Joram

A labourer in Mumbai goes on the run in this edge-of-your-seat survival thriller that deftly weaves political intrigue with a stylish and propulsive cinematic sensibility. Dasru (Manoj Bajpayee) and Vaano (Tannishtha Chatterjee) are migrant labourers in the sprawling city, doing backbreaking work on a construction site, where they also live with their baby daughter, Joram. A flashback reveals their much happier life five years earlier in the forests of Jhinpidi, Jharkhand. A sadness and a sense of loss permeates, interrupted only by the folk songs they hum. The arrival of Phulo Karma (Smita Tambe), a politician from Jharkhand handing out gifts seems innocent enough at first, but soon sets in motion a devastating series of events. Dasru, with Joram in tow, flees. He is pursued by the jaded, downtrodden Mumbai cop Ratnakar who reluctantly travels across the country in pursuit. Director Devashish Makhija skilfully creates great tension while gradually revealing the political underpinnings of the thrilling action. Ultimately, Joram pointedly questions the cost of development and progress for the powerless – people who have, as Dasru says, “lived here for 2000 years” but can lose it all in a day.