We have known Tipu Sultan as a freedom fighter who courageously fought the British. History textbooks are replete with his achievements, skills and how he brought about administrative changes as well as introduced innovative techniques in weapons to combat enemies on the battlefield. But few know the Sultan’s dark side.
After research by author Rajat Sethi, many unseen stripes of the ‘Tiger of Mysore’ stand exposed and will be shown in a film titled Tipu.
Its producer Sandeep Singh says, “I was shocked to learn the true reality of Tipu Sultan. The story gave me goosebumps. This is the cinema I personally believe in. Whether it’s PM Narendra Modi, Swatantra Veer Savarkar, Atal or Bal Shivaji, my films stand for truth. I think people knew what a tyrant Tipu Sultan was but chose to ignore it. And this is exactly what I want to showcase on 70 mm. Honestly, he doesn’t even deserve to be called a sultan. I was brainwashed into believing him to be a braveheart as shown in our history textbooks. But nobody knows his malevolent side. I want to expose his dark side for the future generation.”
Director Pawan Sharma explains, “What we are taught in school about Tipu Sultan is gross misinformation. Through my film I am daring to show a brutal reality that has been manipulated just for us to take him to be a warrior hero. He had forced conversion of people who practised other religions and destroyed temples and churches. Tipu Sultan’s fanaticism was much worse than his father Hyder Ali. He was a Hitler of that era.”
Author Rajat shares, “While history has been unkind to many heroes, it has mischievously ignored the tyranny of many others. Tipu is one such historical figure whose adulation and admiration is overrated, while his cruelties have been neatly concealed in our textbooks. Not only history but popular culture – movies, plays, etc. – have also systematically ignored a realistic and balanced portrayal of Tipu. This movie is a humble attempt to initiate a course correction on his narrative.”
Tipu is backed by Eros International, Rashmi Sharma Films and Sandeep Singh. It will release in Hindi, Kannada, Tamil Telugu and Malayalam.
