Five Underrated Marathi Movies and Where to Watch Them During This Lockdown!

|By Swarali Bodas |

Marathi Cinema are those movies that are made and produced in the Marathi language, the official language of Maharashtra. It was started way back in old Bombay. Shree Pundlik and Ayodhyecha Raja are the firsts in their kinds but Raja Harishchandra (1913) is known as the first full length feature film directed by Dadasaheb Phalke, the pioneer of Indian Cinema. Marathi Cinema is one of the oldest regional Cinema in India. It is one of the major film industries in India.

Directors like V Shantaram, Raja Paranjpe, Mahesh Kothare, Sachin Pilgaonkar, Madhugandha Kulkarni; Actors like Asha Kale, Shreeram Lagoo, Reema Lagoo, Ashok Saraf, Nivedita Joshi-Saraf, Jeetendra Joshi, Sai Tamhankar; Music Directors and singers like Ajay-Atul, Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosale, Hrudaynath Mangeshkar, Anand Modak, Suresh Wadkar etc have left their mark on the Marathi film industry and some of them have even received awards for their commendable works.

A lot of Marathi movies like Ashi Hi Banva Banvi, Bindaast, Duniyaadaari, Shwaas, Sairaat etc gained immense fame and popularity. No doubt they were as good as the fame and reach they got but there are still precious Marathi movies that were very good but did not get that much popularity and remained underrated. Let's see which are the 5 most underrated Marathi movies and where you can watch them during the lockdown:

1) Family Katta (2016)

Family Katta is a comedy drama starring Dilip Prabhavalkar, Vandana Gupte, in lead roles and it is directed by Chandrakant Kulkarni.

The movie revolves around a Maharashtrian Middle class elderly couple who live alone and their four children who live separately from them. They are shown celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary, and thus a get together of the 'Sabnis' family after many years. The two sons with their children, the third son, who is a bachelor and the only daughter with her husband, comes to the celebration. The movie has some light parts, but the inner rivalry/sourness in the sons itself is shown very peculiarly in the film. A twist in the second half definitely leaves you teary eyed.

Unlike other mainstream Marathi movies, this did not have any party songs, huge sets or a story just revolving around the love of the protagonists. This film was a reality check and shows the exact equations of relationships in a joint family. Indian audience are used to watching a happy, problem free joint family which is very rare in these times and the Veteran Director Chandrakant Kulkarni portrays the realities of the actual dynamics of an Indian family. Maybe that is why it wasn't as well received as it deserved to be!

Now streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

The film poster of 'Family Katta'. Picture courtesy: Cinecelluloid

2) Gulaabjaam (2018)

Gulaabjaam is a comedy drama starring Siddharth Chandekar and Sonali Kulkarni is lead roles and is directed by Sachin Kundalkar.

The film revolves around a NRI banker who quits his job without telling his parents or fiancé and comes to Pune to follow his passion of cooking. There he meets a woman who makes lunchboxes for bachelors like him. She then teaches him all aspects of cooking almost every kind of Maharashtrian dishes. Not only that, she teaches him how to buy vegetables and other ingredients and also how to wash utensils as even they're part of cooking food. As the film progresses, we see Siddharth Chandekar's character has found his true passion when he opens his own cafe in London that serves authentic Maharashtrian dishes.

The film received a lot of backlash because it didn't show or acknowledge every type of Maharashtrian cuisine. The Maharashtrian cuisine is very diverse and the film has only portrayed the protagonist making vegetarian dishes totally neglecting the fact that authentic Maharashtrian dishes include meat too. Due to this it wasn't well received by particular sections of the society even though it was the official entry to the Oscars that year in the Regional Cinema Category.

Now streaming on Zee 5.

The film poster of Gulaabjaam. Picture Courtesy: IMDB

3) One Room Kitchen (2011)

One Room Kitchen is a drama movie starring Bharat Jadhav, Bhargavi Chirmule. A small yet prominent character is also played by legendary actress Helen. It is directed by Mahesh Tilekar.

The story is a perfect contrast between middle and upper class lifestyles. Ravi and Suman are a middle class couple who live in a one room kitchen in a chawl with nosy but very helpful neighbours. Whereas, Suman's bestfriend Neha and her husband live in a posh 2bhk tower. When an emergency occurs in Neha's life, her upper middle class neighbours don't help her, but Suman and her chawl friends do.

The director beautifully portrays the dreams and aspirations of a middle class man to have his own house. Bharat Jadhav has always been face of comedy characters which he has played with immense perfection always. Just a year before this movie's release, Bharat Jadhav palyed a villain in a popular movie Ringa Ringa where he stepped out of his comfort zone and that performance was also well received. This did not quite happen in this movie, being one of the main reason why this movie wasn't that popular.Another reason is the film's strong dislike towards people living in posh towers is very evident throughout the film, almost showcasing them as villains. The film wasn't quite well received in the upper class audience even though it had a simple yet superb story line.

Now streaming on Zee 5.

Film poster of One Room Kitchen. Picture Courtesy: Wogma

4) Aamhi Doghi (2018)

Aamhi Doghi is a feminist movie starring Priya Bapat and Mukta Barve in lead roles and is directed by a very famous writer in Marathi literature, Pratima Joshi.

The movie is about two women, a relationship between a mother and daughter and how they overcome their differences and showcase their idea of freedom.

Savitri (Priya Bapat) the only daughter to her parents accepts the fact of her mother's sudden demise but it does not improve her relationship with her father. She, even being a 'practical approach' character doesn't support her father's remarriage after years and is in shock. However, she later comes to terms with it and the rest of the film is how they bond and develop their friendship.

The film's title, even though says 'Both of Us' is shown from Savitri's perspective only. Due to this we didn't quite explore much of Amma's side (Mukta Barve), this being a reason for the less response of the film. The protagonists should be 'likeable with only white areas' and a 'goody goody person' is the mindset of most of the people but this film portrays the protagonist as a rebellious person with many flaws which wasn't as accepting to the audience as an obedient daughter should be. This was one of the reasons the film was underrated even though the acting and writing was flawless.

Now streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

Film Poster of Aamhi Doghi. Picture courtesy: IMDB

5) Shikshanachya Aaicha Gho! (2010)

Shikshanachya Aaicha Gho! is a harsh reality drama movie starring Bharat Jadhav and Saksham Kulkarni in lead roles. It is directed by one of the best mainstream directors, Mahesh Manjrekar.

The story is about a teenage boy, Shrinivas Rane (Saksham Kulkarni) who is average in studies but excellent when it comes to cricket. His father,Madhukar Rane (Bharat Jadhav) like all other Indian parents neglects his talent and thinks a bright future can only be achieved through good marks. Shrinivas couldn't handle the pressure and thus it deteriorates the father-son relationship. The father, in a fit of rage does something so scary that he repents later.

The film was well received in the masses but wasn't that popular when it came to political parties as the movie also threw light on the corruption happening in the educational system and the rising rate of suicides amongst the youth and thus many problems occurred before the release of the film.

The film was also criticized because of the use of a Konkani slang in the title. This issue slightly overshadowed the beautiful screenplay and storyline of the movie.

Now streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

The film poster of Shikshanachya Aaicha Gho! Picture courtesy: Amazon.in

The above films are in arranged in no particular order but some of the most underrated but must watch movies in Marathi Cinema. These films aren't a typical Rom-Com or family drama but a reality check on some of the major issues in the society or in a family itself.