Drishyam (2015)

2015

Action / Crime / Drama / Mystery / Thriller

IMDb Rating 8/10

Plot summary

Vijay Salgaonkar (Ajay Devgn) is an orphan who dropped out of school after his 4th grade. Now he is a contented businessman running a cable TV service in Goa. He is married to Nandini (Shriya Saran), and have Anju, his adopted daughter (Ishita Dutta), a class twelve student, and Anu (Mrunal Jadhav), a class six student. His only interest is watching films. He has gained fame in his area for helping people out with the help of methods he learns from films.During a nature camp which Anju attends, a hidden cell phone camera records Anju removing her clothes and showering in the bathroom. The culprit, Sameer "Sam" Deshmukh (Rishabh Chaddha), is the son of Inspector General of Goa Police, Meera Deshmukh (Tabu). Sam comes to blackmail Anju for sexual favors. Nandini pleads with Sam to leave their family alone, but Sam refuses to delete the video clip unless his sexual demand is fulfilled. In an attempt to break the offending cell phone, Anju takes a swing at Sam with a lead pipe, but she strikes him in the head instead, killing him immediately. They bury his body in a compost pit in the backyard, which is witnessed by Anu. In the morning, when Vijay returns from work, Nandini tells Vijay about the incident and he devises a way to save his family from the police. He removes the broken cell phone and disposes of Sam's car, which is seen by the corrupt Sub-Inspector Laxmikant Gaitonde (Kamlesh Sawant), who has a grudge against Vijay. The next day, Vijay takes his family out on a trip to Panjim, where they visit an Ashram, watch a movie, and eat at a restaurant. Meera, realizing that her son has gone missing, starts an investigation.After a preliminary investigation, Meera calls Vijay and family for questioning. Having predicted that the police would come calling eventually, Vijay coaches his family on how to face the interrogations without raising suspicion. When questioned individually, the family sticks to their individual stories and the police are unable to find a crack in their alibis. Vijay produces bus tickets, movie tickets, lodging and restaurant bills as proof for the family's visit to Panaji. Meera questions the owners of the establishments they have been to and their statements prove Vijay's alibi. Meera realizes that on the day of the incident, Vijay had taken the tickets and the bill, made acquaintance with the owners and had gone for the trip with his family the next day, thus proving his alibi and making the owners unwittingly tell the lie.Meera has the Salgaonkar family arrested, and Gaitonde uses brute force to beat the truth out of them though Vijay, Nandini and Anju resist. Meanwhile, Meera finds out about Sam and his video of Anju from Sam's friend, Alex. Eventually, Anu gives in and reveals that she has seen a body being buried in the compost pit. After digging the compost pit, the authorities find the carcass of a dog. Vijay reports to the media that Gaitonde physically abused both his daughters, causing an angry Gaitonde to attempt an attack on Vijay, but Vijay's in-laws retaliate, and a mob rises up to beat up Gaitonde. The Sub-inspector is suspended, Meera resigns from her post, and the entire investigating team of the Police Station is transferred out, with the case now requiring authorization from the court. When Nandini asks Vijay about what he did to the body, he refuses to tell her, saying that the information is safe with him. Meera and her husband Mahesh (Rajat Kapoor) meet Vijay at a seaside to ask forgiveness for their rude and violent behavior and to get a confirmation whether their son is alive or not. They also reveal that they would be leaving for London to live with their relative. Finally, Vijay cryptically confesses to killing Sam . Vijay also asks for forgiveness, and explains to them that he would go to any lengths to protect his family. Vijay signs a register at the newly constructed local police station. The new police inspector threatens Vijay that he shall find the body. As Vijay leaves with smile, a flashback reveals that he has buried Sam's body under the floor of the new police station, while it was under construction.