Maharaj: Aamir Khan's Son, Junaid Khan's Debut Netflix Film And Its Quiet Release (image-Instagram/netflix_in)
Son of the legendary actor Aamir Khan, Junaid Khan is making his Bollywood debut tomorrow with his Yash Raj Films-Netflix release Maharaj. And interestingly, the movie is about to be released without any trailers and promotions other than a single poster.
Yash Raj Films (YRF), one of the prominent production houses of Bollywood, is launching Junaid Khan in the period drama. Apart from this, there are interesting factors around this Netflix release. Going against the usual norm, the makers of the movie have strangely not released any teasers or trailers for its premiere tomorrow.
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Even more surprisingly, neither Junaid nor his father Aamir, has spoken anything about the film. So far, we have seen just one poster of the film where Junaid can be seen sharing space with Jaideep Ahlawat. The film has set itself stand out from the traditional process of a movie release, which seems to have made the audience even more curious about it.
As per media reports, the controversy surrounding the film’s portrayal of a Hindu religious leader is the reason. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad’s youth wing, represented by the Bajrang Dal, has raised objections for seemingly portraying a religious leader in a negative light and hurting religious sentiments. The makers have not responded to their letter requesting an early screening. It appears that YRF and Netflix India don’t want to add fuel to the controversy, and have collectively decided on minimal promotion to avoid negative publicity. According to media reports, the makers believe that its strong content will speak for itself once it’s out.
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Based on a true event, the story of the film Maharaj is based on an 1862 libel case in which journalist and reformer Karsandas Mulji was sued by a religious leader Jadunathji Brijratanji Maharaj for writing a libelous article questioning the principles of the Vallabhacharya Sampradaya, a Hindu sect of which Maharaj was a member. The article exposed how the sect’s structure was built on abusing women sexually, even to the point where male followers were encouraged to offer their wives sex with the religious leaders as a sign of their devotion. Junaid plays the fearless journalist, while Ahlawat portrays the religious leader.
A hashtag has been trending on X (formerly known as Twitter) against the release of the movie, which says #BoycottNetflix.
Amidst all these controversies, Maharaj will make its debut on Netflix tomorrow. Sharing the poster, Netflix said, “The fight for the truth between a powerful man and a fearless journalist. Based on true events—Maharaj is releasing on 14 June, only on Netflix!”
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