Subhedar is a historical movie from the Marathi film industry recently released i.e. on 25 August 2023. This action film is the fifth film in Shivraj Ashtaka directed by Digpal Lanjekar. The film is based on the bravery of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s best friend Subedar Tanaji Malusare and his life of sacrifice for Swaraj.
This film is a reminder of the history of the sacrifices of Mawlas who fought for Swarajya. It is produced by Mulakshar production, Rajvarasa production, Prithviraj production, rajau production, and Parampara production. The film stars Chinmoy Mandalakar, Mrinal Kulkarni, and Ajay Purkar in lead roles and it is distributed by Films and Everest Entertainment.
Wait, you may have one question, is Subhedar is same as Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior? Yes, they are based on the same story, but there are so many differences in both films that we will discuss in the article. Just stay tuned till the end.
Plot Summary
The film depicts the battle between Udayabhan and Subedar Tanaji Malusare in 1670 to capture Kondhana Fort. For this campaign of the Kondhana battle, Tanaji Malusare left his son’s marriage aside and went on this campaign. Kondhana fort was captured by Tanaji Malusare but he lost his life. The same Tanaji Malusare Tyagamay Jeevan Katha is exhibited in the movie Subhedar.
Subhedar Cast
| Actor/Actress | Character Name |
| Ajay Purkar | Subedar Tanaji Malusare |
| Smita Shewale | Savitribai Malusare |
| Digvijay Rohidas | Uday Bhan Rathore |
| Uma Sardeshmukh | Matoshree Parvatibai Malusare |
| Sameer Dharmadhikari | Shelar Mama |
| Abhijeet Shwetchandra | Suryaji Malusare |
| Nupur Daithankar | Soyarabai |
| Digpal Lanjekar | Bahirji Naik |
| Srikanth Prabhakar | Moro pant |
| Bipin surve | Baji sarjerao Jedhe |
| Virajas kulkarni | Jiva |
| Bhushan Shivtare | Yesaji kank |
| Sunil Jadhav | Veer Baji yashwantrao pasalkar |
| Mrunmayee Deshpande | keshar |
| Purnanand Wadhekar | Nevalaji |
| Aniket Bandal | Sambhaji Jedhe |
| Arnav Pendharkar | Rayba Malusare |
| Shivani Rangole | Yashodabai Malusare |
| Astad Kale | Vishwas |
| Rishi saxena | kubad Khan |
| Dnyanesh wadekar | Achal Singh |
| Nikhil Jogdand | Sardar Shilimkar |
| Alka Kubal | Jana Gardhin ( Guest appearance) |
Character Anyalisis
Everyone in the film plays their role very well. Chinmay Mandlekar’s role as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and Mrinmay Kulkarni as Jijau are perfect. The Directors did a fantastic job of casting, as his all previous historical movies. As this film is based on Maratha History, the Marathi cast makes the film look more realistic.
Writing and Dialogues
The script of the movie Subhedar is very heart-touching, some dialogues in this movie are really touching like, Subhedar Tanaji says to Shivrayan, “Adhi Lagin Kondhanyacha mag Raibacha“. The beautiful dialogue of Shivaji Maharaj in this movie is “Gad Ala Pan Sinvha Gela“. Although these dialogues are not written by directors they are historical dialogues, but they are executed properly by the actors.
One complaint I have noticed from the audience is that the script of the film is very slow in some places, which makes it a little bit boring. But in counter to that, many people are saying that the film is going into the minute details of the history of that incident. That’s the reason why It may feel boring to you. But If you are a Marathi, You may not feel bored as this topic is very close to the heart of every Marathi person in the world.
Soundtrack
The movie starts with the song “Mavala jaga zala ra”. There are a total of 4 songs in this movie. All lyrics are written by Digpal Lanjekar. All music is composed by Devdatta Manisha Baji.
Movie songs :
1) maval jaga zala ra
2) Ale Marathe
3) Halad
4) Jijau Prashasti
Subhedar vs. Tanhaji Which is Better?
A Hindi film “Tanhaji the Unsung Warrior” with the same story as Subhedar was released in 2020. Compared to the film Tanhaji, the film Subhedar pays attention to many small things and this can be called the plus point of the film, but due to this, the length of the film has increased.
The budget of the Subhedar film is less compared to the Tanhaji film. The character of the villain is shown as strong in Tanhaji film as it is not shown in Subhedar film. However, from story, presentation, historical context, period language, weapons, and costumes to even acting, Subhedar is superior to the Hindi movie Tanhaji. Especially, if you are from Maharashtra and know Marathi, I would say Subhedar is far better than Tanhaji.
Personal Opinion
Personally, I liked this movie a lot. It is inspiring for today’s youth. While watching this film, the sacrifices, and feats done by our ancestors, all these things are emotional. This film covers many aspects of history. It has also got 8.6/10 Rating on IMDB. You can see Subhedar’s IMDB Rating here.
Thus the interlude of the film highlights the friendship between Tanaji Malusare and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj while the post-interlude section is devoted to the campaign of Kondhana.
