Mirch 2010

Maanav [Arunoday Singh] is a driven, uncompromising filmmaker who won’t budge on the script he’s written. His girlfriend, Ruchi [Shahana Goswami], a skilled film editor, helps him set up a meeting with producer Nitin [Sushant Singh]. Nitin likes the core idea but doubts its box-office appeal. To win him over, Maanav pitches a modern Panchatantra-inspired premise: a wife caught with her lover by her husband who somehow wriggles free. Impressed but hungry for more, Nitin asks for a longer, more developed version, so Maanav crafts three additional stories that expand the same premise. The four tales travel through different eras, yet all twist back into a single, shared narrative. Mirch itself toys with this structure, letting four stories intertwine with the central arc.

• In the first tale, Kashi [Rajpal Yadav], a craftsman in ancient India, is honoured with a royal invitation to work in the king’s palace. His wife Maya [Raima Sen] loves him with fierce devotion, but Kashi worries about losing her once he leaves for the city. His suspicions are fueled by a friend’s jokes about his wife’s beauty, and he secretly hides to watch Maya. When a handsome prince arrives at their door, Maya spins a tale about an astrologer warning of bad luck for Kashi unless she consents to relations with another man. The prince plays along, insisting that as a Kshatriya he is meant to protect and fulfill his duty. Kashi sits under the bed, torn between stopping them and accepting the risk of misfortune, while Maya’s ruse unfolds in a perilous, morally ambiguous dance around fidelity and fate.

• The second tale transports us to Rajput-era royalty. Raja Nirgun Singh [Prem Chopra], an elderly king, has a young wife Lavni [Konkona Sen Sharma] who longs for something more. Lavni confides in her maid Kesara [Ila Arun] and schemes to entice a trusted subject, Chandresh [Arunoday Singh], a close court favorite. Chandresh lays out a series of nearly impossible tasks to test the queen’s resolve, each designed to deter her yet pushed forward by her determination. As Lavni pushes through those dares, a final demand arises: that whatever happens must occur in front of the king himself. In the garden one night, Chandresh’s bold plan reaches its climax when the king secretly witnesses what looks like a forbidden act. Humiliation, fear, and whispers of possession follow, and the king ultimately orders a final, drastic action—believing the entire vision to be a cursed illusion, the tree’s fate becomes a symbol of a royal superstition that will not die.

• The third story brings us to modern Mumbai and follows Manjul [Shreyas Talpade], a playful husband who loves a challenge. He loves to disguise himself and test the truth of those around him. At a party, he pretends to be his own boss and watches as his wife Manjula [Raima Sen] navigates a flirtation with a visiting executive. The prank backfires, sparking doubt and a joke that cuts deep when Manjul later impersonates another man—“Mark,” a young, charming stranger—testing Manjula’s loyalty in new ways. The ruse strains their marriage, and a chilling rift grows between them. A year later, Manjul’s life has become a blur of work, while Manjula seeks solace in art. She encounters a painter (also portrayed by [Arunoday Singh]) who admires her, drawing her into a tender, forbidden connection that echoes the earlier stories’ themes of temptation and boundary-crossing. The couple’s dynamic shifts as Manjul discovers Manjula’s secret, culminating in a moment where she cryptically implies that the past disguise has returned to haunt them.

• In the fourth tale, Asu Hotmal [Boman Irani] and his wife Anita [Konkona Sen Sharma] drift into a moment of personal crisis. On a trip that sends him away, Asu tries to seek out cheap thrills, including a hotel encounter that backfires when Anita arrives disguised as a hooker. The ruse exposes hurt, power, and the fragile trust between them. Anita turns the tables, feigning vulnerability to expose Asu’s missteps, and demands compensation in jewelry rather than forgiveness. The ploy culminates in a tense, public reconciliation where money and sentiment collide. Back at the office, producer Nitin confronts a parallel echo of this situation with his own wife Seema [Tisca Chopra] and wrestles with the consequences of past choices. Seema’s quiet, resolute honesty finally helps him understand that some wounds are better left unexamined.

As the stories converge, Ruchi delivers the final verdict: Nitin has approved Maanav’s overarching frame, and the group celebrates a project that threads together desire, trust, and consequence across time. The four vignettes, each plugged into the same core idea, illuminate how romantic temptation can shift across eras while still testing the boundaries of loyalty, truth, and storytelling itself.

Notes on cast usage (for links):

• Maanav is linked to Arunoday Singh.

• Ruchi is linked to Shahana Goswami.

• Nitin is linked to Sushant Singh.

• Kashi is linked to Rajpal Yadav.

• Maya is linked to Raima Sen.

• Lavni is linked to Konkona Sen Sharma.

• Chandresh is linked to Arunoday Singh.

• Kesara is linked to Ila Arun.

• Manjul is linked to Shreyas Talpade.

• Manjula is linked to Raima Sen.

• Anita is linked to Konkona Sen Sharma.

• Asu Hotmal is linked to Boman Irani.

• Seema is linked to Tisca Chopra.

I thought it is you again in a disguise.