Mayabazar 2016 2020

In Bangalore, just months before the 2016 demonetisation, the film follows three men from different walks of life—Kubera, Raji, and Joseph—as they navigate the upheaval of a cash-driven world and the personal trials that come with it.

Kubera is a small-time crook constantly juggling schemes to stay ahead, hoping to settle scores with corrupt cops and secure a peaceful life through clever cons. His street-smart hustle is matched by a growing greed that threatens to pull him deeper into a vicious cycle.

Joseph is an honest police officer whose refusal to take bribes earns him both respect and friction within the department. His steadfast integrity wins him support from his wife, Usha, who stands by him as a cancer diagnosis adds immense pressure to his life. The looming medical bill becomes a pressing dilemma that tempts him to consider drastic, morally gray options.

Providence nudges Joseph into a position of power: he begins to monitor individuals with black money right after demonetisation is enforced. With his wife’s surgery looming, he contemplates stealing from those who hoard ill-gotten gains, enlisting Kubera who poses as an income tax officer to help execute the raids. During one raid, the fake IT inspector notices Raji hiding in a house, and the carpenter offers a large sum to avoid capture, hinting at a web of deals feeding the plot.

However, Raji soon discovers that the IT officers are fake and demands a share of the earnings after trailing the trio back to their hideout. Joseph is unhappy but reluctantly agrees to the terms, and the trio’s scheme grows more precarious as greed tightens its grip.

The money that Raji had taken belongs to a powerful and vicious cop, Ashok Rao. Furious at the theft, [Ashok Rao] launches a brutal hunt to reclaim what was lost. Realizing the danger, Joseph debates pulling back, yet Kubera and Raji push forward, fueling a plan to rob Pataki Pandu — a corrupt politician — to cover the medical deficit. The raid spirals out of control, and Raji narrowly escapes with his life. The experience frays the crew: the fear of consequences makes Raji quit, while Joseph too retreats from the plan. Yet Joseph apologizes to Ashok Rao for the theft, and Ashok Rao forgives him, recognizing the extreme pressure of the moment.

With the debt eased by a trust fund, Joseph feels a weight lift off his conscience. But the narrative pivots as Kubera resurges, chasing a bigger score. He uncovers a massive stash of black money once held by Pataki Pandu, yet Ashok Rao intercepts him before he can flee. The encounter reveals that Ashok Rao has a long history of robbing people, a fact captured on a device by Raji who had offered to assist from afar. In a climactic twist, Ashok Rao lets Kubera and Raji go free, and the two men use the stolen money to flee the country, ending up on a sun-drenched Bangkok beach as a new chapter begins. The film closes on a note that questions sound ethics when survival takes precedence over law, and it traces how desperation can bend people toward both mercy and greed.