Real Kashmir Football Club
Drama (Hindi)
Inspired by the true story of a Kashmiri Hindu Pandit and a Kashmiri Muslim responsible for the formation of the Real Kashmir Football Club, the first ever club from Jammu and Kashmir to compete in any top-flight football league in (more…)
Kalamkaval
Crime, Drama (Malayalam)
Early 2010s. A routine Kerala Police inquiry in the quiet village of Kottayikonam takes an unexpected turn when a trail of seemingly minor clues unravels into a string of disturbing cases. The investigation soon crosses into Tamil Nadu, revealing unsolved (more…)
Dhurandhar
Action, Thriller (Hindi)
After the hijacking of IC-814 in 1999 and the Parliament attack in 2001, India’s Intelligence Bureau Chief, Ajay Sanyal devised an indomitable mission to intrude and rupture the terrorist network in Pakistan, by infiltrating the underworld mafia of Karachi. A (more…)
Kaisi Ye Paheli
Mystery, Thriller (Hindi)
In a sleepy hill town in northeast India, a lonely mother tries to reconnect with her estranged policeman son by channeling her inner detective to help him solve a murder. (more…)
Guild Reviews
Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery
Thriller, Mystery, Comedy, Drama (English)
When young priest Jud Duplenticy is sent to assist charismatic firebrand Monsignor Jefferson Wicks, it’s clear that all is not well in the pews. After a sudden and seemingly impossible murder rocks the town, the lack of an obvious suspect prompts local police chief Geraldine Scott to join forces with renowned detective Benoit Blanc to unravel a mystery that defies all logic.
Cast:
Daniel Craig, Josh O'Connor, Glenn Close, Josh Brolin, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, Cailee Spaeny, Daryl McCormack
Director:
Rian Johnson
Writer:
Rian Johnson
Plays out better as a commentary on what moves and changes humanity, rather than a whodunnit.
Sat, December 13 2025
Daniel Craig film is rip-roaringly good time
Sat, December 13 2025
Benoit Blanc is back, and this time it’s with a proper bang, after last outing’s disappointing thud. Fancy yachts and self-obsessed billionaires made for a very dull sleuthing turn indeed. For this third go round, Johnson goes full gothic, combining it with a closed door murder, and the result is wonderful: I was glued to the screen all the way through. You wouldn’t really call Jud (Josh O’ Connor) a failed priest, but he’s done something in the past which he shouldn’t have , and now he has to atone for his sins by going off to a small parish in upstate New York run by the commanding monsignor Jefferson (Josh Brolin) who keeps his small flock tightly leashed, helped by the devout Martha (Glenn Close) who, like the others, seems to be in his thrall.
Kis Kisko Pyaar Karoon 2
Comedy, Romance, Drama (Hindi)
Kapil plays a man who truly loves one woman and wants to build a life with her. But things spiral out of control when he mistakenly ends up marrying three other women, each from a different religion: Muslim, Christian, and Hindu.
Cast:
Kapil Sharma, Manjot Singh, Jamie Lever, Tridha Choudhury, Parul Gulati, Sushant Singh, Ayesha Khan, Hira Warina, Akhilendra Mishra, Asrani
Director:
Anukalp Goswami
Writer:
Anukalp Goswami
बचकानी है पर हंसाती है कपिल की कॉमेडी
Sat, December 13 2025
कपिल शर्मा कॉमेडी की दुनिया के धुरंधर हैं। बचकानी हरकतों और बातों से भी ऑडियंस को हंसा ले जाने की कला वह जानते हैं और यही काम वह अपनी फिल्म ‘किस किसको प्यार करूं 2’ में भी कर रहे हैं। यह फिल्म उनकी 2015 में आई डेब्यू फिल्म ‘किस किसको प्यार करूं’ का सीक्वल है, जिसमें वह तीन बीवियों के फेर में फंस जाते हैं। लेकिन कैसे? इस बात में लॉजिक ढूंढने की गलती, गलती से भी ना कीजिएगा।
इस सर्कस में है टाइमपास कॉमेडी
Sat, December 13 2025
10 साल से ऊपर हो गए जब कॉमेडी के लिए चर्चित कपिल शर्मा बतौर हीरो अपनी पहली फिल्म ‘किस किस को प्यार करूं’ लेकर आए थे। उस फिल्म में उन्होंने एक ऐसे युवक की भूमिका निभाई थी जिसे मजबूरी में तीन शादियां करनी पड़ती हैं और अब वह अपनी पसंद की लड़की से चौथा ब्याह रचाने जा रहा है। उस फिल्म में रोमांस की हल्की खुशबू के साथ कॉमेडी का तड़का था और दर्शकों ने उस फिल्म पर अपनी पसंदगी का ठप्पा भी लगाया था। यह फिल्म ‘किस किस को प्यार करूं 2’ उसी कड़ी की अगली फिल्म है। लेकिन यह उसका सीक्वेल नहीं है बल्कि लगभग उसी कहानी पर फिर से बनाई गई फिल्म है-कुछ अलग तड़के के साथ
A Lovable Chuckle
Fri, December 12 2025
Ready with a repartee and quick-witted as the host of a comedy show, Kapil Sharma’s image pulls it off. When Mohan/Mehmood/Michael (Kapil Sharma) marries Meera (Tridha Choudhury), Ruhi (Ayesha Khan) and Jenny (Parul Gulati) though his heart ticks only for Saniya (Hira Warina), he must think on his feet to glib talk his way out of situations. Writer-director Anukalp Goswami ensures that the fun never stops.
