Maharani (2021 TV series)

Maharani (transl. Empress) is an 2021 Indian Hindi-language drama streaming television series created by Subhash Kapoor.[2] Season 1 of the series is directed by Karan Sharma and Season 2 was directed by Ravindra Gautam.[3][4][5] The series stars Huma Qureshi as the protagonist[6][7] along with Sohum Shah, Amit Sial, Kani Kusruti and Inaamulhaq.[8][9][10] The political multi-seasons series is partly inspired by what happened in Bihar in the 1990s when Lalu Prasad Yadav made his homemaker wife Rabri Devi his successor.[11] The story of season 1 is from 1995 to 1999 and is inspired from real life events and characters like Ranvir Sena, left-wing militants, Naxalite groups , the Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) Liberation , 1997 Laxmanpur Bathe massacre, Fodder Scam, Brahmeshwar Singh. The story of season 2 is from mid-1999 and is inspired from real life events and characters like Shilpi-Gautam Murder, Sadhu Yadav, Rajiv Goswami, Shibu Soren, Mohammad Shahabuddin, Prashant Kishor , Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC)[12] and 2000 Bihar Legislative Assembly election.[13]

Maharani
GenreDrama
Created bySubhash Kapoor
Written bySubhash Kapoor, Nandan Singh and Umashankar Singh
Directed byKaran Sharma (season 1)
Ravindra Gautam (season 2)
Starring
Country of originIndia
Original languageHindi
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes20
Production
ProducerNaren Kumar & Dimple Kharbanda[1]
EditorKunal Walve
Production companyKangra Talkies
Release
Original networkSonyLIV
Original release28 May 2021 (2021-05-28) –
present

Maharani premiered on SonyLIV on 28 May 2021.[14]

The teaser of the second season was launched on 16 July 2022 and the trailer was released on 1 August 2022.

The second season was launched on 25 August 2022 on SonyLIV.[15]

Premise

This is a fictional story, where Rani Bharti is a homemaker and the wife of Bihar's chief minister Bheema. All she cares about is her house and her husband. She wants to pack her bags and go back to the village after her husband resigns from the post of Bihar's CM. But her life takes a turn when her husband and Bihar's CM is made to announce the name of his successor. While his party members look excited to hear who has been appointed, he makes Rani his successor, leaving everyone surprised.

Season 1

After being shot, the Bihar CM Bheema Bharti unexpectedly names his wife Rani as his successor. An uneducated woman who was content with her simple ways of living and her regular family life has to now deal with government files she couldn’t read, corruption, and caste massacres within the state. With the caste arithmetic, traditional satraps, and the emerging voices of dissent, will an illiterate woman, Rani Bharti survive this?

Season 2

As Bheema Bharti runs a proxy government from prison, CM Rani Bharti is accused of misgovernance while Bihar fights anti-incumbency, jungle raj, and corruption. Lawlessness has gripped the state of Bihar and the opposition holds Rani responsible for the state’s ‘jungle raj’.

Facing a constant turmoil of opposition from her own party and dealing with a husband and political enemies who are obstinately plotting to overthrow her government, she is forced to make some moves that will disrupt the whole political scenario. With elections right around the corner, will Rani's acumen turn victorious, given her own husband is her greatest enemy?

Cast
  • Huma Qureshi as Rani Bharti, wife of Bihar's chief minister Bheema
  • Sohum Shah as Bihar's chief minister Bheema Bharti (season 1-2)
  • Amit Sial as Navin Kumar, chief of Bihar People's Party
  • Pramod Pathak as Satyendranath Mishra, RJSP chief secretary
  • Kani Kusruti as Kaveri Sridharan, Rani's secretary
  • Inaamulhaq as Parvez Alam
  • Vineet Kumar as Gauri Shankar Pandey
  • Tanu Vidyarthi as Khyati
  • Harish Khanna as Shankar Mahto
  • Mohammad Aashique Hussain as Prem Kumar Chaubey
  • Sushil Pandey as Kunwar Singh
  • Kannan Arunachalam as DGP Siddhant Gautam
  • Atul Tiwari as Governor Govardhan Daas
  • Pankaj Jha ( Pankaj Kashyap) as Diwakar Jha
  • Anuja Sathe as Kirti Singh
  • Neha Chauhan as Kalpana Kaul, director of political consultancy firm I-ACT
  • Anushka Kaushik as Shilpa Agarwal
  • Sukumar Tudu as Dulari Yadav
  • Robin Das as Ekkal Munda
  • Ansha Sayed as Sanjana Dutt
  • Danish Iqbal as Dilshad Mirza
  • Leysan Karimova as Zehra Shaikh
  • Dibyendu Bhattacharya as Martin Ekka
  • Kumar Saurabh as Sanyasi Rai
  • Pranay Narayan as Kamta Prasad
  • Agasthya Shanker as Jagganath Tripathi
  • Vishwa Bhanu as Hemraj
  • Alok Chatterjee as Mukhiya
  • Neeraj Kashyap
  • Divyashekhar Jha Shrawan Kumar a.k.a. Shaun

