Maharani (transl. The Great Queen) is a 2023 Indian Malayalam-language comedy-drama film directed by G. Marthandan.[2] The film stars Roshan Mathew and Shine Tom Chacko, alongside Johny Antony, Harisree Ashokan, Balu Varghese, Jaffar Idukki, Nisha Sarang and Sruthy Jayan.

Maharani
Theatrical release poster
Directed byG. Marthandan
Written byRatheesh Ravi
Produced bySujit Balan
Starring
CinematographyLoganathan Srinivasan
Edited byNoufal Abdullah
Music by
Production
companies
  • SB Films
  • Badusha Productions
Distributed byBadushaa Cinemas Release (through Aan Mega Media)
Release date
  • 24 November 2023 (2023-11-24)[1]
Running time
127 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageMalayalam

The film was officially announced in September 2022. Principal photography began in October in Cherthala and wrapped up in November. The songs were composed by Govind Vasantha, while the background score was given by Gopi Sundar. The cinematography and editing were handled by Loganathan Srinivasan and Noufal Abdullah.

Maharani was released on 24 November 2023.

Cast edit

Production edit

Development edit

Maharani marks the return of G. Marthandan after a five-year gap following Johny Johny Yes Appa (2018).[3] In an interview with The Hindu, he said that the film was planned earlier but got delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[4] He also finalised the cast in 2019.[4] The project was officially launched in late September 2023 in Kochi with a customary puja ceremony.[5] Sujit Balan produced the film under the banner of SB Films, in association with Badusha Productions.[6] The film also marks the banner's initial production.[7] The script was written by Ratheesh Ravi, who is known for Ishq (2019) and Adi (2023).[3] It marks his first collaboration with G. Marthandan.[3] Loganathan Srinivasan and Noufal Abdullah were assigned as the cinematographer and editor, respectively.[7]

Filming edit

Principal photography reportedly began on 1 October 2022 in Cherthala.[8] The filming wrapped up in the first week of November 2022.[9] It was reportedly the first film in Kerala to be completely shot with Sony's Venice 2 camera.[8]

Music edit

The songs were composed by Govind Vasantha and the background score was provided by Gopi Sundar.[10] The first song "Chathayadina Paatu" was released on 31 August 2023, sung by Kapil Kapilan and written by Anwar Ali.[11]

Release edit

The film was censored with a U/A certificate by the Central Board of Film Certification.[12] Maharani was released in theatres on 24 November 2023.[13]

Reception edit

Critical response edit

Anandu Suresh of The Indian Express gave 2 out of 5 stars and wrote, "Maharani is a watchable film if you are ready to completely switch off your brain and let the movie guide you on its journey."[14] Anna Mathews of The Times of India gave 2 out of 5 stars and wrote, "Ultimately, it feels strange that director G Marthandan, the actors and producer Sujit Balan felt that this story by Ratheesh Ravi was worth their effort."[15]

Swathi P. Ajith of Onmanorama wrote, "The film seems decent but lacks brilliance. Although there are scenes that provoke laughter and curiosity – such as Aji and his gang embarking on a bike journey in search of Rani – the overall impact is moderate."[16] Vignesh Madhu of Cinema Express gave 2 out of 5 stars and wrote, "The film gets funniest when Roshan, Shine and Johny Antony are together, but this union doesn't happen too often."[17]

References edit

  1. ^ "Maharani: Roshan Mathew, Shine Tom Chacko's comedy entertainer gets a release date". OTTPlay. 8 October 2023.
  2. ^ "Maharani". British Board of Film Classification. Archived from the original on 6 December 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  3. ^ a b c Madhu, Vignesh (20 November 2023). "Maharani director Marthandan: My films should be paisa vasool for the audience". Cinema Express. Archived from the original on 6 December 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  4. ^ a b Anand, Shilpa Nair (23 November 2023). "Malayalam movie 'Maharani,' starring Roshan Mathew and Shine Tom Chacko is a mass entertainer: G Marthandan". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 24 November 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  5. ^ "Roshan Mathew and Shine Tom Chacko to headline 'Maharani'". The New Indian Express. 30 September 2022. Archived from the original on 14 October 2022. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  6. ^ "Roshan Mathew And Shine Tom Chacko Team Up Upcoming Malayalam Film Maharani". News18. 1 October 2022. Archived from the original on 1 December 2022. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  7. ^ a b "Roshan Mathew and Shine Tom Chacko to headline Maharani". Cinema Express. 29 September 2022. Archived from the original on 18 October 2022. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  8. ^ a b "Release Date Of Roshan Mathew, Shine Tom Chacko-starrer Maharani Out". News18. 3 October 2023. Archived from the original on 8 October 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  9. ^ "റോഷന്‍, ഷൈന്‍, ബാലു; ജി മാര്‍ത്താണ്ഡന്‍റെ 'മഹാറാണി' പൂര്‍ത്തിയായി". Asianet News Network Pvt Ltd (in Malayalam). 6 November 2022. Archived from the original on 6 December 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  10. ^ "Shine Tom Chacko, Roshan Mathew's Maharani, gets a release date". Cinema Express. 1 October 2023. Archived from the original on 22 November 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  11. ^ "Chathayadina Paatu: Maharani makers release first single". Cinema Express. 31 August 2023. Archived from the original on 7 September 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  12. ^ "Shine Tom Chako, Roshan Mathews' Maharani clears censor formalities". Cinema Express. 12 November 2023. Archived from the original on 6 December 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  13. ^ Bureau, The Hindu (2 October 2023). "Roshan Mathew, Shine Tom Chacko starrer 'Maharani' gets a release date". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 12 October 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  14. ^ Suresh, Anandu (24 November 2023). "Maharani movie review: Roshan Mathew, Shine Tom Chacko film is a laugh riot if and only if you are willing to switch off your brain". The Indian Express. Archived from the original on 25 November 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  15. ^ Mathews, Anna (24 November 2023). "Maharani Movie Review : Roshan Mathew & Shine Tom struggle with a weak story". The Times of India. ISSN 0971-8257. Archived from the original on 25 November 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  16. ^ P. Ajith, Swathi (24 November 2023). "'Maharani' review: Compelling performances lift this Roshan Mathew-Shine Tom movie despite lacking brilliance". Onmanorama. Archived from the original on 25 November 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  17. ^ Madhu, Vignesh (24 November 2023). "Maharani Movie Review: A well-intentioned but overlong comedy". Cinema Express. Archived from the original on 28 November 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2023.

External links edit