'Maharaj' Review: Powerful acting by Aamir's son Junaid Khan, the film attacks the contractors of religion

The story of 'Maharaj'

From childhood, Karsan (Junaid Khan) had questions against the inconsistencies of religion and society. He had objections to the purdah system and was a supporter of widow remarriage. In such a situation, when he came to know that a contractor like JJ (Jaideep Ahlawat) of his own religion was taking advantage of the blind devotion of innocent people and sexually exploiting innocent girls and women in the name of charan seva, how could he remain silent. That too, when the fire of JJ's lust had burnt the dignity of his own fiancée Kishori (Shalini Pandey).

Charandas, through his writings, removed the mask of Maharaj from JJ's face, due to which he had to face a defamation suit in the court. This Maharaj defamation case of 1862 is an important chapter in Indian law and history, in which the court convicted JJ who filed the case and acquitted Charandas who was made the accused. Now the film 'Maharaj', which records this important incident, has also been released on OTT after getting the green signal from the court.

'Maharaj' movie review

God is within us, we do not need any Baba, Maharaj or JJ to find him. Aamir Khan had explained this in the film 'PK'. Now the same lesson is in his son Junaid Khan's first film 'Maharaj'. The difference is that while Raju Hirani had told this in an entertaining way, here director Siddharth P Malhotra has kept the tone of the film serious. Apart from this, he has also not been able to make the court case interesting. There is a lack of conflict there.

Talking about Junaid, he deserves praise for choosing such an issue-based film for his debut. He has played the powerful character of Karsan with full confidence. The only thing that is visible is that there is a theatre influence in his dialogues. During the long monologues, it seems as if he is speaking the dialogues on stage, he needs to work a little on it according to the camera.

Jaideep Ahlawat has given another great performance as JJ. He conveys a lot through his expressions and smile without saying much. However, his character could have been made stronger. The way JJ creates obstacles in Karsan's path does not seem that effective.

Shalini Pandey has played the role of Kishori with great innocence, while Sharvari Wagh seems like a breath of fresh air. She has done a great job. The music of the film is average. Overall, despite some shortcomings, this film is an eye-opener against fanaticism and can be watched.

Why watch- This film creates awareness against fake contractors of religion.