Episodic Synopsis
EpisodesSeason 1 Episodic SynopsisSeason 2 Episodic Synopsis
1Bihar is going through a financial crisis and caste wars are rampant throughout the state. Political unrest in Bihar brings the factionalism in the ruling party out in the open.There is anarchy in Bihar, and Bheema runs a proxy government from prison. In response to a tragedy in Bihar, the opposition labels Rani's administration "Jungle Raj" and calls for her resignation.
2CM Bheema Bharti survives a fatal attack but is bedridden. A triangular fight ensues between Bheema Bharti, Navin Kumar, and Party President Gauri Shankar Pandey. As Rani works to end the state's "Jungle Raj," the MLAs from her own party turn against her. To plan their next move, Govardhan Das and Navin Kumar meet to discuss their next step.
3Illiterate and shy Rani Bharti is completely out of depth while taking CM's oath in the cabinet meeting. Later, she orders the DGP to find the people who were behind Bheema’s murder attempt.Bheema exits jail and requests Rani's resignation. Rani's political move surprises her husband, and also the opposition.
4CM Rani Bharti faces her first big crisis in the office and gets to know from Finance Secretary Parvez Alam that the state has no money to even pay its employees and all state treasuries are empty.Rani intends to fight Navin's political maneuver. This political unrest presents Bheema with a chance to advance his political career in Bihar.
5Parvez Alam and his Deputy Anjani Srivastav visit the treasury office at night and find suspicious bills. Rani orders him to investigate AHD withdrawals from all 48 treasuries of Bihar.Bihar is gripped by a violent uprising that quickly spreads. On the personal front, Rani's heart is broken by a disclosure made by Prem Kumar, who is on bail.
6Parvez Alam interrogates AHD officials and gets to know fraud was happening with AHD minister Prem Kumar's approval. Rani asks for his resignation. Prem reminds her that if he goes, her government will fall too.Rani struggles to adjust to her new situation. Bheema establishes a new political party when the results are announced. Govardhan tells Rani the truth about the riots and the bombing.
7Rani Bharti dismisses Prem Kumar and orders a CID investigation into the scam. Prem Kumar’s move brings Rani's government into a minority.Elections are held, and people vote. Who will be Bihar's next chief minister? Rani Bharti, Bheema Bharti or Navin Kumar?
8Bheema offers the Governor a deal and true to his words, stops Rani from arresting Machan Baba.Bheema hosts a Holi party and invites newly elected RJSP and BVP MLAs to form a government.
9Rani meets the Governor for an explanation and he drops a bombshell, leaving her shocked.Martin Ekka is selected to lead a three-member committee investigating an untimely death. The state is under President's control. Mishra chooses to solve the problem on his own.
10Rani confronts Bheema about the scam, death of Virender Thakur and his association with Naxal leader Shankar Mahto.Martin meets with Rani to reveal the truth about the unexpected death of someone close to her.

Production

Sohum Shah gained a 12 kg to get look of the politician Bheema, which has been modelled on the basis of Lalu Prasad Yadav.[16] In November 2020, some portions were shot in Kachnariya Kothi, Bhopal.[17] In April 2021, the shooting for web series was also done in Legislative Assembly (LA) Jammu complex of the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir state and Govt. Gandhi Memorial Science College, Jammu.[18] Around 250 local artists from the theatre and cultural department in Jammu and Kashmir were brought in for the web-series.[19][20] Some drone shots of J.P. Setu and Buddha Smriti Park were also shown in the web series. The shooting of Maharani was completed in seven months.[21]

Reception

Season 1

Writing for The Firstpost, Prathyush Parasuraman gave the series 3 stars and stated that Huma Qureshi shines in a sanitised portrayal of Rabri Devi.[22] Rohan Naahar stated in The Hindustan Times that the series is over-plotted yet underwritten.[23] Archika Khurana wrote in Times of India that the web series is engaging at most times.[24]

The Times Of India described it as a “well-structured screenplay”,[25] while Biz Asia pointed out how the show brings the importance of virtue to the forefront.[26] Actress Twinkle Khanna praised the performance of Huma Qureshi in the web series.[27] Actor Shatrughan Sinha also praised Maharani and said that Huma Qureshi has the potential of becoming a role model for other artists.[28][29]

