Vivek Agnihotri reveals the real reason for using the name Taimur in The Bengal Files trailer: ‘Taimur kayi log…’
At the beginning of The Bengal Files trailer, we are introduced to a young boy named Taimur. Vivek Agnihotri has confirmed it is not a reference to Saif's son
After creating milestones in Indian cinema and winning National Awards with masterpieces such as The Tashkent Files (2019) and The Kashmir Files (2022), filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri is now gearing up to blow audiences away with The Bengal Files. Initially titled The Delhi Files: The Bengal Chapter, the upcoming film will mark the third and final instalment in the filmmaker’s ‘Files Trilogy’. Earlier this week, the haunting trailer was released, which revealed that the film is centred around the 1946 Great Calcutta Killings, the Noakhali riots and their aftermath. Right in the beginning of the trailer, a kid was introduced who was named ‘Taimur’. Vivek has now clarified that this is not in reference to the name chosen by Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor Khan for their firstborn son, Taimur Ali Khan Pataudi.
In a recent appearance on The Raunac Show, when asked if Taimur’s name in the trailer is a comment on anyone specific, Vivek Agnihotri replied, “Nahi, Taimur kayi log naam rakhte hain. Yeh peheli baar kisi ne nahi rakha hai, aisa nahi hai (A lot of people name their children Taimur. This wasn’t the first time someone used the name).” When asked directly if this reference has no connection to Saif Ali Khan and his son’s name, Vivek explained, “Nahi, Taimur… Main batata hun Taimur ka kya hai. Main jab The Tashkent Files shoot karne gaya tha Samarkand, toh wahan pe Taimur Lang ka makbara hai. Okay? Aur uske bahar likha hua hai ki ‘he conquered the richest sultanate in the world’. Sultanate Delhi, Delhi sultanate in the world. Aur usko isliye mahan maante hain ki usne vishv ki sabse… haan usko emperor ka khitaab de rahe the. Woh likha hai uske wahin pe. Aap jaaye kabhi toh padhiyega bahar. Usko emperor ka khitaab de rahe the, usne kaha main tab tak apne ko emperor nahi bulaunga jab tak main Dilli pe fateh nahi kar lunga. Phir woh aaya army leke fateh karne. (Let me explain. When I went to shoot The Tashkent Files in Samarkand, I visited Taimur’s tomb. Outside it, it is written, ‘He conquered the richest sultanate in the world.’ This was the Delhi Sultanate. They were about to give him the title of Emperor, but he refused, and said that he wouldn’t accept it until he conquers Delhi.)”
Vivek went on to add, “Ek raat mein, ek lakh logo ko usne Dilli mein katleaam kiya. Aisa likha gaya uske baare mein ki jab woh yahan se nikla toh Haryana, Punjab, Jammu Kashmir, raste mein jitne bhi gaaon aaye unko jalata chala gaya, logo ko maarta chala gaya, aurton ko uthata chala gaya. Theek hai, woh apne rashtra ka toh hero hai. Unn logo ke liye toh mahan emperor hai, mahan aadmi hai, usne sabse raeez ko loota. Par humaare liye toh nahi hai. Toh Taimur naam kyun rakhna chahiye? Bilkul nahi rakhna chahiye. Sawal hi nahi uthta hai. (He massacred one lakh people in one night. He went on a killing spree from Delhi to Kashmir. He raped and pillaged along the way. Yes, he is a hero in his country; he is a great man. But he isn’t to us. Of course nobody should name their child Taimur. It shouldn’t even be a question.)”
Starring Darshan Kumar, Mithun Chakraborty, Anupam Kher, Pallavi Joshi, Simrat Kaur, Saswata Chatterjee and Namashi Chakraborty, The Bengal Files is all set to arrive in theatres on September 5.
