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Episode #30 of Hindi TV Serial Bharat Ek Khoj talks about The Fall of the Vijayanagar Empire and is titled as the same.
The Fall of the Vijayanagar Empire is considered as one of the most significant historical incidents which shaped the history of Bharat (that is India). We’ve talked about The Vijayanagar Empire and its significance and how it was praised even by the foreign visitors in the review article for Episode 28 of Bharat Ek Khoj. The references to Vijayanagar (the empire and the city both) are found in some other episodes like Feudalism (episode #29) as well.
Book Plot:
When the sun rises, the only fact which will remain unchanged that it is going to set some time, be it sooner or later. If you are a history enthusiast or not, you must have been known to many such empires which rose and eventually fall due to various reasons.
In most of the cases, the rise in the power and resources often leads to arrogance and a belief of being undefeatable . Most of the empires and emporers start taking their position as granted and consider it permanent. However, in reality, the only change is the permanent thing, nothing else.
Till the time of Krishna Deva Raya, the things were quite in sync and the empire was on the rising. But, after his death, the power went into the hands of Rama Raya. Rama Raya was not all the villain character, he had his own way of ruling the kingdom and proving its superiority. In order to make Vijayanagar empire’s position prominent, especially in southern part of India, he interfered at will in the disputes of other small kingdoms. His main aim was to make Vijayanagar so prominent that when there are internal issues between other kingdoms, they should consult Vijayanagar. It is easy to say he is right or wrong after visiting the documented incidents of his life, but, possibly it wasn’t easy at that time. He loved Vijayanagar so much and eventually, he became someone who is considered as the reason behind the fall of Vijayanagar! This is history, and this is the lesson to learn from it.
The episode start showing Ibrahim Qutub Shah who was being rescued and mentored by Ramaraya was ready to leave for his kingdom and claim his throne. Ramaraya advised him to take his( Rama Raya’s) soldiers in addition, for the safety purpose, Ibrahim, however, thought that it will send a wrong message and he might be labeled as a coward, so refuse it. His diparture was an emotional affair for Raya and his wife both.
Effendi Aslam Baig was sent by by his Sultan as an ambassador to Vijayanagar and he wants to meet Raya, but he was avoiding him since months. Ultimately, we got to know Raya’s vision. He asked Baig to ask the Sultan to meet him to discuss further. When Sultan met him, he found the response from Raya was quite affectionate.
He was quite shocked and unable to understand what he should derive from Raya’s behavior. Whether Raya wanted to stretch the things too much or he was genuinely interested in having direct one-to-one relations between the rulers, having no interference by ambassadors and/or protocols.
Raya’s this behavior made many small kingdoms to unite against Raya and fight with him. Though fought bravely in the initial stage, the Nayaks from Raya’s army when found the defeat is inevitably reduced to their own small areas and the well-respected empire of Vijayanagar fall. The city which was known for many good things including planning, resources, arts and culture, and might, ultimately went into ashes.
Any media is as good as its core content is, of course, the splendid visualization and technological advancements make it much better. When added with other positive attributes it can be the best.
The moral of the conversation is, the content is very important. For this episode, a dive into an important chapter of history, which it explores, is definitely intriguing and interesting both.
While there is no harm in watching it just for the entertainment purpose, it is however recommended to learn some lessons from it as well.
The adaptation of the book chapter(s) is quite good and the scriptwriter deserves the credit. It is well balanced between dramatic and realistic attributes. The dialogs are simple to remember and reflect the way of living of the characters. Salim Ghouse as Ramaraya is in full form. His commanding voice adds to his acting. Anang Desai as Effendi Aslam Baig is scene-stealer at various points. In the climax when he appeals the warriors to kill Ramaraya, you will realize his acting potential. It is quite opposite of his real persona, but he acts it very convincingly. Pankai Berry as Ibrahim Qutub Shah did a fantastic work. He is a charming and talented actor and his abilities are nicely explored by Shyam Benegal. Ahmed Khan as Hussain Nizam Shah, Arjun Raina as Ali Adil Shah, Raniana Gaur as Tirumalamba, and Rakesh Dhar as Tirumala supports well to the principal cast. In terms of acting, the episode deserves distinction marks :).
The background music is an essential part of any TV serial or movie. The background music in this episode adds to the positive impact of the same. Be it a war scene or courtroom, the background music comes as a rescue when technological limitations are there. Some war scenes are filmed quite interestingly, and in some of the scenes, you may feel that a better execution could have done. Actually, we became so used to, to watch unrealistic and splendid war scenes with so much SFX and VFX that we may find them underperformed here. But they are more realistic and authentic. Of course, have a few more extras and junior artists could have made it much better.
The narration requires a special mention and so does the wardrobe. Almost every tiny point is taken care in order to make it as authentic as possible.
Summary:
Overall, a nicely executed, fanstically acted episode which explores an interesting chapter from the history of India. A recommended watch.
Did you watch this TV Serial? Are you going to buy it’s DVD Set? (It is available in two versions, economic edition and premium edition)? Do share your thoughts via comments below. And yes, if you like this article, don’t forget to share with your friends and loved ones on various social networks 🙂 And yes, watch out for next episode review for Bharat Ek Khoj.
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