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Raja Shivaji

Name: Raja Shivaji
Director: Riteish Deshmukh
Released: 2026
Duration: 195 min

2026

Director

Riteish Deshmukh

Runtime

195 minutes

Average Rating

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Synopsis

Chronicles the rise of young Shivaji Bhonsale, who challenged the might of established empires to found the Maratha kingdom and lay the groundwork for 'Swarajya' (self-rule) during a turbulent period of Indian history.

Where to Watch

Diversity & Representation

Overall Score

4.8/10

Fair

Category Breakdown

LGBTQ+ Representation

Minimal

The film focuses on 17th-century Maratha history and state-building. It adheres to the social structures of the period, offering no queer narratives or non-cisnormative identities.

Gender Representation

Fair

Rajmata Jijabai serves as the strategic and moral architect of the empire. Her presence challenges the trope of passive female characters by granting her significant intellectual agency.

Racial & Ethnic Diversity

Good

The story centers Maratha identity against the Adil Shahi and Mughal empires. This provides a regional Indian perspective that avoids homogenized or Eurocentric historical storytelling.

Religious & Cultural Diversity

Fair

The narrative is rooted in traditionalist values and the concept of Hindavi Swarajya. It reinforces conventional structures of family, duty, and religious identity.

Disability Representation

Minimal

There is no mention of characters navigating physical or neurodivergent disabilities within the biographical data.

Strengths

Challenges patriarchal tropes by giving Rajmata Jijabai significant intellectual and strategic agency.
Prioritizes a regional Indian perspective over homogenized or Eurocentric historical narratives.
Reclaims indigenous political agency by centering the Maratha struggle for self-rule.

Areas for Improvement

Lacks representation of non-cisnormative gender identities or queer narratives.
Adheres to traditionalist and nationalist frameworks rather than exploring postmodern or subversive themes.
Provides no visible representation of characters with physical or neurodivergent disabilities.

AI Analysis

Raja Shivaji succeeds as a corrective to mainstream historical epics by centering indigenous political agency and regional identity. By focusing on the Maratha struggle against imperial hegemony, the film provides a necessary non-Eurocentric perspective on Indian history. The film's strength lies in its subversion of patriarchal tropes through the character of Jijabai. Rather than a background figure, she acts as the ideological foundation for the protagonist, providing a rare example of female intellectual leadership in a period drama. However, the film remains tethered to traditionalist and nationalist frameworks. While it empowers regional identity, it does so through a lens of conventional socio-religious structures, which limits its engagement with modern intersectional or subversive themes.

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