Dahaad

In rural Rajasthan, women are disappearing but nobody seems to be alarmed. It is not uncommon here for women to elope with their partners when they cannot afford the traditional dowry. However, young policewoman Anjali Bhaati notices a similarity in the cases: long nightly phone calls, a boyfriend whom no one in the neighbourhood has ever seen, and no sign of life after the disappearance. With her motorbike and sunglasses, Anjali might wear the insignia of traditional macho cops but power and coolness are of no concern to her, rather truth and justice. As a member of a lower caste, obstacles only make her all the more determined: “I’ve had many doors shut in my face. But no one has managed to shut me up.”
In the captivating and subtly humorous Dahaad, Reema Kagti (creator, director) and Zoya Akhtar (creator), who both presented Gully Boy in Berlinale Special in 2019, and Ruchika Oberoi (director) tell the story of a society riven by caste and religion, and a legal system undermined by Hindu nationalism and a patriarchy in which marriage is the only accepted goal in life for women.