Hello everyone on the forum! Serials have a way of distorting historical facts; especially the timeline. For those who care to know what really took place in the Peshwa family please read on-
1. Polygamy and concubinage were fairly common practices among all classes in 18th century Maharashtra. If the woman whom a wealthy and influential man wished to take on belonged to another caste/community he could not marry her legally but could maintain her as his mistress/concubine. This was possible with the tacit agreement of his first family though the lawfully wedded wife rarely interacted with her husband's other companions. Nevertheless kept women and their children were always provided for generously by the man. This is true for both Balaji Vishwanath's as well as Bajirao's mistresses. Mastani could not be given the status of a legal wife because she belonged to another community. Even Shahu's favourite concubine was a slave girl called Virubai who actually came as part of one of his wife's dowry.
2. Radhabai had little scope to bear a grudge against her husband. Balaji became Peshwa in 1713 and died within 7 years. In this period he was rarely home as he was always on campaigns.He died on 2nd April 1720. Bajirao was soon appointed Peshwa in his father's place.
3. It did not matter which woman Bajirao preferred. Both bore him children until 1735, five years before his death. He was married to Kashi in 1711 when he was 11 and she was 8 years old. She remained his consort until his death in 1740. Thus they were together for 30 years.
Mastani came into his life during the Bundelkhand campaign in 1729. She spent nearly a decade with him alongside Kashi.
4. Bajirao cohabited with both women right until 1737.
Kashi bore him at least 5 sons:
a. Balaji aka Nana, born in December 1721.
b. Ramchandra, born in 1723 and died in 1733.
c. Son, name unknown, born in 1732/33 died soon after birth (Seems Kashi became depressed after losing two children in successive years from 1732-3)
d. Raghunath aka Raghoba, born in 1734
e. Janardan, born in 1735 died at the age of 14 in 1749.
Mastani's son Shamsher was born in 1734, the same year when Kashi's son Raghunath was born. Mastani also gave birth to two daughters who did not survive infancy.
5. Mastani spent two years on campaign with Bajirao between 1736-38. During this time he fell for her completely. After she bore him a son in 1734 her status was elevated and she was moved into an independent mansion called Mastani Mahal in 1736. Since then Bajirao spent most of his time with her. Mastani was much younger than Kashi, was beautiful and was a talented singer. Also Bajirao began eating meat and drinking alcohol in her company, habits which were taboo to Brahmins then. This was due to his contact with the pleasure loving Rajput nobility of North India.
Thus Mastani Mahal became his pleasure palace where the party never stopped for him. This was the main reason for the family's disenchantment over his dalliance with Mastani. Let us remember that Mastani had coexisted with Kashi under the same roof for nearly a decade with little opposition from the same family.
Because she was Bajirao's favourite Mastani had been tolerated by his family. But trouble broke out when Bajirao's lifestyle became more and more liberal in her company. After 1738 the Brahmin clergy of Pune boycotted the Peshwa family for this reason, refusing to perform pujas, weddings and thread ceremonies.This forced Radhabai and Chimaji to try and separate Mastani from him when Rau firmly refused to reduce his association with her.
6. Most legends about Mastani are all hokum. She was neither a warrior princess nor did she fight battles. Rather she was trained to be a professional singer. And she just went along with Bajirao as his lover, not as his deputy in battle.
The Peshwa family never tortured her or her son. There was no question of accepting her as a daughter-in-law since she was a mistress. The main family never interacted with such women because they were maintained for the man's private pleasure. Thus Bajirao wanting her accepted as a legal wife or for Shamsher to be brought up as a Brahmin are unsubstantiated stories. Such exceptions were not possible in the18th century.
7. Bajirao did not die of a broken heart. He was drinking heavily in the last couple of years of his life. As a result he fell ill and died (while camped in Rawerkhedi on the banks of the river Narmada) on 28th April 1740. Kashi and son Janardan were the only family members with him at the time. Mastani was either under house arrest in Pune during the time or was released and was on her way to his camp. Soon after she got the news of his death she probably committed suicide.
Kashi lived on as a widow and died in 1756. The Peshwa family brought up Mastani's son Shamsher as one of their own. Ironically Bhansali's movie portrayed them as villains and never gave them credit for this.
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