Sunny Deol plays the detective hot on the killer’s trail. Alongside, there’s a romance brewing between Danny (Dulquer Salmaan), who’s a florist—an unlikely profession for a Bollywood hero—and budding film journalist/critic Nila (Shreya Dhanwanthary). Both are obsessed with cinema; he even sends her paper flowers—kaagaz ke phool—on Guru Dutt’s anniversary. So there are two more tracks, the killer’s obsession for Guru Dutt and his family back story. We get many early clues who the killer is, so it’s not so much a whodunit as a whydunit. But all the four tracks never merge organically and convincingly. 

The family back story, an exposition of the whydunit, comes in a big rush in the climax and would have been more convincing if we had got hints earlier. The screenplay and dialogue are by R Balki, film critic Raja Sen and Rishi Virmani. The key conceit is tricky: it is a moot point if critics really matter, and if the public takes them seriously. A few, maybe, but their power is rapidly eroding as the media give increasing weightage to views of the lay public leaving the theatres. The writers try to balance their views via Amitabh Bachchan who explains why critics are important for the film industry’s progress, then undercut it by deriding a critic who was unaware of a certain Mongolian film—as if Mongolian films are most critics’ normal film diet. 

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R Balki, here directing about his sixth film, has tackled offbeat themes before, including in Cheeni Kum, Paa and Pad Man, and probably speaks for filmmakers worldwide. It is a pleasure to watch Dulquer Salmaan (eye candy + acts fairly well, given the script’s constraints). A welcome import from Malayalam cinema, he has acted in about 40 films across languages, including Karwaan, Mahanati, Mani Ratnam’s OK Kanmani and Anjali Menon’s Bangalore Days. Dhanwanthary is okay. Pooja Bhatt, as a crime psychologist, and Saranya Ponvannan as Nila’s straight-talking mother, aren’t given much to do.

Cinematographer Vishal Sinha is efficient, evoking tender romance and grisly murders. Editor Nayan Bhadra struggles to bring the script’s four tracks together. The producers are Hope Productions and Pen Studios. The women crew include producer Gauri Shinde (with three others), music director Sneha Khanwalkar (with three others), casting director Shruti Mahajan, choreographer Brinda and wardrobe stylist Aesha Merchant.

Meenakshi Shedde is India and South Asia Delegate to the Berlin International Film Festival, National Award-winning critic, curator to festivals worldwide and journalist. 
Reach her at meenakshi.shedde@mid-day.com