Review : Maharaj : A stunning and persuasive debut by Aamir Khan’s son, Junaid Khan

The self styled godmen used to have immense following in our country and there ashrams always reeked of ‘#ungodly’ things. Some of these godmen are in jail for committing sinful activities, including murders. In earlier times these godmen used to rule the society or a sect and no one had a courage to defy their wishes or orders. In ‘Maharaj’ similar story has been picked up which is based on a true story. The story unveils the wrongdoings by the self styled godmen from a Vaishnav sect.

The film ‘Maharaj’, set in 1860, is based on a sexual abuse defamation case against Karsandas Mulji, a journalist and a reformer, for writing an article which was claimed to be defamatory by Jadunath Brijratanji, a religious leader in a Vaishnav community, who claimed to be the messenger of God. Karsandas Mulji (Junaid Khan) is a Gujarati journalist, who supports gender equality, widow remarriage and not having blind faith in religious leaders, which were bold thoughts in that era, is to get married to Kishori (Shalini Pandey). JJ aka Jadunath Maharaj, (Jaideep Ahalawat) is a religious leader and his followers offer ‘Charan Seva’. In actuality ‘Charan Seva’ is sexual exploitation of young girls by him. Kishori falls prey to JJ and after witnessing that Karsan breaks his engagement with her. But he writes about the wrongdoings of JJ in his newspaper for which JJ sues him for defamation. What transpires after and before that forms the crux of the stoty.

Maharaj is based on a true story but still it had to face the legal notice. Maharaj is a movie that explores the complexities of morality, delving into the gray areas between righteousness and wrongdoing, as well as the fine line between truth and deception. Maharaj aims for strong narrative techniques, but it falls short in delivering a lasting impression. Production values are high and the music score is impressive. Junaid Khan is spendid and looks confident on screen. He stands out and consistently commands attention in every shot. Shalini Pande has limited screen time, yet she delivers an impeccable performance in each of her scenes. Sharvari, however, has a more dynamic and vibrant presence. She adds a unique layer to the story, skillfully portraying a wide range of emotions. Jaideep Ahalawat offers a standout performance. He has limited dialogues but he displays array of emotions through his eyes and body language convincingly.

Maharaj is a decent film which has a stunning and persuasive debut by Aamir Khan’s son, Junaid Khan.

Rating : ***

By Keerti Kadam