Real Kashmir Football Club
Drama (Hindi)
Inspired by the true story of a Kashmiri Hindu Pandit and a Kashmiri Muslim responsible for the formation of the Real Kashmir Football Club, the first ever club from Jammu and Kashmir to compete in any top-flight football league in India.
Cast:
Manav Kaul, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub
Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, Manav Kaul series scores on heart
Sat, December 13 2025
An early scene sets the tone for this eight-episode SonyLIV series, when an unlikely bunch of footballers became a beacon of hope for the strife-torn Kashmir valley in 2016. Sohail (Ayyub), who has left his compromised journalistic job to help create a local football team, fetches up in a very Delhi sarkari outpost, and within a remarkably short while, convinces a babu to sign off on permissions required to set up a club. Anyone who has had any dealings with the sports ministry, or any other ministry for that matter, will know that these things take months, sometimes even years, of gentle persuasion and other means, to get anything done.
उम्मीद और हौसले की दास्तान
Wed, December 10 2025
पर्दे पर कश्मीर के अक्सर दो ही पहलू देखने को मिलते हैं। एक धरती के जन्नत की खूबसूरती तो दूसरा आतंकवाद, मगर वेब सीरीज रियल कश्मीर फुटबॉल क्लब इससे इतर वादी के युवाओं की अपनी नई पहचान और सम्मान तलाशने की एक प्रेरक दास्तान है। कश्मीर के पहले प्रफेशनल फुटबॉल क्लब बनने की असल कहानी पर आधारित यह सीरीज कश्मीर का एक उम्मीद भरा नया चेहरा दिखाती है। कहानी कश्मीर में 2014 में आए बाढ़ के दो साल बाद 2016 में शुरू होती है, जब वादी के युवा रोजगार के लिए भटक रहे थे और लोकल नेता उनका इस्तेमाल प्रदर्शन और पत्थरबाजी के लिए कर रहे थे। इसी दौरान पेशे से पत्रकार सोहेल मीर (मोहम्मद जीशान अय्यूब) कश्मीर का अपना फुटबॉल क्लब शुरू करने का ख्वाब देखता है। इसमें उसका साथ देता है कश्मीरी पंडित बिजनेसमैन शिरीष केमू (मानव कौल)। बचपन में पलायन और अपने भाई को खोने का दर्द झेलने वाला शिरीष कश्मीर के युवाओं के लिए बेहतर रास्ते खोलना चाहता है। अब इन दोनों की जुझारू जोड़ी किस तरह एक कबाड़खाने से कश्मीर के पहले फुटबॉल क्लब की नींव रखती है? कैसे कुछ दिशाहीन, कुछ बेरोजगार तो कुछ अपने सपनों को दिल में कैद कर जीने को मजबूर युवाओं के साथ अपनी टीम खड़ी करती है और राष्ट्रीय लीग के मुकाबले तक पहुंचती है, यह सब सीरीज देखकर पता चलेगा।
The Sport of Good Storytelling
Wed, December 10 2025
When it comes to reviewing shows, binge-watching is the default mode of the job. It’s mostly a mad rush to finish all the preview episodes and start writing. There’s no time to be immersed in a universe long enough; the next title is always waiting. So you’re more wired to look for inventive themes and catchy in-points. It’s not often critics get to see a show as it should be seen — steadily, on a drip, one episode at a time, spread over a few days. I had this rare luxury with Real Kashmir Football Club and its eight episodes. Ideal as it sounds, this can go wrong, too; the choice to walk through a show brings with it the risk of losing rhythm and interest. But I found myself ‘waiting’ to watch Real Kashmir Football Club and voluntarily returning to it: during meals, after breaks, before sleeping, between films. Not out of suspense to know what happens next, but out of curiosity to know more. That’s the sign of a rooted and fundamentally sound series. Like a good host, it invites you in without gimmicks and touristy offers, lets you experience it on your own terms, transcends terms like “addictive,” and allows you to establish more of a lived-in relationship. It’s not a perfect bond, but it can be a satisfying one. And it’s kind of fitting for a story set in Kashmir, the one place that cannot be reduced to snap judgments and plain scrutiny.
