Maja Ma (2022) Poster

(2022)

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7/10
Brilliant movie with good character setup!
arnab_91114 October 2022
This is a movie which will be enjoyed by couples truly deeply committed towards their relationship and who love their life and the persons surrounding them. If someone is not attached to their family life then they cannot connect with the movie. Madhuri Dikshit as alway remarkable and we'll complimented by all the actors with her. Character setup of the most miniscule character is of top notch. You can actually relate to them. Movie is moderately paced and their is bit of comedy in the beginning, a bit of argument in the middle and a whole lot of tear jerking moment in the end. The bittersweet ending just takes the cake.
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7/10
A nice family entertainer which focuses on relationships
madanmarwah13 October 2022
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.
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7/10
LGBTQIA - An Over squeeze topic presented in Different Format
skmenon19939 October 2022
*** 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.
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6/10
Watch this at your own risk, might get headache after listening fake American accent.
bikkikumarsingh7 October 2022
Very interesting movie, I was hooked till the first half.

Climax thik se samajh nahi aaya but it is a ok ok movie.

Talking about the most annoying character of this film, one and only Tara (Tejas' sister) and what about her husband ?? What was he doing in the movie I didn't understand.

And don't get me started about Barkha and her parents intolerable fake American accent, my god.

I had to take 2 dart tablets to get rid from the headache I got after listening their fake American accent.

Madhuri and her hone waali samdhan's acting is the core point I guess.

Gajraj Rao's boner moment will make you laugh for sure, overall a good movie.
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9/10
Very well done!
aman-738016 October 2022
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.
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7/10
Worth watching and educating people
adityastark-529933 March 2023
Warning: Spoilers
Simone Singh's (kanchan) role is quietly good and most importantly, this movie really educate people that 'relation matters' a lot in a nuclear family. And the role of Ritwik and Barkha (Tejas and Esha) both have well acted and aced on their respective roles in the movie. Literally everyone should watch this movie (especially orthodox people) should watch this movie. Director Anand tiwari has also gave us a well directed movie and gave a proper education towards this LGBTQAS+ lifestyle's and what is the real meaning of the concept. Literally after watching this movie, truly "Maja Ma" nailed in Amazon prime video...
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1/10
Blatant, over-stretched and boring!
hemkant10 October 2022
Its very boring movie. All actors are Specially Madhuri Dixit is Acting Like Drama on Stage. But she is good in some scenes but fail to impress audience. Simone sing looks good and she was best but she hadn't more screen footage. Rest of characters of the film just ok and that lie detector test gosh!! So horrible.

I have seen many LGBT theme movies this one was the most weakest. I feel Shabana Azmi and Nandita das starrer Fire was more engaged.

Movie drags on and on. No songs to remember by.

Not even a one time watch...nothing new in this movie.

If you want to kill your time then please go ahead.
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8/10
All well (maja ma)
sameerlodaya6 October 2022
Sameer lodaya

In Gujarati MAJA MA means all good and trust me here in movie it's all very good

WOW what a content made by anand after his ott release of nail polish and bandish bandits..this movie he has made very colourful and bright showing the true case of Gujarat cultures

Hats off to madhuri to accept such challenging roles and getting accustomed with ott platform..she looked gorgeous and about acting she was and she is on the top..simultaneously gajraj with his naughty and cute expressions has been amazing..the young one ritwik after whistle blower has once again proved himself..malhar was unused

The movie has high level of maturity and emotions about how a Indian woman selflessly devotes her entire life for her family expecting nothing out of it..the humour and emotions are nicely balanced

The movie will give you all elements of entertainment.
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6/10
Modern Indian take on gender issue
qui_j24 October 2022
This movie is one of the new offerings from India that tackles social issues that were previously buried or ignored in that country. It's interesting enough but unfortunately fizzles out at the end in a Bollywood type dance finale that adds little to the story. The fake American accents used are particularly annoying and grating to the air. Would have been less egregious to just have the actors speak normally. The central social issue theme is really never fully explored, and the script just seems a bit superficial. One imagines this is due to censorship, but it does go beyond the limits usually seen in many Indian movies.
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1/10
Horrible Movie.
soniyakadam-1681110 October 2022
I am all for equal rights and i understand it can be very difficult. But it looks like they tried to add everything possible to make it more easy to hate few characters of the movie. There accent is way off and i couldn't even watch 40 mins of the movie. It would have been better if it had a bit more simple story line or even better based on a real story it would have been so much better. It also looks unpolished and incomplete somehow. I would recommend this movie to anyone it's honestly just a waste of time. Most actors in the movie are not even showing their potential and rest just got a movie to be in .
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10/10
Wonderful Movie
vineetminocha14 October 2022
It's such an amazing movie. So happy to see mainstream actors like Madhuri Dixit portraying LGBT characters now a days. This movie highlights sensetive issues of LGBT community in a very decent way. Nevertheless, I loved the story and the movie made me emotional. The best part about the movie is the social message which teaches everyone to be sensitive towards the diverse communities.

