#Netflix
Language – Hindi
Year of release – 2026
Cast – Madhuri Dixit as Rekha, Tripti Dimri as Jaya, Dharna Durga as Sushma, Ravi Kishan as Gupta Ji, Paresh Rawal, Arunoday Singh as Maheshwari, Geetanjali Kulkarni as Gupta Ji’s wife, Rama Sharma as Goldie and a host of other characters who played their parts very well!
Trigger warning – Dark comedy
Plot – Rekha is a single mother living on her own in Adarsh Colony. A stylish, glamourous and ultra confident Rekha lives in a conservative colony where she is judged, ridiculed and hit on by men all the time. The story opens with Rekha finding the dead body of Gupta Ji in her house. She calls her two daughters Jaya and Sushma and asks them to head home immediately to sort the mess. What follows next is chaos, confusion, bitter family dynamics, a wedding in the neighbourhood, a deep dive into peoples reflections of others in their vicinity, women’s angst, fear and an overcoming of all the hurdles that they are thrown with!
I can’t give any more details of the plot without giving away spoilers and messing the story for the viewers. I will dwell into the characters instead and try and share my view of the characterisations that the director Suresh Triveni brings to us in this movie. Suresh Triveni is the writer and director of Tumhari Sullu. Suresh Triveni manages to bring out women’s sexuality, their fight for their personal identities and the male gaze in this dark comedy called Maa Behen. Often older women in Bollywood movies are typecast as the all suffering mother or the sacrificing one or the one who struggles with societal norms and economic issues. But not the women in Maa Behen!
It’s very heartening to see Madhuri Dixit as the mother who owns her sexuality, her glamour and her identity and fight the system that chooses to malign her at every step. It’s so refreshing to see her portray a role that many male contemporaries of hers are refusing to slide into. The men continue to play the lead men with younger women and not own their age while actors like Madhuri have moved on to playing roles that give her the opportunity to continue to enthral the audience with her acting capabilities while looking ravishing in her role! She is a woman who is constantly preyed on and yet manages to keep her dignity about her and run her household on her terms. Strong, yet vulnerable, she is a real woman in any locality!
Tripti Dimri as Jaya is a surprise package! She is struggling in her marital home and is the more sensible of the three women. But as the plot progresses, she breaks out of her mould and reveals a completely different persona! Watch her scene with her husband and the way she reclaims her identity!
Dharna Durga as Sushma is funny and layered. Her character of an influencer is so relatable to the many small town girls who do what it takes for their need to gain followers and engage with their audience. There is a certain innocence to her character that is layered with a self confidence that only she can carry!
Do watch out for Goldie! I won’t say much about her character except that she is the surprise element! Her mother too is a character you would want to keep your eyes on! She starts off as a bossy and loud wife and slowly transforms to a woman with sensibilities and intelligence! Also, the director pays a quirky homage to a popular washing powder ad! You must watch the whole movie to get the picture!
Dark comedy is a tough genre and there are very few movies that make the mark. This was one of them. The narration using a popular crime show to the showing of the male gaze, there is not a moment that does not push you to think. A lot is said about the social structures that exist around us and the constant moral policing each one is subjected at all times. The desperate struggle to break these stereotypes and own their lives is brought out very nicely in this movie. I would recommend you to watch it and share your thoughts about the characters.
I will give this a 10/10!
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