Rishita Roy Chowdhury of India Today said the series is about Saheb, Biwi aur Bihar.[30] Rohit Vats of News18 gave Maharani 2.5 stars.[31] Aditya Menon in The Quint wrote that the web series trid to invert the ‘Jungle Raj’ tag that was put on the Lalu Yadav-Rabri Devi period in Bihar.[32] Saibal Chatterjee of NDTV wrote that Maharani is a passable account of a state fighting steady decline and seeking regeneration.[33]

Shubhra Gupta of The Indian Express stated that Huma Qureshi flourishes in a web series with banal writing.[34]

Subhash. K.Jha called it a taut political drama with surprising twists and turns.[35] Nandini Ramnath of Scroll.in wrote that the cast of Maharani has brilliant performances.[36]

Rony Patra from LetsOTT stated that strong characters and an authentic Bihari milieu coupled with “bombastic dialogues” made the series a gripping watch. Rishita Roy Chowdhury of India Today went on to applaud Huma Qureshi's performance saying” she brings nuances and emotional gradients to her character.[37]

Bollywood Life called it a sensational and intriguing game of political chess.[38] Kriti Tulsiani from ZoomTV wrote that the show boasts of a captivating premise but falls victim to the makers’ linear storytelling approach.[39]

BINGED called it a well-crafted chronicle of a story that needed telling.[40]

Spotboye made the parallel with Scam 1992, calling it another big winner for SonyLIV.[41]

Season 2

The Times of India gave it 3.5 stars out of 5 while stating that it is “An enthralling political drama with compelling performances.”[42] Shashank Pandey of Dainik Bhaskar also gave the series a 3.5 out of five and hailed it as, ‘Emotion aur entertainment ki Maharani.’[43] ABP News, with its 4 stars out of 5, mentioned that ‘Maharani continues to rule the world of OTT’.

Abhimanyu Mathur of Hindustan Times remarked ‘Huma Qureshi reigns supreme in a show that is a lesson in how political thrillers should be made.’ Namrata Thakur of Rediff said, ‘The second season of Maharani 2 is bigger, better, and far more brutal’.[44]

TV9 said that the second season was ‘Full of Unexpected twists and turns and gave it 4 stars out of 5.[45]

Zoya Bhatti of ThePrint gave the Huma Qureshi starrer a 3.5 out of 5, commenting “Maharani 2 sees Rani Bharti go from political pawn to queen bee.”[46]

Nandini Ramnath from Scroll called the series “Another, more focused, round of self-serving politics.”[47] Koimoi’s Shubham Kulkarni also gave the second season 3.5 stars out of 5 and said, “Huma Qureshi Continues To Reign.”[48]

Controversy

After the release of first trailer on 9 May 2021, the Yadav community protested over a dialogue in the web series and filed FIR.[49] The makers of web series later apologized and removed that dialogue from the web series.