The movie shows how people of older generation face the challenges in the Indian society just because they are different from others and don't fit in hetronormative world. Having said that, it is a family movie which people of all generations should watch with their family. A must watch and I recommend it to everyone.
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3/10
Gorgeous Madhuri, Bad Execution.
nadkarnisumeet8 October 2022
Maja Ma review :

Expecting a nice family entertainer featuring my favourite Madhuri Dixit, Maja Ma completely belied me. It is neither a family movie nor is it entertaining in anyway. The truth be told - the film is a laboured and cautious take on same sex preference with needless preachy moments and a finale as believable as Christmas in October.

What's worse is the supporting cast comprising otherwise fine actors like Rajit Kapur, Sheeba Chaddha and Gajraj Rao saddled with ineffective characterisations. Particularly, Sheeba and Rajit are made to talk in an outlandish "American" accent which jars and irritates. Gajraj Rao gets a viagra induced hard-on in middle of a family outing which fails to make you lol.

As for Madame Madhuri, she looks gorgeous as ever. She acts fabulous as always. And she remains the film's only praise-worthy factor. Her choice of subject was actually bold and beautiful here. It is the execution that sucks!!

Regards, Sumeet Nadkarni.
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8/10
A movie about love, family and friendship
surabhirao886 October 2022
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.
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1/10
This film is very Simple, Slow & Stupid!
inforaza12 November 2022
This film is very Simple & Slow - and lacking in overall Intensity (except in couple of Scenes)! Not impressed at all!

The most STUPID thing in the film is the arbitrary Lie Detector test that Pallavi (Madhuri Dixit) was pressured by the family of her Son's Lover to undergo, to prove she was NOT a Lesbian! What a ridiculous idea by the film-makers!

In case you didn't know, Lie Detector test results are NOT considered genuine Proof for anything, even in Courts! Using it for any out-of-court "confirmation" of anything is a Sick Joke!

This Test is nothing but irritating Nautanki!

And after taking this Test, Pallavi, while talking to her Son, says, "Had they asked me if I'd loved a woman, I'd have happily failed the Test. I am thinking...if I've given all my love to my family, then one day my Lie would've easily become the Truth."

This "Lie becoming Truth" does not make any sense at all! What "lie"? Is it that she is not a Lesbian? And how come this will become the Truth since she has given all her love to her family?

What she said to her son simply does not make any sense? Sounds totally illogical!
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10/10
Fantastic Entertainer
csanubhavshrivastava8 October 2022
Maja Ma is a lovely family drama with subtle emotions, realistic approach and powerful performances. It touches a sensitive subject and executes it brilliantly. Madhuri Dixit has a lifetime role with this film. She has always been a great actress but with this one she leveled up even higher. She has transformed her act and skills as per today's genere and that's commendable. Gajraj Rao is as usual proves why he's called the King of Feel Good Sensible Films. Ritwik Bhowmik has a dream role with this after his mega success Bandish Bandits! Shrishti Shrivastava is an awesome promising performer. Simone Singh is lovely.. you just cannot have enough of her.. Overall it's a Fantastic Drama. Must Watch you will love it.
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1/10
Absolute let down
raosads11 October 2022
Like everybody else I ventured to watch it because it stars Madhuri Dixit. What a disappointment that Madhuri agreed to such a pathetic story that feels made up from the get go. Every character comes across as made up and artificial. Whoever wrote the story is either way over his head or just does not care. The movie does not serve the LGBTQ cause or anything it tries to portray (the NRI, the indian family). I could not continue watching it even though Madhuri Dixit is as scintillating as ever in her acting, looks and dance. Madhuri, please please pick something that befits your class. If it is a cause you want to serve, please make sure it does as it promises.
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8/10
Beautiful movie
mayankfeb6 October 2022
It's a great performance oriented pretty movie, highly recommended. It has a high feel good factor too. The performances by all the actors are amazing. Madhuri Dixit is graceful as ever, she ages like a fine wine, Gajraj Rao has some cool comic timing. The way a sensitive topic has been picked up is beautiful too. Rithvik Bhowmik is class in himself, very promising actor.

Must mention, the colours of Gujarat and the backdrop is very authentic. The clothes, lighting and Gujarati blend in dialogues elevate the whole setting. It's funny how fake English accents from the NRI counterparts is interesting too.
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1/10
Badly written social drama
prakashmalipatil-3226215 October 2022
Very badly written social drama with fake accents of NRI's. It is so pathetic and intolerable to watch the stupid accent with which Rajat Kapur and Sheeba chedda speak makes you feel cringe. Indian People living here in USA do not talk like that, stupid! Every other actor in the movies changes their accent based on their whims. What is the stupid backdrop of lie detector test. It was really pathetic.

