‘Samrat Prithviraj’ movie review: Disappointing Akshay Kumar stars in dreary period piece

Director Chandraprakash Dwivedi’s film seeks to revive cultural nationalism, but doesn’t serve the purpose of those who wish to reap the past for a political harvest

For all the political surround sound around  Samrat Prithviraj, the film comes across as a harmless, but dreary period piece that neither does justice to its source nor its subject. The Chandraprakash Dwivedi film seeks to revive cultural nationalism, but doesn’t serve the purpose of those who wish to reap the past for a political harvest.

Dwivedi has refrained from underlining Prithviraj Chauhan’s (Akshay Kumar) battles with Mohammad Ghori (Manav Vij) as a war of civilisations. Instead, the director has focused on the fact that when personal becomes political, it has far-reaching consequences.

The soldiers of Prithviraj repeatedly invoke Mahadev, but there are no religious war cries from the Mohammad Ghori camp. There is a reference to Mahmud Ghazni’s destruction of Somnath Temple, but Prithviraj quickly separates an individual plunderer from a religious community. There is liberal use of the word “dharma,” but both Prithviraj and the treacherous Jaichand get to present their idea about it.

The well-meaning approach notwithstanding, the big-budget enterprise fails to provide any real insight into the minds of Prithviraj and Ghori, nor does it succeed in recreating the spectacular poetry of war and valour on the big screen.

The disclaimer says that the film is based on “Prithviraj Raso”, the epic poem composed by Chand Bardai (Sonu Sood), the bard in the court of Prithviraj. The poem presents an exaggerated account of Prithviraj’s rule and, over the years, has been more relevant for students of literature than as a piece of historical evidence.

Interestingly, Dwivedi’s script is a recension of the text that has inspired him. So, there are no references to 22 battles or skirmishes with Mohammad Ghori, or the climactic verse that worked as a hint for Prithviraj. Curiously, instead of exploring the political motives and maneuvering of Jaichand (Ashutosh Rana), Dwivedi spends a lot of time building a case for gender equality in the 12 th century, perhaps to offset the Sati / Jauhar episode in the story.

For those seeking traces of history in the screenplay, there is no mention of the last Hindu king’s (the title being used for Prithviraj in posters) battles with the Chalukyas in Gujarat and Chandelas in Bundelkhand.