Fatteshikast is a Marathi language historical action drama film written and directed by Digpal Lanjekar, who has also directed its prequel Farzand (2018), which was his debut in directing. Fatteshikast is available to watch on the Zee5 streaming platform.
The film sets in the 17th century in India and depicts the historical encounter between Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj (Chinmay Mandlekar) and the Subhehdar and general of the Mughal army, Shaista Khan at Lal Mahal in Pune. The film is based on the real events that happened during the Marath reign in India. The film is a sequel to Farzand (2018) and continues the adventures of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj along with his Mavala (Commanders – in English).
The film focuses on many historically important events in the life of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, and how he kept the Indian land safe from invaders. The film also showcases the contribution of different commander families who stood with Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and built Swaraj (Self-rule – in English). Like any other period film, this one has also taken many creative liberties and dramatized the events for cinematic expressions. But in some places, it feels too much and takes you out of the film. And, I can totally understand, the makers’ intention to make it more and more crowd-pleasing.
So, the first takeaway for me from this film was its story which revolves around Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s guerilla warfare techniques. And, the second good thing is the magnificent portrayal of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj by Chinmay Mandlekar, which was also the best part of its prequel Farzand (2018). So, in this film, the makers kept Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj as a central character. I’m also aware of the low budget on which Marathi films are made, And considering that makers have done an excellent job to make this film as grand as possible. The ensemble of so many characters, different shooting locations, forts, costuming, CGI is just impressive. In the mid, the film becomes a little slow, and there I felt that it could have had been made half an hour shorter to make the narrative tighter. The villain character of the film is also very flat and is no match against the lead character. The most gripping part of the film was the last half an hour of the film, where I think it was totally enjoyable.
Verdict : The film a good watch to witness the brilliant portrayal of the great Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
Rating : 3.5/5
Check the trailer here : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1iuJKP9hPzY
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