Unlike his colleagues, Bollywood veteran Naseeruddin Shah has always been clear about his displeasure with growing intolerance in India. The actor, who has worked in several Indian films, is gearing up for a project of a lifetime; Shah is all set to write the Mughal Emperor Akbar in the upcoming website, Taj – Divided by Blood.
Although the Shah once admitted that he did not feel safe as a Muslim in his own country, he now aired his doubts about the Mughals’ slander on the screen and in the public domain. in India. And this pleases Shah, instead of angering him. From changes being sought in 40 villages with ‘Mughal-era’ names to renaming the historic Mughal Gardens to the Rashtrapati Bhavan as ‘Amrit Udyan’, there are attempts to change history.
In an interview with The Indian Expressof the Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na The actor said, “It’s funny to me because it’s so stupid. I mean, people can’t tell the difference between Akbar and an assassin like Nader Shah or the father of Babar’s father was Taimur. These people came here to plunder, the Mughals didn’t come here to plunder. They came here to make their home and that’s what they did. Who can deny their contribution?”
The actor said that anyone who blames the Mughals for ‘conquering India’ does not understand the country’s history. . That being said, Shah believes that there have been times when history has been kind to Muslim kings.
“They’re certainly not alone. In school, unfortunately, the history settled on the Mughals or the British. We knew about Lord Hardy, Lord Cornwallis and about the Mughal emperors, but we did not know about the Gupta empire, the Maurya empire, the Vijayanagara empire, the history of the Ajanta caves, or the in the northeast, “he said, adding. , “We did not read any of these things because the history was written by the British or the Anglophiles and I think it is completely inappropriate. So what people say is true, the Mughals are praised for our own traditions. Maybe that’s right, (But) there’s no need to harm them.”
Shah went on to say that if the Mughal empire was a demon, why don’t those who oppose it “punch” the monuments they have built. “If everything they did was bad, then they knocked down the Taj Mahal, knocked down the Red Fort, knocked down Qutub Minar. Why do we think that the Red Fort is sacred, it was built by a Mughal. We should honor them, but there is nothing to discredit them,” the actor replied. “Tipu Sultan is ruined! A man who gave his life to drive out the English. (And now he said), ‘Do you want Tipu Sultan or the Ram Temple?’ I mean, what kind of opinion is this, I don’t think there is room for debate, because they can’t see my point and I can’t see it either. in their opinion,” he added.
Taj – Divided by Blood including the reign of King Akbar (Shah) who is on a quest to find a worthy successor to continue his legacy which causes a blood feud between his sons for the throne. Unlike many romantic dramas from the Mughal era, Taj – Divided by Blood promises to be full of drama, politics and intrigue. Jealousy, deceit and betrayal; love, passion, and romance will also be a central part of the story. As seen in the trailer, art, poetry and architecture take center stage as the war progresses in search of power.
Written by Simon Fantauzzo and directed by Ron Scalpello, Taj – Divided by Blood star Shah as King Akbar, Hydari as Anarkali, Aashim Gulati as Prince Salim, Taha Shah Badussha as Prince Murad, Shubham Kumar Mehra as Prince Daniyal, Sandhya Mridul as Queen Jodha Bai, Zareena Wahab as Queen Salima, Queen Ruqaiya Begum as Padma Damodaran , Rahul Bose as Mirza Hakim and Dharmendra as Sheikh Salim Chishti.
Hydari tells that Anarkali is playing in the war sequence Hindustan Times he was afraid to write the role. “When I was asked to play Anarkali I was as scared as I was excited. Anarkali is an iconic character, her beauty and grace were thought to be incomparable and modeled beyond one’s imagination. I was scared. at first especially because of the way the stunning Madhubala portrayed it. Mughal-e-Azam,” he said.
Inspired by real events, Taj – Divided by Blooda 10-episode family drama series, will air on the OTT platform Zee5 from March 3, 2023.
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