Dhurandhar
Action, Thriller (Hindi)
After the hijacking of IC-814 in 1999 and the Parliament attack in 2001, India’s Intelligence Bureau Chief, Ajay Sanyal devised an indomitable mission to intrude and rupture the terrorist network in Pakistan, by infiltrating the underworld mafia of Karachi. A 20-year-old boy from Punjab, held captive for a revenge crime, is identified by Sanyal to execute his elaborate plan.
Cast:
Ranveer Singh, Sanjay Dutt, Akshaye Khanna, R. Madhavan, Arjun Rampal, Sara Arjun, Rakesh Bedi, Naveen Kaushik, Manav Gohil, Danish Pandor
Director:
Aditya Dhar
Craft, conviction, and troubling certainty
Sat, December 13 2025
The soul of Dhurandhar is rooted in quiet deception. Wait, I’m talking about Hamza Ali Mazari’s (Ranveer Singh) mission. He’s a spy operating across borders in this 214-minute film, and given this running time and the number of characters, motivations and political threads it handles, this film could very easily have collapsed into something rambling and frustrating. But it doesn’t, largely thanks to a smart structural decision: chapter segregation. The eight chapters keep the narrative in control, allowing the film to introduce competent characters like SP Aslam and Rehman Dakait as formidable, thinking opponents rather than fragile villains. The nuanced performances help too. Akshaye Khanna is potent, yes, but also so human in confusion and rage.
No Love Lost or Found In Ranveer Singh's Spy Thriller
Wed, December 10 2025
Since deception is the language of a spy thriller, let’s pretend that movies exist entirely in isolation — like an introvert on a Saturday night. Let’s pretend that Dhurandhar, Aditya Dhar’s directorial return after Uri (2019), has absolutely nothing to do with the world around us. (One could argue that it doesn’t, but that’s a mob attack for another day). Let’s also pretend that film criticism is about seeing a movie for what it is, regardless of its moral character or ideology. It’s only fair, given that we all admire great serial killers for being awesome at what they do, legendary dictators for being no-nonsense leaders, wars for being the epitome of courage and technology, and plane crashes for doing tragedy so well.
Ranveer Singh’s subdued yet scorching screen presence fuels this power-packed Karachi mafia thriller
Mon, December 8 2025
A fictional narrative inspired by true incidents, Aditya Dhar’s action drama follows Hamza (Ranveer Singh), a mysterious Indian agent who embeds himself deep within Karachi’s mafia network (Lyari gangwar) to dismantle terror operations from the inside. Structured across multiple chapters, the world-building is deliberate and immersive, pulling you into a gritty, violent universe that unfolds over nearly 3.5 hours. Yet, the runtime rarely feels overbearing thanks to Dhar’s stylish, tight storytelling.
Akhanda 2
Action (Telugu)
When all hope died, Akhanda arrived. He saved his family, protected his people, killed the wrongdoers, and retreated into isolation. But years later, new threats emerge, putting the world in danger. And as the world burns, Akhanda returns.
