Manasi is a busy banking professional in suburban Mumbai, stretched thin between work deadlines and raising a family. When domestic chaos overwhelms her, she leans on Rani, a loud and unconventional house help whose eccentric methods bring both madness and warmth into the home. After Rani is fired following a string of mishaps, Manasi's search for a replacement becomes a reckoning with the invisible labour that holds every household together.
Maharani takes a subject Gujarati cinema rarely centres, the working woman and the house help who keeps her life running, and builds a whole comedy of feeling around it. Manasi is a banking professional in suburban Mumbai, competent at her job and drowning at home, until Rani walks in with loud energy, odd methods and a knack for turning chaos into something that works. When Rani is fired after a run of mishaps, the hunt for a replacement forces Manasi to see how much unpaid, unseen labour was holding her household up.
The film is a Gujarati remake of the 2024 Marathi hit Nach Ga Ghuma, and writers Raam Mori and Hardik Sangani do more than translate it. They root the humour in middle-class Gujarati rhythms, the morning tea, the kitchen politics, the small negotiations between two women on opposite sides of a salary. Director Viral Shah keeps the tone steady between farce and sincerity. Shraddha Dangar is the engine here, messy and funny and never a caricature, while Manasi Parekh plays it restrained, letting frustration soften into empathy.
Critics were warm. Divya Bhaskar gave it 3.5 out of 5, calling Dangar the soul of the film and praising Parth Bharat Thakkar's score, and Glamsham matched that at 3.5 for its powerhouse leads. The complaints were consistent too, the story stays boxed inside a single home and the product placements are pushy enough to break the spell more than once. Neither sinks it. Maharani is a small film with a generous heart, and it earns its laughs and its lump in the throat honestly.
Verdict
A warm, well-acted social comedy that turns the unseen labour of a household into real feeling, carried by Shraddha Dangar and Manasi Parekh.
What works
- Shraddha Dangar's scene-stealing turn as Rani
- Manasi Parekh restrained and grounded
- Warm, relatable domestic humour
- Localises the Marathi original with real Gujarati texture
What holds it back
- Intrusive product placements break immersion
- Largely confined to a single setting
- The ending stretches a little
- Familiar beats for anyone who saw Nach Ga Ghuma
Cast & crew
Writers: Raam Mori, Hardik Sangani
Music: Parth Bharat Thakkar
Cast: Manasi Parekh (Manasi), Shraddha Dangar (Rani), Ojas Rawal (Jignesh), Sanjay Goradia (Rambo), Kaushambi Bhatt (Kajal)
Producers: Kumar Mangat Pathak, Abhishek Pathak, Pritesh Thakkar, Madhu Sharma, Viral Shah
Watch the trailer
Play the official trailer on YouTubeMore from Viral Shah
More Comedy Gujarati films
Frequently asked
Is Maharani worth watching?
A warm, well-acted social comedy that turns the unseen labour of a household into real feeling, carried by Shraddha Dangar and Manasi Parekh. Kevu Che rates it 3.5 out of 5.
What is Maharani about?
Manasi is a busy banking professional in suburban Mumbai, stretched thin between work deadlines and raising a family. When domestic chaos overwhelms her, she leans on Rani, a loud and unconventional house help whose eccentric methods bring both madness and warmth into the home. After Rani is fired following a string of mishaps, Manasi's search for a replacement becomes a reckoning with the invisible labour that holds every household together.
What is the IMDb rating of Maharani?
Maharani (2025) holds an IMDb rating of 8.2 out of 10.