Marathas and Adilshahi army. It is notable that Adilshahi commander Siddi Jauhar was accompanied by Fazal Khan, the son of Afzalkhan whom Shivaji Maharaj had killed 9 months before the battle of Pavankhind. Chinmay Mandlekar has played the role of Shivaji Maharaj. Mrunal Kulkarni has played the role of Jijamata. Both of them are playing roles for the whole series of Shivraj Ashtak. Ajay Purkar has played the role of Veer Baji Prabhu Deshpande. The film is produced and presented by Almond Creations, AA Films, and Everest Entertainment.
The battle of Pawankhind
Shivaji Maharaj had engaged Siddi Jauhar in talks while he had sieged the fort Panhalgad for three and half months waiting for Siddi’s food stocks to reach their minimum. Maharaj had bluffed him pretending afraid and with an offer to help Siddi establish his own Sultanate against the Adilshah of Bijapur whom Siddi was representing against Shivaji Maharaj. Siddi Jauhar was ambitious and fool at the same time. He swallowed the bait.
On the night of 13th July 1660, Shivaji Maharaj escaped with a company of 600 soldiers commanded by Baji Prabhu Deshpande. Shiva Kashid who was the look-alike of Shivaji Maharaj was also among them accompanied by selective guards. When trapped Shiva Kashid, wearing the royal costumes, presented himself as Shivaji Maharaj and ensured that the enemy is confused for some time, thereby providing the time window for the rest of the troops to escape.
When Shiva Kashid was identified and killed, the Adilshahi army chased Maharaj. It was at the Horse Pass that Baji Prabhu took the hard decision and split the company of 600 into two equal halves. Baji Prabhu Deshpande forced Shivaji Maharaj to go ahead with 300 soldiers and stayed back in the Horse Pass with the remaining 300, promising him what turned out to be the greatest rearguard of the war history. It was decided that after reaching the fort Vishalgad, Shivaji Maharaj will fire the cannons five times as a signal.
Baji Prabhu Deshpande, aged 45, stood firm in the narrow pass with his companions. The 300 Marathas killed half of the enemies, that is 5000. Baji Prabhu Deshpande had breathed his last when he listened to the cannon fires. A handful of surviving Maratha soldiers had escaped into the jungles around. The fort Vishalgad was also sieged by the enemies. But as Shivaji Maharaj approached the fort, the Marathas attacked the sieging enemy both from the inside and outside. Shivaji Maharaj himself has led this battle right from the front. As Baji Prabhu Deshpande attained martyrdom in the Horse Pass, Shivaji Maharaj had renamed it Pawankhind meaning the Sacred Pass.
Significance of the battle
The battle holds historic importance not only because it had saved Shivaji Maharaj but it also because it has inspired so many freedom fighters in India’s freedom struggle against the British Raj. Revolutionary Aurobindo Ghosh who later turned into a Yogi has written a long poem on the valor shown by Veer Baji Prabhu Deshpande. He had written this poem to inspire and motivate revolutionaries to unite for the motherland just like the company of 300 soldiers had united for the Swarajya and to show the courage till the last breath as shown by Veer Baji Prabhu Deshpande. Besides, this incident in Shivaji Maharaj’s life is also seen as an example of strategic moves and planning and successfully executing a mission in minimum resources.
Veer Baji Prabhu Deshpande
A native of Shind Parde village in the Bhor Tahsil of the Pune district in Maharashtra, Baji Prabhu Deshpande was born in 1615 CE. He was 15 years older than Shivaji Maharaj. Initially a commander of Krishnaji Bandal of Rohida, he joined Shivaji Maharaj in the Swarajya movement when Bandal was defeated by Shivaji Maharaj. Baji Prabhu Deshpande was known as one of the closest aids of Shivaji Maharaj. He was one of the most trusted commanders of Shivaji Maharaj. In the battle of Pawankhind, Baji Prabhu Deshpande and his brother Fulaji Prabhu Deshpande, both attained martyrdom.
