Waiting To Watch Gangubai Kathiawadi Online? Here's The Film's OTT Release Date

Like most Sanjay Leela Bhansali films, Gangubai Kathiawadi had a sense of grandeur, interspersed with beautiful sets and colourful sky. The film had a successful theatrical run when it was released in February this year. The release was not as smooth because the date for release kept shifting and the team was also dragged into a legal battle. Then there was the fear of COVID-19, which continues to discourage viewers from venturing into the theatres. If you too had been hoping for this Alia Bhatt-starrer to release on OTT soon, your wait might just be over.

Gangubai Kathiawadi revolves around the life of a woman called Gangubai, played by Alia Bhatt, who runs away from home with her lover in the hope of becoming a movie actor. Her favourite actor is Dev Anand and she cannot wait to star opposite him. But as life and fate would have it, she gets cheated by her lover, who sells her at a brothel in Mumbai.

Unable to return home and escape the brothel, which is run by a madame named Sheela Mausi (Seema Pahwa), she accepts her new life and carries on. The film initially focuses on Ganga's transformation into Gangubai and how she climbs through the hierarchy, soon taking control of the business and her life. Bhansali's direction projects Gangubai as an empathetic person, who cares about other sex workers around her and then fights for their rights and betterment.

Image Credit: YouTube screenshot

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The film had gotten entangled in legal cases as Gangubai's granddaughter Bharti Sonawane and adopted son Babu Raoji Shah were unhappy with how Bhansali had portrayed her. According to them, she was not a sex worker but a woman who stood for the rights of sex workers. Even the locals at Kamathipura protested against the release of the film as it showed the area engulfed in sex work, which they felt was not entirely true.

The film is based on a book titled Mafia Queens of Mumbai by Hussain Zaidi and Jane Borges. Other than Alia Bhatt and Seema Pahwa, its cast includes Shantanu Maheshwari, Vijay Raaz, Indira Tiwari, Varun Kapoor and Jim Sarbh.

Gangubai Kathiawadi OTT Release Date

On April 20, Netflix released a short video announcing its OTT release date. You can stream Gangubai Kathiawadi from April 26.