Tezaab 1988

When Inspector Singh learns that a man, Munna Anil Kapoor, is about to reach the region under his watch, he digs into a long memory: the man is Cadet Mahesh Deshmukh, a name tied to a brutal bank robbery in Nashik years earlier, a crime that left Mahesh’s parents and many bank employees dead at the hands of a ruthless gang. The opening of the case brings back the uneasy reunion between the inspector and Mahesh, and it sets the stage for a tale that blends vengeance, duty, and a fragile hope for happiness.

Mahesh’s past unfolds through a web of intimate ties and hard choices. He and his sister relocate to Bombay, where they cross paths with Mohini Madhuri Dixit, a poor and miserable young woman who dances to support her father, Shyamlal Anupam Kher, a drunkard who resists any notion of his daughter’s marriage. Shyamlal’s cruelty extends beyond his own family: he once attacked his wife with acid after she defied him, a cruel act that ended in tragedy. The family’s debt troubles lead Shyamlal into the hands of Lotiya Pathan Kiran Kumar, a feared gangster, and the only exit from this debt is for Mohini to perform dance for pay. Complicating matters is Chote Khan, Lotiya’s younger brother, who is implicated in the Nashik robbery that ruined Mahesh’s early life.

As time passes, Mahesh and Mohini meet again in college and fall in love, forming a quiet bond that gives them both a reason to dream beyond hardship. Mahesh soon joins a circle of friends, and a spark of courage begins to reappear in him. But the past refuses to stay buried. After being released on bail, Chote Khan attempts a brutal assault on Jyoti Deshmukh Suparna Anand, and Mahesh acts in self-defense, killing him. That act lands him in prison for a year, and upon his release, Mahesh adopts the name Munna as he tries to forge a new life.

Inspector Singh agrees to let Munna undertake a dangerous mission, but under strict conditions that test trust and resolve. The past remains ever-present as Lotiya hears of Munna’s return and kidnaps Mohini, prompting Shyamlal to plead with Munna to rescue his daughter. Munna succeeds in saving Mohini, and for a moment happiness seems within reach. Yet the price of safety is painful: Mohini is asked to return to her father, leaving her torn and Munna with a heavy decision. He surrenders to the authorities, faces a court trial, and is eventually acquitted after a retrial, a turning point that frees him to consider a new future in Goa. Yet Jyoti urges him not to abandon love for Mohini, and Munna reaches out to his trusted allies Guldasta Annu Kapoor and Babban Chunky Pandey to relay his whereabouts.

Shyamlal, furious over the acquittal, plots another strike against Munna. The pursuit heats up as Lotiya intensifies his vendetta, while Munna’s friend Baban Chunky Pandey becomes a reluctant participant in the escalating clash. A brutal confrontation ensues: Lotiya is overwhelmed in battle, and in a moment of rash impulse, Baban tries to finish the ring of danger by killing Lotiya, only to be checked by Munna. The clash spirals until Inspector Singh arrives, advising Munna not to take the law into his own hands. When Lotiya makes a last, violent move, Singh shoots him, ending the immediate threat.

The climax of the story brings a shifting sense of fate. Guldasta’s fate intertwines with Shyamlal’s in a fateful explosion of violence, though Mohini cunningly escapes and is reunited with Munna. In the end, the pursuit of vengeance gives way to a fragile peace, and while the world refuses to forget the pain, Munna’s life takes a hopeful turn toward a future built on choice rather than revenge. Baban, in this telling, sacrifices himself to shield Munna, a dramatic act that cements the bond between the two men and their shared resolve. In this version, Baban survives the altercation, offering a slightly different closing than the original, while the broader arc remains faithful to the core confrontation between Munna, Mohini, and the forces that once tried to break them apart.