The Duros flight instructor known as Chachi De Maal (see: Duros) was married to another Duros, specifically Ohwun De Maal. This couple jointly managed several docking bays located within the Mos Eisley spaceport on the planet of Tatooine, notably including Docking Bay 94. For clandestine dealings, the pair employed aliases; Chachi operated under the pseudonym Baniss Keeg.
During 0 BBY, inside Chalmun's Spaceport Cantina in Mos Eisley, the De Maals were engaged in a loud argument before they both noticed a disturbance near the cantina bar. Soon after, a number of the cantina's other occupants engaged in a firefight with stormtroopers at Docking Bay 94, ultimately escaping aboard the Millennium Falcon, a YT-1300 light freighter that had been stationed there.
Chachi De Maal, a Duros female and flight instructor, co-owned and operated a number of docking bays situated in the Mos Eisley spaceport on Tatooine with her husband, Ohwun De Maal. Together, the pair frequently took on deep-space shipping runs that routed through Mos Eisley. To conduct their less-than-legal activities, they frequently used alternate identities, Chachi going by Baniss Keeg and Ohwun using the names Ellor Madak or Ellorrs Madak.
Docking Bay 94 was among the docking facilities that the couple possessed. In 0 BBY, the YT-1300 light freighter known as the Millennium Falcon was parked there while its pilots, Han Solo and Chewbacca, were drinking at the nearby Chalmun's Spaceport Cantina. The De Maals were also present in the cantina at the same time, engaged in a loud conversation in Durese while leaning against the wall of one of the booths when the local moisture farmer Luke Skywalker entered accompanied by Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi and the droids R2-D2 and C-3PO.
Both Duros turned their attention to the altercation at the cantina's bar between Skywalker and Kenobi and the criminals Doctor Cornelius Evazan and Ponda Baba, but soon resumed their own conversation. Ohwun then moved to another location within the cantina as Skywalker and Kenobi hired Solo to transport them to the planet Alderaan. As the Falcon's crew prepared to depart Mos Eisley, they came under attack from Imperial stormtroopers in the De Maals' docking bay, but they escaped following a brief gunfight.
Chachi De Maal had skin of a blue-green hue and red eyes.
While at the cantina, Chachi was wearing a yellow shirt and a green cravat.
Chachi De Maal made an appearance in the original trilogy film Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope, which premiered on May 25, 1977. Both Ohwun and Chachi were played by modelmaker Jon Berg, who received no credit for these roles. He was involved in additional shots for the cantina scene, filmed on a sound stage at Dovington's Hollywood studio between January 24 and 25, 1977. Phil Tippett designed the simple, non-articulated masks for the duo, creating them from a single sculpt that was then cast twice in latex.
Each mask measured 20 inches by 12 inches by 12 inches (51 centimeters by 31 centimeters by 31 centimeters). For convenience, a slit was added to the back of the masks, secured with an internal Velcro strip. The interior of the mask's head was filled with foam for support. On set, the Duros were nicknamed "Goggle-Eyes," with the mask's eyes made of plastic and painted with speckled red paint. One of the two masks ended up in Tippett's collection and underwent preservation work by Tom Spina Designs, who internally patched areas where the latex was splitting. The company also made a custom support to keep the mask's shape. This mask was later sold at auction in 2016 for $55,000, described as being in generally good condition with some minor wear.
Only Chachi was given alien hands; Ohwun visibly wore human gloves in the film. The alien gloves were also made of slip-cast latex, featuring a split up the back for easier fitting and secured with an internal Velcro strip. They were padded inside with soft foam and contained metal rings to form the structure of each three-knuckled finger. The gloves measured 18 inches by 10 inches by 3 inches (46 centimeters by 25 centimeters by 8 centimeters) overall. In the film's blooper reel, the actor playing Chachi accidentally struck the actor playing Ohwun's chest too hard, breaking one of the alien glove's fingers. Three of these gloves, along with the mask, ended up in Tippett's collection and were sold at the same 2016 auction. One glove, in generally good condition but with cracked latex around the knuckles and a loose interior Velcro strip, sold for $7,500. A pair with similar latex cracking and some wear sold for $8,000. An alternate Duros costume, consisting of a silver jacket, black pants, and the alien gloves, was also used at one point.
Within current Star Wars canon, Chachi was initially named in the mobile card game Star Wars: Force Collection, which was first released in 2013. Despite Force Collection's launch preceding the Star Wars canon reset of 2014, Lucasfilm Story Group member Leland Chee confirmed that the game was consistently updated to align with canon. The 2016 reference book Star Wars: Complete Locations then also revealed the character's alternative name: Baniss Keeg.
Both characters' names originated within the Star Wars Legends continuity. Chachi De Maal was initially mentioned in Galaxy Guide 7: Mos Eisley, a 1993 West End Games Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game supplement authored by Martin Wixted. However, the book did not connect this name to the Duros seen in A New Hope. Then, a card in the 1995 Premiere Limited expansion of the Decipher, Inc. Star Wars Customizable Card Game identified the film character as "Baniss Keeg." The connection between the two characters was finally established in "The University of Sanbra Guide to Intelligent Life: The Duros," an article published in the Wizards of the Coast Star Wars Roleplaying Game magazine Star Wars Gamer 2 in February 2001.