Maharaja(2024)

 

Maharaja

Nithilan Swaminathan, who also co-wrote the story with Raam Murali, is the director of the 2024 Indian Tamil-language action thriller Maharaja, which translates to "The Great King." Think Studios, Passion Studios, and The Route collaborated in its production. In addition to Anurag Kashyap, Mamta Mohandas, Natarajan Subramaniam, Abhirami Gopikumar, Singampuli, Aruldoss, Munishkanth, Sachana Namidass, Manikandan, and Bharathiraja, Vijay Sethupathi plays the title role in the movie.

In February 2023, the movie was formally unveiled under the working title VJS50, honoring Sethupathi's half-century of acting credits. The same month, principal photography began, most happening in Chennai on a single schedule. In July, the official title was revealed along with the conclusion of filming and the addition of Think Studios as a co-producer. B. Ajaneesh Loknath wrote the film's music, Dinesh Purushothaman handled the photography, and Philomin Raj handled the editing.

On June 14, 2024, Maharaja was released globally in theaters to a resounding round of applause from critics who lauded Sethupathi's performance, Philomin's editing, and Swaminathan's script and direction. The film also saw tremendous success at the box office. It became the fourth highest-grossing Tamil film of 2024 and set the record for the largest opening weekend in Tamil cinema history. 

 

⚠ SPOIL ALERT ⚠

Movie-

Maharaja is a calm man who works as a barber in Chennai's Ramki Saloon. His wife dies when a truck crashes into his home one day. Jothi, his daughter, is covered by garbage that collapses and barely makes it out alive. The dustbin is named "Lakshmi" by Maharaja and Jothi out of devotion.

To the cops' amusement, Maharaja goes to the local police station one day and reports a robbery, claiming that Lakshmi has been taken. He describes how an armed gang broke into his home, battered him, and kidnapped Lakshmi. When he offers to pay ₹5 lakhs to the culprits, the police agree to search for an empty trash can instead of exerting themselves. Nallasivam, an unofficial police informant, is brought in.

Past (2009): A couple named Selvam and Sabari would break into homes, rape women, and then kill them. Sabari tells Selvam one day that their crimes have been reported in the papers. During the phone call, Selvam happens to be getting his beard trimmed at Ramki Saloon, and he has a suspicion that Maharaja overheard. As he goes, he leaves behind a gold chain that he intends to give his infant daughter Ammu at the bar. When Maharaja goes to return it to Selvam, the cops show there at the same time. After shooting Sabari, they detain Selvam, who thinks Maharaja has turned on him.

Present (2024): Maharaja observes a delinquent named Dhana get into a brawl at a bar. Dhana works in an auto garage. In the meantime, Nallasivam consents to play the offender to "solve" the garbage case. For Nallasivam to respond appropriately, the police urge Maharaja to repeat the incident over the phone.

While Maharaja describes what happened, a flashback shows what actually transpired, showing that Jothi was the victim of the incident rather than him. While Maharaja was still at work, Jothi had returned home from a sports camp that her physical education teacher, Aasifa, had organized. Three men in the home are supposed to kill him: Selvam, Dhana, and Nallasivam.Maharaja isn't home, but Selvam still feels he ratted him out fourteen years ago and swore revenge. Rather, Jothi is physically attacked by them, and Nallasivam repeatedly rapes her. Jothi gets admitted to the hospital. Returning home, Maharaja discovers the bar brawl Dhana was involved in thanks to a dropped receipt from Dhana. Before Maharaja beheads him, Dhana admits that one of his accomplices is inside the police station. At this point, as was initially shown, he visits the police station and makes up a tale about how his trash can was taken.

Currently, Nallasivam, feeling a little agitated, is brought to Maharaja's residence by Inspector Varadharajan and his group to return the trash can. Varadharajan then discloses that after looking into Dhana's death, his team had come to the conclusion that Nallasivam had raped Jothi. They so pulled off the charade of bringing him before Maharaja to exact vigilante justice, which allowed Maharaja the discretion to punish him. Before killing him, Maharaja discovers the identity of the third accomplice.

When he gets to Selvam's building site, he renders him incapable of moving and brings Jothi to him per her request. Jothi throws a bundle of jewelry in his direction, thinking he came to their house to get it. The gold necklace that Selvam had purchased for Ammu on her birthday—the very one that Maharaja had come to return so many years prior—is discovered among the jewelry.

More background is provided, revealing the entire scene from when Maharaja's wife passed away at the beginning. Maharaja, his spouse, and their infant visited Kokila, Selvam's wife, to her new home following his apprehension to return the chain. A truck crashed into Kokila's house when Maharaja was going to purchase Ammu a gift from the store across the street. Ammu was the only one who survived, thanks to the trashcan Lakshmi. Ammu is taken in by Maharaja, who renames her and nurtures her as his own daughter. Selvam discovers that he was unintentionally involved in the rape and assault of his own daughter when he notices a scar on Jothi's shoulder—the same scar that newborn Ammu has. Along with her teacher Aasifa, Jothi departs with Maharaja. Selvam jumps from the building and kills himself out of guilt.