Is Maharani Based On Rabri Devi? Story Behind Bihar CM's Unexpected Rise To Power

Rabri Devi: Subhash Kapoor's newest project Maharani stars Huma Qureshi in the lead role and is a political multi-season series. The show is set to release on the streaming platform SonyLIV and follows the story of a female politician.

According to a report by India Today, and also the synopsis of the show, it is said to be loosely based on the life of Rabri Devi, the first female Chief Minister of Bihar.

The newly released teaser on April 9 shows a female leader who comes to power after beating all the odds, which is very similar to the political career of Rabri Devi. In the show, Qureshi plays the role of Rani Bharti, a housewife and the wife of Bihar's Chief Minister Bheema.

The show is inspired by Bihar in the 90s when Lalu Yadav was the Chief Minister and Rabri Devi became his successor. The newly released teaser shows the Chief Minister of the state naming his wife Rani Bharati as his successor which shocks everyone including Bharati.

Who is Rabri Devi and how did she rise to power?

Rabri Devi is an Indian Politician who worked as the Chief Minister of Bihar for three consecutive terms between 1997 and 2005. The Member of Legislative Council for Bihar Vidhan Parishad is the wife of Lalu Prasad, the former Chief Minister of Bihar and the former Railway Minister of India.

Rabri Devi was a housewife, with no formal education, next to no interest and no experience in politics. After the Fodder scam of Bihar was revealed to the public, the then Chief Minister Lalu Yadav had to step down from his position.

He appointed Devi to be the next Chief Minister of the state, which was one of the most unexpected decisions and was heavily criticised.

At the time, Yadav had an arrest warrant issued against him on the charges of corruption. He allegedly gave the post to Rabri Devi just to control the affairs of the government even after quitting his post, and this move fitted to the then ruling government.

Devi was elected thrice to Bihar Vidhan Sabha from the Raghopur seat. The politician contested in the 2010 Bihar Legislative Assembly Elections from two seats, namely Raghopur and Sonpur, losing both of them. At present, she is the Leader of the Opposition in the Bihar Legislative Council.

Watch the teaser of Maharani here: