In 1887, Abdul Karim (Ali Fazal), arrives from India to present Queen Victoria (Judi Dench) with a commemorative coin for her Golden Jubilee. The Queen is so bored and depressed at her celebratory dinner, she can barely stay awake, until she notices Abdul. The 24-year-old clerk is surprised to find favor with the 68-year-old queen.
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Victoria is lonely and oppressed by the royal doctor who monitors her along with the solicitous Sir Henry Ponsonby (Tim Pigott-Smith).
She is in need of a true friend and appears to find one in Muslin Abdul. He becomes her cherished manservant and ascends through the ranks. Meanwhile, Victoria questions the constrictions of her long-held position and the two forge an unlikely and devoted alliance her household and inner circle try to destroy.
As their friendship deepens, the queen begins to see a changing world through new eyes, joyfully reclaiming her humanity, studying the Koran and Urdu under Abdul’s tutelage.
Session details page 3.
