Maja Ma

*** Maja Ma Movie Review ***

Maja Ma directed by Anand Tiwari, starring Madhuri Dixit Nene, Gajraj Rao, Ritwik Bhowmik, Barkha Singh, Srishti Shrivastava, Sheeba Chaddha, Rajit Kapur, Simone Singh in lead role.

Penned by Sumit Batheja.

Plot of the Movie.

Ritwik alias Tejas is leaving in abroad & there he falls in love with a girl Barkha Singh belonging to a rich affluent girl of USA but who sticks to the traditional principles. They decide to meet Tejas family in Baroda as they believe marriage is the union of two families.

Tejas family consist of his mother Pallavi Patel alias Madhuri Dixit Nene, father Manohar & sister Tara. The central character Pallavi is a housewife having her hobbies of garba dance and cooking especially the delicious sweets.. When Tejas future in laws meets his family in Baroda for the alignment, a turmoil which raises a question mark on Pallavi Patel identity & how she deals with it forms rest part of the story

Analysis.

The root of the topic is same but its story telling approach differs. LGBTQ the term which we often heard a lot, Maja Ma nothing delivers a different kind of input to the viewers so as to question our sensibility.

Badhaai Do, Shubh Mangal Jyada Savdhan are the different versions of LGBTQ cases happened or happening in our society.

Writer Sumit Batheja able to portray the struggling women who fails to express their emotional desire with the fear of society scoffing and also fear of the family reputation would be at a toss.

Madhuri Dixit able to encapsulate the emotional trauma passage of Pallavi which comprises the grief, the anguish, the unabashed. In Fame Game web series, where Madhuri Dixit asks her son "Are you a gay "with an anticipatory bail of acceptance of bitter truth, here Pallavi Patel is in a state of disconcertment. That makes us to say that she is a versatile actor. At the same time, the writer able to throw light on Pallavi's unconditional & selfless love towards her family.

Gajraj Rao comic timings, innocent amateur English speaking makes us laugh. Sheeba Chaddha, Rajit Kapur Indo English mix conversation was good enough especially Sheeba's one variation in one moment proving her versatility.

Tara played by Srishti Srivastava who is Pallavi's daughter, an activist believes that hiding the true identity is a sin. But I personally feel that the writer failed to give more space to her as in many areas Tara had been side-lined. Moments where she was required, she was invisible thereby leading an added pressure to Pallavi.

Talking about the other areas, "Boom Padi Song "sung by Shreya Ghoshal, directed by Soumil and Siddharth was electrifying.

Cinematography seems to be artificial especially where we need to believe the sun is real. Colour grading seems to be applied too much.

Conclusion.

Overall, a topic which is squeezed again and again like a sugarcane but with a notable performance making it a watchable one.

Maja ma is a comedy drama film directed by anand tiwari.

Madhuri dixit is in fine form. She delivers an earnest and powerful performance. Her eyes do speak a language. Her body language is still graceful and comprehnsive. I loved her in this movie. Gajraj rao too shines in this film. He is a chameleon who is finally getting his due. Ritwick bhowmick is a wonderful performer. His scenes with madhuri do speak a volume. Srishti srivastava is good in her limited screentime. I did not like the loud performances by rajit kapoor and sheeba chadda. Moreover, they were sporting a fake accent which made it worse. Sheeba shines only when she talks in punjabi towards the end. That was more effective. Only barkha singh looked a bit authentic. Simone singh is also pretty good.

This film does ask the right questions about the LGBTQIA+ issue. Especially at the end, the mentality of most people about being lesbian is fleshed out. The difference between love and mere sex. But again, it does get preachy sometimes. Like, tara(sristi) always in her loud voice tries to educate everyone about the taboo and the delicate matter. Rather, it should have been more authentic and organic. The film shows the true nature of NRIs and how they are more conservative than us indians. So, the writing at concept level is pretty solid.

But the film falters mainly at the screenplay level. How does a man 20 ft. Apart hear a conversation between two women? How is it possible? Even if he listens a bit, how does he comrehend the whole thing? Also, the staging of the big revelation of pallavi's 'coming out' is half baked. At the end of first half, the film wanders here and there in order to introduce the new characters. The whole comedy about sambhogra is also very lame. The comedy barely feels organic.

The cinematography is decent. Gujarat has always been vibrant in movies and is the same here. There is one shot which i liked specifically. When the revelation happens, it is staged around the closet which is metaphorical. The music is beautiful. 'Boom tadi' by shreya ghoshal is exquisitely sung and is a beautiful composition. Same can be said about 'ae pagli'. 'Kacchi doriyaan' is soulful too. The bgm is decent.

This film has a lot of moments which will surely touch you. There is one scene between gajraj and madhuri. Hell of a scene! Legendary actors akways work a way out of delivering meaningful sequences.

This is a film which despite its flaws can touch you. I rate it 7.75 out of 10.

It starts a bit slow as it establishes all the characters and their relationships. And even after the big REVEAL, it felt a bit slow. But it soon then gathers steam and clutches your heart, and you simply can't stop watching, and you want to give it a standing ovation when it ends. Very well done. Madhuri Dixit excellent as always, and everyone else is classy too. I strongly recommend.

I took 1 star off because it had a few side stories (very few) that distracted slightly from the main story. The side stories, while necessary to set the context, could have been tightened slightly to raise the impact. Nevertheless, deserves a huge applause.

This one is a family entertainer and it is set in a middle class Gujarati town. The storyline about a Gujarati Patel family has a good pace, the simple characters are relatable, the dialogue/ comedy are okay , the acting of all is precise and the emotional angle is well presented by director Anand Tiwari. There should be no complaints from the audience on any account. Madhuri Dixit ( Pallavi) and Gajraj Rao ( Manohar) play the parents admirably and project the nuances of their characters nicely. Their son Tejas ( Ritwick Bhowmik) who works in America wants to marry Indian American Punjabi girl Esha ( Barkha Singh). No problems there as her father Bob Hansraj ( Rajit Kapoor) and mother Pam (Sheeba Chaddha) who live in America are willing for the marriage. This scenario appears too good to be true. The hurdle comes in the shape of a video which exposes a nasty incident in the life of Pallavi which took place in the past. This is a shock for family and friends. The marriage is stalled and internal conflicts begin. A number of plans are proposed by family members to solve the issue The movie then throws up some thought provoking issues related to middle class values, beliefs, traditions and sensibilities. It also discusses husband wife relationship issues. The movie has fine performances by all artists and no one can be singled out. A jarring aspect however is the fake American accent put on by Rajit and Sheeba but no problems there on this bit of overacting as everything else of the movie is okay.

Trust me it's one of the most decent LGBTQ+ movies made in recent times. You can watch it with your family and probably a movie to introduce the concept to our older generation. Some scenes are cringe but overall it is a fun light hearted movie with depth. I wish the romance aspect of Madhuri as a teenager could have been explored a bit more. As a straight woman Definitely am curious to see some context to sweet simple love between two women. The Gujju context is sweet and Simone Singh is a stunner. Madhuri no doubt steals the show. Sheeba Chaddha's accent is hilarious, loved her in every scene.