Maja Ma: Madhuri Dixit’s Well-Intended Film Ends Up As A Typical Melodrama Mess
The Hindi film industry, over the last few years, has worked a lot to wash away the stigma that people of LGBTQ+ community have to face in the real world. Many Bollywood films have came out to touch the sexually sensitive issues among the audience. Although the films and the cast may experience a significant backlash in the first place, they succeed in spreading the message they were intended to do. The same storyline is reflected in Madhuri Dixit recent release Maja Ma on Amazon Prime Video.
Storyline of Maja Ma
Maja Ma is a story of a middle-class Gujarati woman, Pallavi Patel (Madhuri Dixit). Pallavi is an ideal mother, a homemaker, a good cook, and everything that we can idealize from a perfect Bollywood character. Well, all that is pretty usual right? Well, the difference is the sexual identity of Pallavi, which remains hidden from everyone until her son Tejas returns to India with his NRI girlfriend, Esha, and her conservative family. Her son returns to India to get married to the girl of her choice. And their marriage is only a meeting away of both families.
Like all Indian drama, everything goes on seamlessly until a twist brings something spicy to an ordinary flowing storyline. A video clip of Pallavi goes viral on social media, where she claims to be a lesbian. Besides becoming the talk of the town, the video of Pallavi turns Maja Maa into a roller coaster ride. Since the girl’s family is stereotypical, Pallavi’s sexual identity revelation stands in the way of Tejas’s marriage with Esha.
Also Read: Top 5 Movies of Madhuri Dixit
Maja Ma Cast
Speaking about the cast of Maja Ma, Pallavi is well portrayed by Madhuri Dixit as she emerges as the celluloid star. Madhuri Dixit as the mother of Tejas (Ritwik Bhowmik) and the wife of Manohar (Gajraj Rao) is highly compelling to watch. Additionally, Gajraj’s role as the father is highly relatable to the Indian audience. Pam (Sheeba Chaddha) and Bob (Rajit Kapoor) befits what is expected from NRIs if we keep their accent aside.
Maja Ma Movie Review
Anand Tiwari directed Maja Ma is a decent attempt to present the topic of LGBTQ in a very new way. As of now, what we have seen in Indian movies is the story of young adults who struggle for their identity in the society. However, with Maja Ma, the director tries to convey the challenges that an adult has to face in her 40s just because of her sexual preferences.
Although the movie tries to give an impactful message to the society, it ends up being a melodrama as the director adds a ton of dramatic scenes which are really not needed! Due to this, the real fragrance of Maja Ma vanishes into just being a melodrama.
