Junaid Khan in ‘Maharaj’.
| Photo Credit: YRF/YouTube
Junaid Khan, who starred in the recently released film, Maharaj, has received good response’ from the audience. Maharaj delves into the 1862 Maharaj Libel Case, one of India’s most significant legal battles, and highlights the life of social reformer Karsandas Mulji.
During a conversation with ANI, Junaid opened up about how he was inspired by the story of Karsandas Mulji, “He was a real person who in 1862 was talking about those things which are happening even today. It happens in society today. And it happens in every society. And he was fighting about it during that period. So I found the character and the story very inspirational, that there is a man who had so much understanding back then.”
Speaking about what attracted him to the script, he said, “I used to perform in dramas since 2017 and have been called for movie auditions as well. Siddharth sir and Aditya (Chopra) sir called me after seeing an audition of mine. When I listened to the story, I really liked it.”
Talking about his emotional rollercoaster journey of film release, director Siddharth P Malhotra said, “I was influenced by his (Junaid) character when I saw his play. It was released 4-5 years ago. It was a Gujarati drama. His play is Vipul Mehta who is the director of the play and the co-writer of this film. When I saw the play, I said that it is a story of a journalist. He used to live in Baikala.
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He was a social worker. He used to stand up for the things that were right. Things that were considered wrong at that time but are right today. So I said, this is the story of an unsung hero that should be told.”
The film, directed by Sidharth P Malhotra and produced by Yash Raj Films (YRF) Entertainment, also features Jaideep Ahlawat and Shalini Pandey, with a special appearance by Sharvari. The release of Maharaj faced a brief hurdle when the Gujarat High Court imposed a temporary stay on its release. However, this stay was lifted, prompting YRF to express its gratitude through an official statement.
