Viceroy's House

Viceroy's House is a historical drama set in 1947, as British rule in India comes to an end. Lord Mountbatten arrives in Delhi as the country's last viceroy, tasked with overseeing the transfer of power to the Indian people. He and his family take up residence in the viceroy's mansion, where the British rulers live on the upper floors while hundreds of Hindu, Muslim and Sikh servants occupy the lower levels. The household becomes a small-scale reflection of the divisions tearing the country apart, as Mountbatten negotiates with Indian leaders amid worsening religious conflict and faces the prospect of partition. A parallel story follows Jeet and Aalia, two young palace employees whose different faiths complicate their relationship as the political situation around them deteriorates.

Directed by Gurinder Chadha, the film followed What's Cooking?, Bend It Like Beckham, Bride & Prejudice, Paris Je T'aime and Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging. Chadha wrote the screenplay with Paul Mayeda Berges and Moira Buffini, and produced it with Berges and Deepak Nayar. Hugh Bonneville plays Mountbatten, with Gillian Anderson as Edwina Mountbatten, Michael Gambon as General Hastings Ismay, and Manish Dayal and Huma Qureshi as Jeet and Aalia. The cast numbers 32 credited performers.

The film drew modest audiences, taking around 12 million dollars worldwide. On IMDb it holds a rating of 6.7 from roughly 8,900 votes, and on TMDB it also rates 6.7, from about 297 votes, indicating that viewers generally found it a solid but not outstanding historical drama. Its critics' rating of 6 out of 10 from 81 reviews places professional assessments close to the audience response.