''Maja Ma'' is a 2022 Indian

Hindi Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...

-language

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

film directed by Anand Tiwari. It stars

Madhuri Dixit Madhuri Dixit Nene (Maiden and married names, née Dixit, ; born 15 May 1967) is an Indian actress and television personality. She has appeared in Madhuri Dixit filmography, over 70 Hindi films. Praised by critics for her performances and danc ...

, Gajraj Rao, Ritwik Bhowmik,

Barkha Singh Barkha Singh (born 3 August 1992) is an Indian actress who mainly works in Hindi films and web shows. She began her career as a child artist and worked in films such as ''Mujhse Dosti Karoge!'' (2002) and '' Samay: When Time Strikes'' (2003). Sh ...

, Srishti Shrivastava and Simone Singh. The film premiered on 6 October 2022 on

Amazon Prime Video Amazon Prime Video, known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming television service owned by Amazon. The service primarily distributes films and television series produced or co-produced by ...

Plot

Pallavi Patel is a simple housewife living in a housing society and is famous for her cooking and dancing. Her husband, Manohar Patel, is the chairman of the society. Pallavi's daughter is working towards her PhD in sexuality and gender identity. She is also an ally and an activist for LGBTQIA+ rights. Her son, who lives in America, is in love with Esha Hansraj. Pallavi's family is her world. But when Pallavi is questioned about her

sexuality Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied ...

, her world and her family start to fall apart.

Cast

as Pallavi Patel ** Simran Nerurkar as young Pallavi * Gajraj Rao as Manohar Patel * Ritwik Bhowmik as Tejas Patel, Pallavi and Manohar Patel's son *

as Esha Hansraj, Tejas Patel's fiancée and Bob Hansraj's daughter * Srishti Shrivastava as Tara Patel Adhia, Pallavi and Manohar Patel's daughter * Simone Singh as Kanchan Adhia, Tara's mother-in-law and Pallavi's ex-girlfriend ** Khushi Khanna as young Kanchan *

Rajit Kapoor Rajit Kapur (born 22 May 1963) is an Indian film and theatre actor and director. He is known for his portrayal of Mahatma Gandhi in the 1996 film, '' The Making of the Mahatma'' for which he won the National Film Award for Best Actor. Other n ...

as Bob Hansraj, Esha Hansraj's father *

Sheeba Chaddha Sheeba Chaddha is an Indian film, stage and television actress. She received nominations for the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performances in the 2022 films '' Badhaai Do'' and '' Doctor G'', winning for the former. Earl ...

as Pam Hansraj, Bob Hansraj's wife *

Malhar Thakar Malhar Thakar (born 28 June 1990) is an Indian actor who primarily works in the Gujarati film industry and theatre. Biography He studied at Navrang School (Navrangpura, Ahmedabad) and Sheth C. N. Vidyalaya, Ahmedabad. After nine years in ...

as Pinakin Adhia, Tara's husband * Rohit Kumar as Viral’s Friend Chabbu * Khushi Hajare as Kinjal *

Ninad Kamat Ninad Kamat is an Indian actor who works in Hindi films. Some of his films include '' Parineeta'' (2005), ''Lage Raho Munnabhai'' (2006), ''Laaga Chunari Mein Daag'' (2007) and ''Jai Gangaajal'' (2016). He is also a dubbing artist and has dub ...

as Moolchand Adhia, Tara's father-in-law * Krunal Pandit as Dr Ankit Patel * Aarti Ashar as Society Women 2 * Ivanka Das as Trans Activist

Soundtrack

The music for the film is composed by

Siddharth Mahadevan Siddharth Mahadevan is an Indian film composer who is known for his songs in the film '' Bhaag Milkha Bhaag'' in which he sang "Zinda" and the rock version of the title song "Bhaag Milkha Bhaag". Career Mahadevan got further acclaim for th ...

, Souumil Shringarpure, Gourov Dasgupta and Anurag Sharma while the lyrics are written by

Priya Saraiya Priya Saraiya (born 19 November 1984) is an Indian playback singer and lyricist in Bollywood. She is also a live stage singer for Hindi cinema and Gujarati songs. Education and early life Music education Priya Saraiya also known as Priy ...

Kumaar Rakesh Kumar Pal, known mononymously as Kumaar, is an Indian lyricist who works in Hindi cinema. Some of his songs include "Rula Ke Gaya Ishq", " Tu Bhi Royega", "Dil Ki Aadat", " Baby Doll', " Chittiyaan Kalaiyaan", " Sooraj Dooba Hain", "Lo ...

, Anurag Sharma and Lil Sidley.

Reception

Upon release, ''Maja Ma'' received mixed reviews from the film critics, who praised Dixit's performance but criticized the sanitised plot of the film. Rachana Dubey from ''

The Times of India ''The Times of India'' (''TOI'') is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by the Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, third-largest newspaper in India by circulation an ...

'' gave a rating of 3.5/5 and described the film as "A conscious effort to navigate the internal conflicts that the various characters feel, with Pallavi's sudden relevation." Manik Sharma from ''

Firstpost Firstpost is an Indian news website owned by Network18 Group, which also runs CNN-News18 and CNBC TV18. It has posted misinformation on multiple occasions. The Network 18 group was originally owned by Raghav Bahl. In January 2012, the gro ...

'' wrote, "Pallavi’s sexuality is a matter of public debate long before, she takes the brave step to contemplate what is being said. This knotty moral conundrum that Pallavi must confront as a personal journey, is the highlight of a film that can often oscillate between massy tropes and meaningful depths." Shweta Keshri from ''

India Today ''India Today'' is a weekly Indian English-language news magazine published by Living Media, Living Media India Limited. It is the most widely circulated magazine in India, with a readership of close to 8 million. In 2014, ''India Today'' laun ...

'' gave ''Maja Ma'' a rating of 2/5 and wrote, "Madhuri Dixit carries the film on her shoulders and Gajraj Rao delivers a flawless performance. The film dealt with the topic sensitively and not made a mockery of it. However, the film's ending is disappointing".

References

External links

* * {{Bollywood Hungama movie, maja-ma 2020s Hindi-language films Indian drama films 2022 drama films 2022 films Amazon Prime Video original films 2020s Indian films Lesbian-related films Indian LGBTQ-related films 2022 LGBTQ-related films