Only saving grace was Madhuri who tried and failed to save the sinking ship. It has become a fashion to make movies based on LGBTQ themes but Please do some research before jumping to make movies.
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8/10
Maja ma
puranjanbasak14 October 2022
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.
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1/10
Son's engagement breaks, mom declares happily that she'll dance today
proultimatepremium16 October 2022
Warning: Spoilers
Wow, just wow. This is the most awkward, cringe garbage to come out of bollywood in recent times with a 1980s caricaturized representation of pretty much everyone - LGBTQIA+, reporters, feminists, NRIs, etc.

Right before the ending scene, the son is crying because he broke off his engagement, and the mother comes and declares to her ex-lesbian flame that she's going to dance tonight.

The characters are all single dimensional and boring. You get tired of Madhuri Dixit being given almost all the frames in the movie because she's the only big star in the movie.

Most of all, the representation of NRIs as 1980s caricatures, putting on an American accent all the time is the cringiest you can imagine - specially the vomit-inducing 'America' song and dance number the bride's dad puts on at the end.

Save yourself the cringe and skip this one.
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10/10
Madhuri Dixit's Best Movie
shuvoranjankarmokar7 October 2022
The story the message the casting everything r just mind blowing. It's a must watch film. Do watch it on Amazon prime. The way a housewife took steps to find her identity it's impressed me a lot. And the MADHURI DIXIT is always add goosebumps moment in life. The way she expresses her emotions , she delivers her dialogues totally breath taking. Being a Bollywood fan i can loudly say that noone could do better role than Madhuri Dixit. And each actors did a veryy veryyyy good job. Loved the whole casting . And i must admit the songs, soulful songs. For me its 10/10 Undoubtedly .

Go watch it guys.
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3/10
Half Baked Story
sanjeevanwar10 October 2022
Anwar Says: A half- baked story with actors looking restrained from their characters, in particular Madhuri Dixit . A subject like LGBTQ should be handled very sensitively but the director Anand Tiwary has not been able to either convey any message or make the audience laugh .

Two comic characters with worst American accent, Rajit Kapur and Sheeba Chaddha looked buffoon and irritating. The only character did justice to her role is Simone Singh and her thrashing to Sheeba in theth Punjabi is probably the best sequence of the movie. The biggest disappointment is Mrs. Dixit , hardly came close to play the complex emotions, of which she is capable of and looked stiff .Gajraj Rao also could not flourish due to poor script.

Maja Ma is a flight that took off but couldn't land anywhere, so better look for something more meaningful. 3/10 from me.

#amazonprime #anwarsays #MadhuriDixit #movie2022 #lgbtqcommunity #poorstory #GajrajRao #reviewmovie #AnandTiwari.
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10/10
Worth watching
shivasingh-171708 October 2022
The story of movie is bit different but emotions and screenplay by all the actors is such a class apart.

Madhuri dixit has done wonders, she has potrayed such a simple yet engaging character which forces audience to feel the pain and emotions which character is going through.

Even the daughter character is also fabulous.

Fantastic story, screenplay and direction that without any big male star and different music the movie captures the attention of audience till the last moment.such a fair play by all the characters.

You may or may not support the the theme of the movie which is a social issue but the story is different and engaging.
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1/10
Stupid Movie!
Movies-On-Weekend6 January 2023
I saw the rating and decided to watch this movie... What a waste!!! The fake high rating is from the LGBT community.

I don't know why Madhuri has to be the "oh so cool" dancer in every single movie.

There was no story line. Most of the actors were really awkward. Simone Singh was the only one worth praising. Gajraj's acting was also good but the ending was like Christmas in October.

The daughter Tara was the dumbest of all characters. Neglecting her own family and house, and always out on the streets in the name of social work.

If Pallavi was always so awkward in front of Kanchan then why in the world did she marry her daughter to Kanchan's son?

Complete waste of time.
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10/10
Madhuri Dixit - The Indian Meryl Streep
praptiroy-789659 October 2022
A story that needed to be told. Beautifully made, perfect casting, beautiful songs and wonderful performances. A really good film from Hindi cinema after a long time. Anand Tiwari portrays human emotions so wonderfully.

MadhuriDixit has upped her game seriously and if this is how her second innings is going to be, we are in for a major treat in the times to come! The amount of acting MadhuriDixit has done in this single piece of project is unbelievable ! How can one be this good actor! Her body language through the journey from being the "perfect" woman to coming out is in itself a treat to watch. She doesn't have any great monologues but she doesn't even need any, her face says it all! They really don't make 'em like her anymore. How can she look this beautiful, sad..and content in the same frame...well that's Madhuri Dixit the actress for you folks..legend for a reason...👏
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