FILM · 2019 · INDIA
Panipat
42 archived facts 5 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026
All facts (42)
- #001
The Afghan public was not pleased with the trailer of the film, which presented the Marathas as the winners of the battle. They also felt that recent films such as Kesari (2019) and Padmavat (2019) portrayed Afghans as cold-blooded killers.
- #002
All of the film's costumes, including the Peshwa Pagdi and Afghan jackets, were made with extraordinary attention to detail based on old paintings found in museums.
- #003
Padmini Kolhapure and Zeenat Aman will work together in a film for the first time in 39 years, since Insaaf Ka Tarazu (1980).
- #004
2,800 pieces of jewellery were used for the film.
- #005
Of the entire cast, only Sanjay Dutt received applause for portraying a negative character.
- #006
Sanjay Dutt, Mohnish Bahl and Padmini Kolhapure acted together in Bekaraar (1983) early in their careers. 36 years later, they will be seen together in a film.
- #007
Producer Sunita Gowariker finalised Mohnish Bahl for the multi-layered character of Nana Saheb. Mohnish Bahl never fails to impress.
- #008
Arjun Kapoor was trolled on social media for his expressionless acting, and comparisons were drawn between him and Ranveer Singh.
- #009
The Mard Maratha song in Panipat was shot over 13 days with 1,300 dancers on the lavish set of Shaniwar Wada built in Karjat. It was filmed on a grand scale full of Peshwai atmosphere with a large Ganesh idol in the background, and among the dancers were lejhim dancers from Pune and authentic bull dancers.
- #010
Some days of shooting required as many as 60 tents at once, including Maratha and Afghan tents. These were specially designed for the film based on period paintings.
- #011
French cannons 14 feet long and 6 feet high were created from references to Ibrahim Khan Gardi.
- #012
19,000 metres of fabric were used for the army's costumes, turbans and character costumes.
- #013
The first actor locked in by the team was Mohnish Bahl, in the role of Nana Saheb Peshwa, taking his Maharashtrian background into account.
- #014
Ashutosh Gowariker and Sanjay Dutt had worked together in Naam (1986), in which Ashutosh Gowariker played a small role as a taxi driver.
- #015
Art Director Nitin Desai created a massive set at ND Studios in Karjat to recreate Shaniwar Wada.
- #016
Panipat is based on the Third Battle of Panipat, which took place on 14 January 1761.
- #017
A 15-metre Ganesh idol was made by Nitin Desai's team for the Ganesh Darbar in Panipat.
- #018
The motifs and designs of the Shaniwar Wada set were copied from the original Shaniwar Wada in Pune.
- #019
The Peshwa armour was called Chilta Hazar Masha; 5 sets of this type of armour were created for the film based on museum references.
- #020
Ashutosh Gowariker asked Sanjay Dutt why he had never done a period film in his career. Sanjay Dutt said no one had ever offered him such a role. Ashutosh Gowariker told him he wanted him to act in his upcoming period film Panipat.
- #021
Zeenat Aman appears in a big-budget Indian film after many years.
- #022
Ravindra Maharani appears in an Indian film 30 years after Goonj (1989).
- #023
The characters played by Padmini Kolhapure and Karan Kapoor had grey shades, though they were not outright negative characters for the first time.
- #024
Padmini Kolhapure was last seen in Phata Poster Nikhla Hero (2013) and Mohnish Bahl in Jai Ho (2014), marking their return to films. They had appeared in Bachpan Ek Dokha in 2015, but that film has not yet been released.
- #025
Ashutosh Gowariker and Aja Atul are working together for the first time.
- #026
Kirti Sanon and Sanjay Dutt had previously appeared together in Marco Bahu, Sanjay Dutt's comeback film after his prison sentence. The film never got past the announcement stage.
- #027
Padmini Kolhapure and Sanjay Dutt appeared together in many 1980s films, including Vidhaata (1982), Bekaraar (1983), Do Dilo Ki Daastan (1985) and the much-delayed Kurbani Rang Layegi (1991).
- #028
Gashmeer Mahajani and his father Ravindra Mahajani appear in an Indian film together for the first time, playing uncle and nephew.
- #029
This is Nawab Shah's first film after his marriage to Pooja Batra.
- #030
The film premiered on 6 December 2019 alongside Pati Patni Aur Woh.
- #031
Rajasthan Jats demanded that the film be banned in their region over a scene showing Raja Surajmal backing out at the last moment from supporting the Marathas against the Afghans. The Jats believed this distorted their history by portraying their king in a bad light.
- #032
In the scene where sand is poured over the Afghan soldiers, things got out of hand when everyone present at the shoot began pouring sand on each other.
- #033
The film was shot in the desert at 44 degrees Celsius. Because the actors had to wear heavy costumes containing metal, Ashutosh Gowariker decided to shoot the scenes wearing a similar costume to keep the crew's morale high.
- #034
The historical figure Ahmed Shah Abdali was 39 years old during the battle. Sanjay Dutt, who plays him in the film, was 60 during the shoot.
- #035
Father and son Ravindra Mahajani and Gashmeer Mahajani appeared in a film together only once.
- #036
This is Ravindra Mahajani's last film.
- #037
This is Sanjay Dutt's 200th film.
- #038
Kriti Sanon had to fight with a sword barefoot in the sand while wearing a sari measuring twelve metres by nine metres. She said it was the hardest scene to shoot, as she had rehearsed in tracksuit bottoms and sneakers, and that performing the scene in a long sari was very difficult.
- #039
The film was released in cinemas in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada.
- #040
This is Mohnish Bahl's first historical film.
- #041
Panipat marks the first time Ashutosh Gowariker worked with Sanjay Dutt, Padmini Kolhapure, Mohnish Bahl, Arjun Kapoor and Kirti Sanon.
- #042
Panipat is Arjun Kapoor's first historical film.
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