See also

References
  1. MumbaiMay 28, Shweta Keshri. "Sohum Shah watched videos of Nitish Kumar, Lalu Prasad to prepare for Maharani". India Today. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
  2. "Maharani teaser: Huma Qureshi is queen in the making in Subhash Kapoor's political drama". 9 April 2021.
  3. "From Running A Takeaway To 'Maharani 2', Amit Sial's Eventful Journey". Glamsham. 14 August 2022. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
  4. "Maharani trailer: Huma Qureshi's Rani is a woman forced into a man's world in this political drama". 20 May 2021.
  5. "EXCLUSIVE FIRST LOOK: Huma Qureshi stars as Rani Bharti in SonyLIV's political drama Maharani". Bollywood Hungama. 9 April 2021.
  6. "Huma Qureshi maintains effortless put-together vibe in orange midi dress worth Rs. 11,300 for Maharani promotions". Bollywood Hungama. 13 April 2021.
  7. "Huma Qureshi All Set to Play Games in Political Thriller Maharani". 10 April 2021.
  8. "Huma Qureshi undergoes complete makeover to play Bihar CM in Maharani. Teaser out".
  9. "Exclusive First Look: Huma Qureshi Stars As Rani Bharti In Political Drama 'Maharani'". 12 January 2022.
  10. "Exclusive! Maharani: Amit Sial and Sohum Shah's character look revealed".
  11. "Bollywood's Mayawati, Rabri Devi biopics easy. Will it ever touch BJP-RSS leaders?". 18 April 2021.
  12. "Neha Chauhan, Anuja Sathe join cast of 'Maharani 2'". The Times of India.
  13. "Maharani Season 2: Clever writing in misandrist politics". 28 August 2022.
  14. "Maharani trailer: Huma Qureshi's character changes the dynamics of Bihar politics in this gripping video". 9 May 2021.
  15. "Huma Qureshi: 'A few films haven't worked and everyone is ready to write everyone's obituary'". The Indian Express. 16 August 2022. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
  16. "Sohum Shah wraps up shoot for his upcoming film 'Maharani'". 7 April 2021.
  17. "भोपाल में चल रही शूटिंग:कौन है यह महारानी, जो मुख्यमंत्री बन गई".
  18. "LA complex in Jammu gears up for 'Maharani' shoot today".
  19. "Jammu: महारानी वेब सीरीज में मिला जम्मू के रिकार्ड कलाकारों को मौका".
  20. "Film Shooting in Assembly: जम्‍मू-कश्‍मीर ने पहली बार बालीवुड के लिए खोल दिए विधानसभा के द्वार".
  21. "Sohum Shah on comparisons with Lalu Prasad Yadav after Maharani: 'Expected this but it's a fictional story'". 2 June 2021.
  22. "Maharani review: Huma Qureshi shines in a sanitised portrayal of Rabri Devi to form an engaging political drama". 28 May 2021.
  23. "Maharani review: Huma Qureshi tries her best, but SonyLIV's hollow show is over-plotted yet underwritten". 28 May 2021.
  24. "Maharani - Season 1 review". The Times of India.
  25. "Maharani Review: Maharani". The Times Of India. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  26. Tanna, Amrita (2021-05-27). "Digital Review: 'Maharani' (Sony LIV)". BizAsia | Media, Entertainment, Showbiz, Brit, Events and Music. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  27. "Twinkle Khanna reviews Huma Qureshi's new show Maharani, notices 'little touches' that add realism". 29 May 2021.
  28. "Shatrughan Sinha praises Huma Qureshi's performance in Maharani; says she has the potential of becoming a role model for other artists". Bollywood Hungama. 17 June 2021.
  29. "Shatrughan Sinha is all praise for Huma Qureshi; actress thanks 'Teesre Badshah' for the love". The Times of India.
  30. "Maharani Review: Huma Qureshi's political drama is about Saheb, Biwi aur Bihar".
  31. "Maharani Review: Opportunists Everywhere in Huma Qureshi and Sohum Shah's Show". 28 May 2021.
  32. "Jungle Raj Inverted: 'Maharani' Gets Caste Better Than Many Others". 2 June 2021.
  33. "Maharani Review: Huma Qureshi-Led Cast Plugs Gaps In Tale Of Ambition And Betrayal".
  34. "Maharani review: After a few flourishes, this Huma Qureshi drama is just a drag". 28 May 2021.
  35. Jha, Subhash K. (2021-05-29). ""Maharani is strongly recommended." – A Subhash K Jha Review". BollySpice. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  36. "'Maharani' review: This potboiler about Bihar politics never stops simmering".
  37. Patra, Rony. "Maharani Sony LIV Original Series Review". LetsOTT. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  38. "Maharani web series review: Huma Qureshi is sensational in this intriguing game of political chess". Bollywood Life. 2021-05-28. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  39. "Maharani Review: Huma Qureshi-led 'Sahib, Biwi aur Bihar' political drama off to intriguing start". Zoom TV. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  40. Bureau, Binged (2021-05-27). "Maharani Web Series Review - Well-Crafted Chronicle Of A Story That Needed Telling". Binged. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  41. "Maharani Review: Rabri Devi's Saga Featuring Huma Qureshi Gets An Outrageous But Interesting Spin". SpotboyE. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  42. "Maharani Season 2 Review: An enthralling political drama sequel with compelling performances". The Times Of India. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
  43. "OTT रिव्यू:इमोशन और एंटरटेनमेंट से भरपूर महारानी लौटीं, राजनीतिक उठा-पटक और महत्वकांक्षा से भरपूर है सीरीज". Dainik Bhaskar. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
  44. "Maharani 2 review: Huma Qureshi reigns supreme in a show that is a lesson in how political thrillers should be made". Hindustan Times. 25 August 2022. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
  45. Bharatvarsh, TV9 (25 August 2022). "Review : फिर एक बार रानी की हुईं दमदार एंट्री, ट्विस्ट एंड टर्न से भरपूर महारानी 2 का ये सीजन". TV9 Bharatvarsh (in Hindi). Retrieved 27 August 2022.
  46. Bhatti, Zoya (26 August 2022). "Maharani 2 sees Rani Bharti go from political pawn to queen bee. Watch it for Huma Qureshi". ThePrint. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
  47. Ramnath, Nandini. "'Maharani' season 2 review: Another, more focused, round of self-serving politics". Scroll.in. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
  48. "Maharani 2 Review: Huma Qureshi Continues To Reign & The Show Finally Finds The Soul It Deserved Since The First Season". Koimoi. 25 August 2022. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
  49. "झारखंड: 'महारानी' वेब सीरीज के रिलीज होने से पहले बढ़ा बवाल, यादव महासभा ने दर्ज कराया ऑनलाइन FIR".
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