Riteish Deshmukh, Sanjay Dutt and Abhishek Bachchan to star in Raja Shivaji; motion poster, release date out

Raja Shivaji, an upcoming film on the life of the Maratha warrior Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was announced by the makers on Wednesday.

Directed by Riteish Deshmukh (who will also star in the titular role), the film will also feature an ensemble cast of Sanjay Dutt, Abhishek Bachchan, Mahesh Manjrekar, Sachin Khedekar, Bhagyashree, Fardeen Khan, Jitendra Joshi, Amole Gupte and Genelia Deshmukh.

A motion poster of the film, shared by the makers on Wednesday, shows Riteish’s Shivaji standing in a blazing battlefield. The film’s cinematography will be done by Santosh Sivan while Ajay-Atul will be giving the music. Raja Shivaji is slated to release on Maharashtra Day next year on May 1, 2026.

The film, as per reports, will chronicle the rise of young Shivaji Bhonsale, the founder of Maratha empire, who challenged the might of established empires and lay the groundwork for “Swarajya” (self-rule) during a turbulent period of Indian history.

With Raja Shivaji, Riteish joins a list of actors who are playing the revered warrior in various films. Akshay Kumar plays Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in Mahesh Manjrekar's Vedat Marathe Veer Daudle Saat, while Kantara (2022) fame Rishab Shetty plays the same character in Sandeep Singh's The Pride of Bharat: Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, which is scheduled to release in 2027. Recently, Vicky Kaushal-starrer Chhaava, based on the life of Shivaji’s son Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, became the biggest hit in Hindi in the year so far.

Raja Shivaji will simultaneously release in six languages: Marathi, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam. The film has been produced by Jyoti Deshpande and Genelia Deshmukh.