Max Hensley writes:

The story begins in 1887, with the Queen's Golden Jubilee, the 50th anniversary of her ascension to the throne. In her honor, a ceremonial coin isminted in India, which has been under formal British rule for nearly three decades. Two Indian clerks are chosen to present the coin by virtue oftheir height: Karim (played by Ali Fazal), who is in fact tall, and Mohammed (Adeel Akhtar), who is not, and was instead a last-minute fill-in.

Arriving in England, the two are instructed in the niceties of the Court ("The key to good service is standing still and moving backwards"), andsolid comic mileage is gotten out of the elaborate etiquette and pantomime of a state dinner. Karim is entranced; Mohammed, not so much. ("The placeis completely barbaric," he complains, citing-in a clever inversion-the English consumption of food featuring pig's blood and sheep's brains.)

Despite instructions that he make no eye contact with the queen, Karim does exactly that at the first opportunity. She returns his gaze and,later, noting his height and looks, decides to bring him gradually into her service. She asks him to teach her Urdu and to describe the taste of amango. Soon she has declared him her "Munshi," or teacher, awarded him Mohammed as a servant, and had his burqa-wearing wife and mother-in-lawbrought to England.

To read the complete article, see:
The Lightweight Appeal of Victoria & Abdul(https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2017/09/victoria-abdul-review/541491/)

Did Abdul Karim come to England to present the Queen a ceremonial coin?

Not exactly, or at least not entirely. Prior to arriving in England, Abdul Karim had worked as a prison clerk in Uttar Pradesh, India, which hadbeen under formal British rule for close to three decades. According to the Victoria and Abdul true story, the jail's superintendent, John Tyler,had met the Queen at the Colonial and Indian Exhibition of 1886, where he showcased carpets the inmates had made as part of a rehabilitation program.The Queen was impressed and asked Tyler to select two Indian attendants to help her at her Golden Jubilee, which marked fifty years of being on thethrone. She wanted help communicating with the Indian dignitaries in attendance. In part due to his tallness, Abdul Karim, then 24, was chosen. Inthe movie, he first presents a newly minted ceremonial coin to the 81-year-old Queen. -Smithsonian Magazine

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
VICTORIA AND ABDUL (2017)(http://www.historyvshollywood.com/reelfaces/victoria-and-abdul/)