While the success of Vicky Kaushal’s Chhaava has brought cheer to the Hindi film industry, it has left Munjya (2024) director Aditya Sarpotdar nostalgic. Not many know that he has a special connection with the story of Chhatrapati Sambhaji’s life. Exactly a century ago, his great-grandfather, ND Sarpotdar, a pioneer in Indian cinema, had directed the silent film, Chhatrapati Sambhaji (1925). The historical drama, starring Parshwanath Yeshwant Altekar as Chhatrapati Sambhaji, was the first depiction of the Maratha ruler on screen.

ND Sarpotdar