Pune (Maharashtra) [India], March 29 (ANI): Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar visited the memorial of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj and paid tribute and his respects to the prominent king of the Maratha Empire in Pune on Saturday.

'Today, on the death anniversary of Swarajyarakshak Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, I visited the memorial site at Vadu Budruk in (Shirur Pune ) and paid my respects and gratitude,' said Ajit Pawar.

Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj was the eldest son of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, the founder of the Maratha Empire in India.

He succeeded his father as the second Chhatrapati (ruler) of the Maratha Empire in 1681 and ruled until he died in 1689.

Born in 1657 at Purandar Fort near Pune, a highly educated prince, fluent in Sanskrit, Marathi, Persian, and Hindi, he was known for his intellectual prowess and authored several works, including a Sanskrit book called Budhbhushan. After Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj died in 1680, a brief power struggle followed, and Sambhaji ultimately took control and was crowned Chhatrapati in 1681 at Raigad Fort. His reign was marked by continuous warfare, especially against the Mughal Empire under Emperor Aurangzeb, and he fiercely resisted Mughal attempts to conquer the Maratha Empire.

Recently, a Hindi-language historical action film 'Chhaava' was made based on the life of Sambhaji Maharaj, the second ruler of the Maratha Empire.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had praised the period drama 'Chhaava', which tells the inspiring saga of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj.

After watching the film during the screening organised for MLAs and MLCs earlier, he congratulated the moviemakers for portraying the life of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj.

'A very beautiful movie has been made...,' he told the media.

He added, 'Those who wrote history did a lot of injustice to Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, but through this movie, his valour, bravery, cleverness, intelligence, knowledge, all these aspects of his life are coming in front of the public. And the way Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj continuously protected Swarajya after Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, his sacrifice is coming in front of the people through this.'

Directed by Laxman Utekar, 'Chhaava' stars Vicky Kaushal as Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj and Akshaye Khanna as Emperor Aurangzeb. It also starred Rashmika Mandanna and Divya Dutta. (ANI)