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The Om Raut-directed movie, set in the 17th century, is based on the life of Tanhaji Malusare, the military leader of Maratha king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s army.
Tanhaji played an instrumental role in taking back the strategic hill fortress of Kondhana from the Mughal empire.
The film’s trailer had raised some eyebrows after Devgn, as Tanhaji, is seen propagating the power of saffron. Ajay, however, said the film does not portray any religion in negative.
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When asked about the portrayal of Muslim rulers in films such as “Padmaavat” and most recently “Panipat”, the actor said the characterizations were based on historical facts.
“Alauddin Khalji (from ‘Padmaavat’) was barbaric according to history. Not because he was from a certain religion that he was barbaric, he was a barbaric man.
“Let’s take any film about British rule. When we travel outside, do we feel like hurting British people? It was wrong for them to rule us but that story is over now. It is, however, part of history. So are history books wrong? Are history books talking against Christianity? They are not,” Ajay said.
The actor further said the film’s core theme is about safeguarding the nation from foreigners.
“We are talking about invaders and outsiders in our country at that point in time. People have become one now. It is one country now for everybody. Even before, invaders and outsiders, the country never had just one religion. Everybody was living in peace and harmony. There are names in the history of people who fought against their own,” Ajay added.
Director Om Raut also defended the film, saying the film is not against any religion.
“Is it any attempt towards saffronisation? 100 percent no. It was the color that was there for the fort and Shivaji’s army and that is where it is. Chhatrapati Shivaji did not believe in any religion. He had people of all religions Hindus and non-Hindus in his army. In his artillery department, there was a ‘Topchi’ who was Noor Khan Baig. There were so many non-Hindus who worked under Shivaji.”
The director further said, “The war, the struggle and the tension of the 17th century were not related to any faith in any way.”
“It was religion-neutral. People happened to be on this site or both sides. There were invaders and the war was against them. The Swaraj movement was against the invaders. The people of this land, no matter which religion they belonged to, they fought against the foreign invasion. It was the situation of that time,” he added.
“Tanhaji: The Unsung Hero”, which also features Saif Ali Khan and Kajol, is scheduled to be released on January 10.