Cast:
Nandamuri Balakrishna, Pragya Jaiswal, Samyuktha, Aadhi Pinisetty, Akshara Nunna Sujana, Harshaali Malthotra, Kabir Duhan Singh, Poorna
Director:
Boyapati Srinu
Writer:
Boyapati Srinu
3 hours of WhatsApp forwards and pseudoscience
Sat, December 13 2025
Balakrishna’s presence cannot salvage this loud, incoherent film
Fri, December 12 2025
There is a scene in Akhanda 2: Thaandavam that is almost impossible to describe with a straight face. Somewhere in the snow-capped Himalayas, Balakrishna — as Akhanda, endowed with divine powers — bends over the antagonist to check if his heart still beats. This man has already survived one round of Akhanda’s wrath. His tongue had flown out (I wish I were exaggerating), but he apparently stitched it back on and returns to contribute to this talk-heavy film. This time, Akhanda wants to be absolutely certain. So he pierces the man with his mace, hoists him into the air, and swings him left and right several times.
Christmas Karma
Fantasy, Comedy, Drama (English)
In modern-day London, an unkind British-Indian businessman is compelled by three ghosts to reflect on his life and to consider the needs of those around him.
Cast:
Kunal Nayyar, Leo Suter, Charithra Chandran, Pixie Lott, Hugh Bonneville, Eva Longoria, Billy Porter, Boy George, Bilal Hasna, Danny Dyer
Director:
Gurinder Chadha
Writer:
Gurinder Chadha
The biggest drawback of Christmas Karma is the lack of any perceivable cleverness in the adaptation
Fri, December 12 2025
Jay Kelly
Drama, Comedy (English)
Famous movie actor Jay Kelly embarks on a journey of self-discovery, confronting both his past and present, accompanied by his devoted manager, Ron.
Cast:
George Clooney, Adam Sandler, Laura Dern, Billy Crudup, Riley Keough, Grace Edwards, Stacy Keach, Jim Broadbent, Patrick Wilson, Eve Hewson
Director:
Noah Baumbach
Writer:
Emily Mortimer, Noah Baumbach
A magnetic George Clooney shakes off the stardust
Thu, December 11 2025
Director Noah Baumbach joins forces with George Clooney to deliver a sharply observed, melancholic study of celebrity, memory and regret. Clooney plays Kelly, a Hollywood icon forced to shake off the stardust and confront the impact of his choices. As he drifts between denial and self-awareness, he confronts the fallout of decades lived at the centre of his own universe. What Baumbach attempts, and often pulls off (but not throughout) with considerable elegance, is a meta-fictional story of an ambitious man’s hubris. This is a film about Jay watching his own mythology crumble, only to realise and awaken to a truer, humbler version of himself.
Kalamkaval
Crime, Drama (Malayalam)
Early 2010s. A routine Kerala Police inquiry in the quiet village of Kottayikonam takes an unexpected turn when a trail of seemingly minor clues unravels into a string of disturbing cases. The investigation soon crosses into Tamil Nadu, revealing unsolved mysteries that have lingered for years.
Cast:
Vinayakan, Mammootty, Gibin Gopinath, Gayatri Arun, Rajisha Vijayan, Azees Nedumangad, Malavika Menon, Babu Ramachandran, Aravind Deepu, Bibin Perumbily
Director:
Jithin K Jose
Writer:
Jithin K Jose, Jishnu Sreekumar
Mammootty in a poor ‘leave-your-brains-at-home’ thriller
Thu, December 11 2025
It’s one thing to make a biography or documentary on an over-exposed crime episode. It’s another to sprinkle it with cinematic liberties and hope it magically transforms into a chilling superstar saga. Jithin K. Jose’s debut feature Kalamkaval attempts the latter and ends up as an engaging yet deeply implausible effort that feels dystopian. Tragically so, because almost nothing in its setup or screenplay reflects the conservative, observant, and perpetually inquisitive social fabric of Kerala.
Mon, December 8 2025
Mammootty transforms into monster, Vinayakan anchors thriller
Sat, December 6 2025
That Mammootty is playing his darkest role yet is something that’s known to everyone who has watched Kalamkaval’s promos. With his amazing track record of pulling off diverse roles with different levels of complexity, what does Mammootty have up his sleeve this time to blow our minds? Sharing the screen with him is another beast of an actor, Vinayakan. Has Jithin K Jose’s Kalamkaval lived up to expectations and imagination? Let’s find out!
