Dushman (1998)

A woman goes on a hunt to find her twin sister's rapist and murderer.

Director:

Tanuja Chandra

Writers:

Mahesh Bhatt (screenplay), Sachin Bhowmick (story) (as Sachin Bhaumick)

Stars:

Kajol, Sanjay Dutt, Ashutosh Rana

4 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kajol	...	Sonia / Naina Saigal
Sanjay Dutt	...	Major Suraj Singh Rathod
Ashutosh Rana	...	Gokul Pandit
Jas Arora	...	Kabir
Tanvi Azmi	...	Sonia / Naina's mother
Pramod Moutho	...	ACP Santosh Singh Walia
Kunal Khemu	...	Bhim
Pratima Kazmi	...	Prosecuting Attorney
Anupam Shyam	...	Inspector Dubey
Vishesh
Vani Tripathi	...	Sunanda Tripathi
Sanjeeva Vatsa
Pinky Singh	...	Woman in Red Saree
Robin Bhatt
Baby Varsha

Storyline

Sonia and Naina Sehgal (both played by Kajol) are twins. The two are completely different from each other, Sonia being the outgoing twin and Naina being the shy twin. At the same time the police are hunting for a killer and rapist. The man Gokul Pandit (Ashutosh Rana) is a cold-blooded animal and has chosen Naina for his next target. However tragedy strikes when Gokul brutally kills Sonia. Naina is distraught and vows to hunt down Gokul. Gokul soon goes after Naina and she realizes she needs help to overcome her fear of him. With that she meets Suraj Singh Rathod (Sanjay Dutt), a retired and blind major and he helps her physically and mentally to defeat her fear of Gokul. After an argument Suraj refuses to meet Naina and she decides to go after Gokul alone without the help of the police or Suraj.

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Plot Keywords:

rape | revenge | rape and revenge | twin sister | rapist | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Initially Sharad Kapoor who had earlier played the villian in Dastak was signed for Jas Arora role but opted out.

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Connections

Referenced in Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah: Bawri's Concern (2016)

User Reviews

After Pran, it's Ashutosh for you to hate

This brilliant thriller starring Kajol, Sanjay Dutt and debutant villain Ashutosh Rana has been directed by debutant lady director Tanuja Chandra who has borrowed the plot from the Hollywood movie, Eye for an Eye, the difference being here is that while in the Hollywood movie, the mother inflicts revenge upon the rapist murderer, here the job is done by the twin sister of the victim. Tanuja Chandra went ahead to direct movies like Sangharsh, Yeh Zindagi Ka Safar, Sur, Zindagi Rocks and Filmstar later on. However this maiden venture of herself is considered as her best till date.

The story belongs to the rape and murder of one of the twin sisters by a sex-maniac postman whose next victim is the other sister. How the surviving twin-sister is able to kill her Dushman (enemy) is the remaining story. The director has given a highly admirable treatment to the plot, making it thoroughly engrossing but for some songs which interrupt the flow of the story.

During 50s and 60s, Pran was the most deadly villain of bollywood who was hated so much by the audience that some years back he had announced a reward for a person named as Pran during that period because people had stopped naming their kids after his name. After him, no bollywood villain could match his deadly baddiness (perhaps with the exception of Amjad Khan as Gabbar Singh in Sholay) till Ashutosh arrived on the scene with Dushman. He deservingly won all the best villain awards for 1998. His presence on the screen in this movie is nothing short of a spine-chilling one. His contribution is the most in making this movie a memorable one.

Kajol has excelled in her double role. Interestingly, Karan Johar's blockbuster Kuchh Kuchh Hota Hai was also released in the same year (1998) but Kajol won the Screen award for the best actress for her performance in Dushman instead of KKHH. The scene in which one sister is being victimized by the villain whereas the other one is listening to her painful and panicked shrieks on the other side of the telephone, is the best scene of the movie in which both, Kajol and Ashutosh have taken their acting performance to the dizzy heights.

Among others, Jas Arora and Tanvi Aazmi have done well. The movie also stars Sanjay Dutt in the subdued role of a blind ex-army-man who boosts the morale of the remaining twin-sister and supports her when she does not get justice from the law for her victimized twin. He is neither excellent, nor bad.

The music by Uttam Singh is okay. However, it would have been better to trim the movie by excluding some songs as the free-flow of the narrative is blocked by them and a kind of laxity emerges in the post-interval session.

Technically, the movie is very good. In fact, it's a pity that such a superb movie flopped on the box office. In my view, Dushman is one of the finest crime-revenge thrillers ever made in bollywood..

Details

Country:

India

Language:

Hindi

Release Date:

29 May 1998 (India)

Also Known As:

Маньяк

Filming Locations:

South Africa

Company Credits

Production Co:

NH Studioz, Vishesh Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

145 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color