The Battle for Prithviraj Chauhan

The release of Samrat Prithviraj reawakens a latent conflict between the Gujjars and Rajputs over the legacy of the historical figure

- VINAY SULTAN

Whose Prithviraj is he anyway? From the very day—September 19, 2019, to be precise—that the Akshay Kumar-starrer and Yash Raj Films production was announced to the day it was released in theatres—on June 3—a battle royale was on over the legendary 12th century king of the Chamhana or Chauhan dynasty, whose defeat at the hands of Muhammad Ghori in 1192 CE at the second battle of Tarain is believed to have brought the curtains down on Hindu rule in much of the subcontinent. Celebrated as much for his valour as for his daring in riding away with the enemy’s daughter—Sanyogita, daughter of Jaichand of Kannauj—the warrior king’s depiction in the Chandraprakash Dwivedidirected film, Samrat Prithviraj, has exercised sections of the Rajput and Gurjar communities, and for various reasons.

The Shri Rajput Karni Sena, self-proclaimed custodians of all things Rajput, were the first to take umbrage, not just with the character of the film—a saga of romance more than valour—but also its very name. Plain Prithviraj was an affront, Samrat Prithviraj, as the movie was subsequently renamed, was more befitting of their icon’s stature. They had made the makers of Jodha Akbar and Padmaavat bend to Rajput will; in March 2020, led by national president Mahipal Singh Makrana, the Sena once again took up cudgels for the Rajput cause and marched towards Jamwa Ramgarh, where the shooting of the film had commenced. Once there, a familiar script played out: uproar, sloganeering and vandalism.