Koyla 1997

Handsome but mute, Shankar Shah Rukh Khan is raised by the powerful Raja Amrish Puri, to whom he remains loyal even as he is treated like a servant. Raja’s brother Brijwa Salim Ghouse is a violent psychopath who beats Shankar. Shankar’s only real comfort comes from his friend Chhote Johnny Lever, a quick-witted presence in the mansion and village.

A ruthless man with a large appetite for young women, Raja sets his sights on Gauri Madhuri Dixit, a pretty and innocent villager, and decides to marry her, sending her a photo of Shankar to secure her consent. During the wedding ceremony, Gauri discovers the ruse and faints. Raja, unmoved, orders the ceremony to continue. When she regains consciousness, she is shocked to see Raja attempting to consummate the marriage. When she resists, he imprisons her and tortures her. Gauri tries to commit suicide, but Shankar saves her. She initially blames him for ruining her life, but soon realizes he is innocent. When Gauri’s brother Ashok [Mohnish Behl] visits, Raja forces Gauri to lie that she is happy. Shankar reveals the truth to Ashok by writing in the dirt that Raja and Brijwa killed Ashok when he tried to rescue his sister. Ashok dies after making Shankar promise to save Gauri. Gauri and Shankar flee Raja’s mansion.

Enraged, Raja enlists the help of a corrupt D.I.G. [Pradeep Ram Singh Rawat]. After a long chase through the jungle and mountains, Shankar defeats Raja’s men. Gauri and Shankar begin to fall in love. Raja captures them by shooting Gauri in the arm. Shankar is brutally beaten by Brijwa and the corrupt DIG, and Raja slits his throat, leaving him to die in the mountains. Gauri is sold to a brothel after Raja discovers she loves Shankar. There, Bindiya [Deepshika Nagpal], Raja’s former lover who was disowned by him after she too fell for Shankar, saves Gauri. Brijwa, at his brother’s orders, humiliates Bindiya in public and stabs her. Shankar is saved by a village boy who brings him to his grandfather (a healer), who operates on his throat while he is still unconscious. The healer, who discovers that Shankar is not mute by birth, is able to repair some of the damaged nerves in Shankar’s throat, enabling him to speak.

While recovering, Shankar recalls that when he was a boy, his father discovered diamonds in the coal mine, and then his parents were murdered by two mysterious men. When young Shankar threatened to tell the news to family friends, someone shoved hot coals into his throat, rendering him mute. Shankar returns to the mansion and kills Brijwa. He rescues Gauri from the same men who had killed his parents, killing one of them in the process. Shankar discovers that Raja was responsible for making him mute and ordering his parents to be killed so he could steal their wealth. He reunites with Raja’s doctor Ashok Saraf and his son and, with their help, kills Raja’s henchman and reveals Raja’s crimes to the coal miners. Gauri arrives with her uncle and aunt, forcing them to admit their involvement in making her marry Raja. Raja’s doctor and his son turn against him, revealing that he not only deceived Gauri, but is also responsible for numerous killings and rapes. Chaos follows among the mine workers. Shankar corners Raja, who begs for his life. After dodging a pickaxe thrown at him, Shankar kills Raja by spilling oil and coal around him and setting him on fire with a burning rock. Shankar and Gauri embrace each other.