Kaisi Ye Paheli
Mystery, Thriller (Hindi)
In a sleepy hill town in northeast India, a lonely mother tries to reconnect with her estranged policeman son by channeling her inner detective to help him solve a murder.
Cast:
Sukant Goel, Sadhana Singh, Rajit Kapoor, Chittaranjan Giri, Rahul Nawach Mukhia, Nishu Dikshit, Rinchen Sherpa, Bindhiya Dhamala, Rajendra Maskey, Ujjaini Deb
Director:
Ananyabrata Chakravorty
Writer:
Ananyabrata Chakravorty
A whimsical small-town whodunit
Thu, December 11 2025
Do we think enough about the filler conversations our mothers have with us? The questions usually follow a familiar template, beginning with “How was your day?” and ending with “What was for dinner?” If we set aside the romanticized ideas about moms that cinema projects, these exchanges can sound mundane, even annoying. And yet, in a relationship as pristine in theory as this one, it never feels polite enough to say this aloud.
Sukant Goel, Sadhana Singh film comes off as amateurish
Sat, November 29 2025
Truth be told, the only reason why I was interested in Kaisi Yeh Paheli is because I wanted to see what Sukant Goel was up to this time, as I had enjoyed his turn in the sadly-truncated Netflix series Kaala Pani. In Kaisi Yeh Paheli, he plays a son who dislikes his mother intensely, sustaining the emotion even when he is tasked with cracking the case of a young woman’s murder.
Technical Glitches Mar A Good One-Liner
Sat, November 29 2025
Conceptually, Kaisi Ye Paheli goes for broke. The 95-minute independent film, written and directed by Ananyabrata Chakravorty, wears the cloak of yet another small-town whodunnit. There’s a death in misty Kalimpong; sullen cop Uttam (Sukant Goel) and his boss, Tamang (Chittaranjan Giri), are flummoxed by the details: a religious girl poisoned by a holy sweet? The theatrical Bondo (Rajit Kapur, always) is summoned from Kolkata by the powers that be; the senior sleuth has a direct line to “Didi,” and behaves like he’s an amalgamation of Byomkesh Bakshi and Feluda in his head. Meanwhile, Uttam’s home situation is complicated — he resents his widowed mother (Sadhana Singh) for various reasons, not least because she constantly recalls their past life and late husband. The mother-son bond is strained, she aches for his attention, so it’s amusing when Tamang and team unofficially recruit her to be part of the investigation because of her passion for Bengali detective novels. Uttam’s colleagues confide in her like sons in their downtime; it’s a quirky touch without the energy of a quirky touch.
Song Sung Blue
Drama, Music, Romance (English)
Based on a true story, two down-on-their-luck musicians form a joyous Neil Diamond tribute band, proving it's never too late to find love and follow your dreams.
Cast:
Hugh Jackman, Kate Hudson, Michael Imperioli, Fisher Stevens, Jim Belushi, Ella Anderson, King Princess, Mustafa Shakir, Hudson Hilbert Hensley, Shyaporn Theerakulstit
Director:
Craig Brewer
Writer:
Craig Brewer
Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson in an aching duet of love and life
Tue, December 9 2025
“Nostalgia sells,” says Patsy Cline impersonator Claire (Kate Hudson) to an exasperated Mike (Hugh Jackman) in Song Sung Blue. He had just refused to don a Don Ho getup at a paying gig. If it weren’t a film and the actors weren’t well-known, this would be the last scenario where any sparks might fly. In a striking dramatization of a true story, the duo come together, romantically and professionally, to become a hit among Milwaukee’s music lovers, who take Neil Diamond’s songs like a sweet pill. Beyond the onstage fireworks, the unbelievable love and family story of Lightning and Thunder takes shape in Craig Brewer’s musical melodrama.
Angammal
Drama (Tamil)
In a remote, rustic mid-90s village in Tamil Nadu, a city educated young man feels awkward because his mother is blouseless. This is how she has always dressed. But as he tries to find a solution before his prospective in-laws arrive, a simple problem spirals out of control.
