India, 1922. A curse seems to have fallen upon Satapur's royal family, whose maharaja died of a sudden illness shortly before his teenage son was killed in a hunting accident. The state is now ruled by an agent of the British Raj on behalf of Satapur s two maharanis, the dowager queen and her daughter-in-law. The royal ladies are in a dispute over the education of the young crown prince, and a lawyer's counsel is required. However, the maharanis live in purdah and do not speak to men. Just one person can help them: Perveen Mistry, Bombay s only female lawyer. Perveen is determined to bring peace to the royal house, but arrives to find that Satapur palace is full of cold-blooded power plays and ancient vendettas. Too late, she realises she has walked into a trap.