Come one, come all: Shivaji’s Wagh Nakh draw crowds on his jayanti

Nagpur: "I have read everything about Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Now, the very wagh nakh with which he slew Afzal Khan are right in front of my eyes," said an overjoyed Subhadra Pathak, in her 80s, who came to the Central Museum on Tuesday with her 91-year-old husband.
As many as 3,000 people reached the museum on Wednesday to see the Maratha King's tiger claws on his 395th birth anniversary. Many simply stood in awe, clicking pictures, while others stepped out discussing the entire Afzal Khan episode.
"Afzal Khan was huge, but Maharaj, in a swift move, ripped open his stomach," said a policewoman to her son. The cops had taken time off from her duty to show the legendary Wagh Nakh to her son. It's Shivaji Jayanti, the perfect day to see the Wagh Nakh, said many visitors.
"I wish I could have travelled back in time and done something to help Maharaj," said 70-year-old Saroj Chitale as she stepped out of the exhibit.
Entry to the museum was free on Wednessday. There were queues extending till the street since morning, and only batches of 30 to 40 people were allowed inside at a time.
Emotions were running high, and people wanted to make Shivaji Jayanti memorable by seeing the Wagh Nakh on the day, said museum officials. There were visitors of all age groups, ranging from senior citizens and children to groups of youngsters, said curatorMayuresh Khadke.
"I am a history teacher and have been narrating the story to my students all these years. Today, I could visualise the entire scene after seeing the Wagh Nakh," said 30-year-old Ravindra Wanzari.
"Never before have we seen so many visitors. Many insisted on raising the ‘Jai Bhavani, Jai Shivaji' slogan right inside the museum. We requested them to do so outside the museum premises," said assistant curator Vinayak Nitturkar. A little before closing time, Puniya Konkani entered with his relative, who had come from Nandurbar district, which borders Gujarat, 700km from Nagpur.