Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior

Cast: Ajay Devgn

Writer/Director: Om Raut

Producer/s: Bhushan Kumar

Plot:

Tanhaji Movie Review Rating: 3.5/5 Stars (Three and a half stars)

Star Cast: Ajay Devgn, Saif Ali Khan, Sharad Kelkar, Kajol, Luke Kenny

Director: Om Raut

What’s Good: It takes its own way to reach the destination and doesn’t follow the ‘road taken’ many-a-times, all the three lead performances (Ajay Devgn, Saif Ali Khan & Sharad Kelkar) hold your attention till the end.

What’s Bad: From the very tight duration of 130 minutes, makers take the entire first half to lay the base of the film and that worried me for a while.

Loo Break: Even if you’re in the wrong screen, just sit tight till the end!

Watch or Not?: Even if you aren’t a fan of the genre, give it a try for its freshness.

User Rating:

Thankfully, the makers don’t follow the usual boring norms seeking the help of animation in the starting credits to explain the backdrop of the story. We see how Subedar Tanaji Malusare (Ajay Devgn) grows up fulfilling his dad’s promise of earning freedom for the country. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj (Sharad Kelkar) is shown spreading the dream of ‘Swaraj’ (self-rule) all over the country.

On the Mughals’ side, we’ve Udhaybhan (Saif Ali Khan) moving to capture Kondhana (now Sihangad). Despite resistance, Shivaji Maharaj agrees to send his most loyal apprentice Tanaji to face Udhaybhan. The rest of the story is all about how Tanaji with his brain & brawn reaches Kondhana and faces Udhaybhan. And as they say, rest is history!

Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior Movie Review: Script Analysis

Prakash Kapadia & Om Raut’s story surely takes many liberties but just to amp up the watching experience. It’s very convenient at places which raises the question of “Has this really happened?”. I would’ve complained about the same if the makers have taken the route of usual period-dramas. But this is unlike most of them we’ve seen. It manages to stand tall between a period drama and a commercial potboiler.

Bringing in Ramazan Bulut (Inferno, Rush fame) on-board results into some top-notch action sequences. Because of a lot of theory and less practical, the first half of the film misses the punch. It only drastically picks up in the second half and leaves you on high with the climax. The press show I attended turned into a single-screen theatre by the end. An experience to cherish! Dharmendra Sharma’s editing keeps the pace very tight and the duration (130 minutes) is a benchmark now for the filmmakers.

Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior Movie Review: Star Performance

Ajay Devgn manages to pack a punch with his explosive performance. He makes you feel for the character & more importantly gets all the nuances on point. His power-packed presence surely keeps the intrigue alive.

Saif Ali Khan portrays the role which is crazy & adorable at the same time. It’s brilliant how amidst all the chaos of his character he manages to get his comical timing right. His character sketch is like a vintage wine, the more you see of him the better he gets.

Despite both of them being best at their games, the biggest takeaway for me from the film is Sharad Kelkar as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. He is so subtle, so profound with his performance. If there’s anything made of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj from now, the actor playing him needs to be Sharad Kelkar. Kajol shares a couple of scenes and is good at it.

Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior Box Office Review: Star Cast- Ajay Devgn, Saif Ali Khan, Kajol, Sharad Kelkar

Director- Om Raut.

Producer- Ajay Devgn, Bhushan Kumar

Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior Box Office Review: Expectations

Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior is the brave story of Maratha warrior Tanaji Malusare from an important chapter of Maratha History. The film starring some of the most talented and popular stars in Bollywood has been set on a huge scale and has gained some really good buzz in past one month. The trailers of the film have worked well and the film is expected to start the year 2020 on a high note. Last year, URI: The Surgical Strike released in the same period and proved to be a historic hit. It will be interesting to see if Tanhaji which has been made on a much bigger budget, do something like that.

Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior Box Office Review: Impact

Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior is easily one of the best shot films in Bollywood. The canvas is grand, the cinematography is absorbing and the camerawork really adds the value to storytelling. The best factors of the film are its performances. Be it Ajay Devgn who is in lead, Saif Ali Khan who is an antagonist or Sharad Kelkar who plays a small but integral role of Chattrapati Shivaji Maharaj, everyone is impressive. The screenplay, however, is not that great as it appeared from trailers. The grand entry of Tanhaji, the introductory scene of Shivaji and the battle scene that follows make for a clap worthy start and it looks like the stage is set for an overwhelming affair. However, things get slow after that. There are a few high points in between but not great enough to make you feel ecstatic. The drama never absorbs you completely in it and that’s why even the brilliantly choreographed action sequences and the climax doesn’t evoke the desired reactions.

Overall, Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior is still a very good film thanks to the cinematography, performances and action sequences. However, it fails to be a great film due to less compelling drama.

Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior Box Office Review: Final Verdict

Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior has got a good start all India and a very good start in Maharashtra. Tanhaji is a 3D release and most of the audience will watch it in this format which means higher ticket prices will benefit the film. If not excellent, the film will get very good word-of-mouth from the audience which will lead it towards a strong lifetime total. There are huge expectations from Maharashtra territory which single-handedly can contribute hugely. If this territory performs in an excellent way then Tanhaji can cross 200 crore mark. Otherwise, a 175 crore lifetime looks realistic as of now which means it will be amongst Ajay Devgn’s top grossers of All Time.

The film is clashing with Chhapaak which won’t affect it much. Further, there’s no major release at Box Office next week. On the whole, Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior has to fight its own limitations.

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Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior Trailer Review: It’s raining for historic films in Bollywood but how many of them really excite you with its first trailer?

Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior‘s trailer is surely among the best cut Bollywood movie trailers in recent times and also among the best trailers of all historic Bollywood films. The scale, the grandeur, the performances, the sets, the cinematography, everything comes together to make things look as grand as it gets.

The story itself is larger than life and since it’s true and is based on Indian history, the audience is bound to get excited.

Ajay Devgn is very good. Though I hope he is better in the film because the character he’s playing is very demanding. Saif Ali Khan throws a mega surprise and he has simply blown me away with his performance. After watching him in the trailer, I can say that he will surely pull a great number of audience to cinemas on his own. Kajol packs a punch too.

Overall, Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior‘s team has come up with a powerful trailer which will help the film gain great buzz before its release. If the film has good music and promotions then it will take a big opening at the Box Office for sure.

Directed by Om Raut, Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior is slated to release on January 10, 2019.

Rating: 4.5/5

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