Cast:
Geetha Kailasam, Saran Shakthi, Bharani, Ashand Raju, Thendral Raghunathan, Mullai Arasi, sudahar das
Director:
Vipin Radhakrishnan
A poetic masala tale of chaos, choice, and conformity
Mon, December 8 2025
Freedom. It is quite an interesting beast because everyone wants it, but somehow they are tuned to keep it caged and away from others who might not have it. This dichotomy is very telling of the human mind and its vagaries. There is always someone who has more freedom than you, and someone who doesn’t have as much. It is supposed to be an absolute unit, but there are enough caveats in freedom to allow oppression of some kind to be perpetuated through avenues like patriarchy, misogyny, and simple conditioning. Director Vipin Radhakrishnan’s Angammal is one such film that shows how exercising freedom always comes at a cost in a society that values conformity.
(Writing for OTT Play)
Geetha Kailasam Shines In A Lived-In Tale Of Tradition & Change
Fri, December 5 2025
In Vipin Radhakrishnan’s Angammal, Geetha Kailasam anchors the tension between the old and the new. Based on Perumal Murugan’s short story Kodithuni, the Tamil film is due for theatrical release this week after premiering at prestigious film festivals last year. It is the beginning of the 1990s, and this very intriguing period is bookmarked by Singaravelan, Roja, Sami Potta Mudichu and more. Pavalam (Saran Sakthi) aka Pavala Muthu and Jasmine (Mullaiyarasi) have their dates in the movie theatre amidst modest snacks and seats as they watch the film less and indulge more either in each other (a bout of make out set to Tamizha Tamizha chorus is hilarious) or in familial matters like the impending visit of Jasmine’s parents to Pavalam’s house to discuss their marriage. Pavalam is the rare and, probably, first graduate from his village — and a doctor at that — and his experiences of the outside world cloud his foundation as he comes to see his mother’s style as an embarrassment.
Geetha Kailasam's powerhouse performance in a tale of autonomy
Thu, December 4 2025
When the spunky Angammal (a brilliant Geetha Kailasam) rides her moped and delivers milk, there’s a spark in her eyes. The spark tells you that she’s leading life by her own rules. But when she’s forced to make certain lifestyle changes after her second son Pavalam (Saran) pushes her to, you see the vitality fading. It shows you how little things that made Angammal the fierce matriarch that she is are not acceptable to the generation that comes after hers. It shows how Angammal, the independent woman, is denied the choice. The choice that made her a flawed, foul-mouthed woman with her own ideals.
Stephen
Thriller (Tamil)
A psychiatrist evaluating a self-confessed serial killer unravels a twisted web of trauma, deceit, and psychological manipulation—only to question if the killer is truly guilty or just another victim in a larger, darker game.
Cast:
Gomathi Shankar, Smruthi Venkat, Michael Thangadurai, Vijayashree
Director:
Mithun
Gomathi Shankar shines in chilling, uneven thriller
Sun, December 7 2025
What do you do when a guy walks into a cop station confessing he has killed nine women? Nothing about the sentence is a spoiler because there’s nothing Stephen (Gomathi Shankar) hides when it comes to the horribly casual ways in which he says he has killed them: this is how I stabbed, this is where I stabbed, he tells the flabbergasted policemen, who can’t understand how this man, who looks like your average person off the street, can be a cold-blooded murderer.
Tamil Serial Killer Thriller's Intriguing Premise Wilts With Predictable Twist
Sun, December 7 2025
The psychological thriller Stephen opens with a chase to find a serial killer responsible for murdering nine women. Filmmaker Mithun’s feature twists the tale by revealing the killer early on. The Tamil film is more about Stephen’s past and motives that led him to become a cold-blooded killer. As investigators and psychologists probe into his mind, the movie paints a sympathetic picture until that shocking ending. It’s a switch and bait that almost works.
A psychological thriller that spins out of control
Sat, December 6 2025
The initial frames of Stephen feature a young boy looking up at a giant wheel in awe. Soon, he begins hearing voices of his mother and father asking him to join them on the ride. And when he gets on the giant wheel, it spins. Watching director Mithun Balaji’s two-hour-long Stephen, you understand that the wheel never stops once it begins spinning. Stephen Jebaraj (Gomathi Shankar) confesses to the serial killing of nine women in six months. He surrenders to the police matter-of-factly. Michael (Michael Thangadurai) is entrusted with the job of finding the motive behind the murders. Helping him in evaluating Stephen is psychiatrist Seema (Smruthi Venkat), who, through her conversations with him, uncovers the truth behind the murders.