Manvat Murders (2024) s01e08 Episode Script

[bell ringing]
Aai!
Baba's here!
Baba
You had promised to come sooner.
It took you so long!
Er
Neena!
Baba has had a long journey.
He must be tired.
Balu dada!
Keep the bag here.
Neena!
Keep Baba's briefcase inside.
Go!
I don't want to.
Come on!
Be a good girl!
Now go!
I hate this.
Listen!
What happened?
Has the case been solved?
There was no news in the newspapers.
Where's Anita?
She's in school.
Umm
Neena!
Get Baba some water.
[tense music]
Listen.
Is something wrong?
Are you not feeling well?
I'm too exhausted.
I'll rest for a while.
[tense music continues]
Here!
Just a littleyeah, yeah!
Tie it up.
Wake up, Baba!
Baba!
You've been sleeping forever!
Wake up!
What time is it?
It's nine in the morning!
You've been sleeping
since yesterday afternoon!
You didn't even wake up
for dinner last night!
Neena.
Get down if you're done.
Anita! Go play with tai.
What happened in Manvat exactly?
[tense music]
Your colleagues have been
calling incessantly.
You hadn't informed them either.
No, Sir.
They haven't contacted us yet.
Yes. I've booked a call
to the Manvat police station.
It'll take four hours they said.
I'll call you back.
Where have you been, Sir!
The Home Minister has been
asking for you.
I'll speak to him.
You had a hearing in court yesterday.
You missed that too.
Please sit.
I was about to leave
for Mumbai as planned.
[violent door knock]
Open the door, Sir!
Sorry to disturb you, Sir.
But Samindri has raised a ruckus
in the lockup
saying she wants to speak
to Ramakant saheb immediately.
[tense music]
Here.
I'm willing to tell you everything.
But
do you
promise to take care of Kamli?
Of course.
I don't trust anyone.
Do you trust me?
Yes.
I will personally make sure
your daughter is looked after.
Tell me everything
from the very beginning.
All of this started
after Rukmini and
Jayant had a falling out.
Jayant?
Uttamrao's son
from his first wife.
Oi! Where the hell are you
taking that pillar?
That's pure teak!
That's not your daddy's
property, asshole!
Of course, it is!
Your jewellery, your clothes
and even you
are all my daddy's property!
Get out! You son of a bitch!
Damn this
Don't forget you're in my house!
Oi!
Why're you both yelling?
I wasn't!
Ask this woman!
Is it!
Bloody hell.
She asked me not to touch the pillar!
How dare he-
I told him!
I asked him to take them
since they were unused.
Used or unused, I don't care!
He has no business taking
anything from here without asking me!
Shut up, you whore!
What the bloody hell!
Watch your mouth!
All this will be mine after you both die!
Let's go!
Bloody asshole!
I'm childless.
That's why he has the balls
to talk to me like this!
But you know how hard we've tried.
We've done every ritual
that Kaachu Paaku asked us to do.
I know.
We even visited that doctor in Mumbai.
Rukmini! Not every woman can be
a mother and there's nothing you can do!
[pensive music]
[sniffles, whimpers]
She wept all night.
The next day, Ganpat showed up.
Salve?
[door creaks open]
Ganpat Salve.
I'm a psychic.
I can get
anything in this world to give birth.
I have a panacea that
will give you a child.
If I fail, you get your money back.
I never heard of Ganpat Salve again.
But on the next new moon day
I heard they did
some ritual in the mansion.
What kind of ritual?
I wasn't there.
And then
the first woman was killed.
Gayabai.
Followed by Shakeela.
And so she suspected that
Uttamrao, Rukmini and
Ganpat Salve are in some way
related to these two murders.
So that means
Samindri turned witness eventually?
I got the feeling Rukmini akka
is hiding something from me.
And so asked Sopanya to meet me.
To get to the bottom of this.
But
isn't Sopan a loyal servant of Uttamrao?
He is.
Then
what made you think he would
turn on them and tell you everything?
Because he loves me.
After my husband left me
we've become quite close.
Every now and then
I also help him out financially.
I was the one who
got his sister Sheshabai
a job at the dairy.
Excellent!
Despite all this, you killed
her son Kondya.
Sorry.
Right, moving on.
About Sopan.
Ganpat told Rukminibai
that he has an elixir
that will help her bear a child.
But he first needs to know
why Rukminibai stopped
having her period.
And he'll have to do
a separate ritual for that.
So then?
So then
Rukminibai didn't give
Uttamrao an option.
And who's gonna say
no to a woman like her?
Wait a minute!
Where is Ganpat Salve?
[suspenseful music]
[suspenseful music continues]
[door knock]
Ganpat Salve?
Who?
Who's Ganpat Salve?
[dramatic music]
Ganpat
Bhagoji
Salve.
[soft groan]
Why fear
when the solution is right here!
A solution
for everything except death!
Get your money back
if you don't get what you want!
Black magic, sorcery,
casting spells, witchcraft!
This is just the basic stuff.
And if you want a child
a panacea that fixes everything!
The greatest of all psychics!
The eternal psychic!
Have I left out anything?
If you're such a great psychic
you must know what
a cognisable offence means.
An offence that the police
must take cognisance of!
Where the investigation
starts immediately.
Where the police can arrest
an accused without a warrant.
For example
theft
rape
and murder.
I haven't killed anyone, Saheb.
What was that in Rukmini's mansion!
That was just business, saheb.
That son of a bitch Kaachu Paaku
had a monopoly in Manvat!
I was just trying to
Don't hide anything.
Tell me everything! Right now!
I'll tell you, saheb.
[pensive music]
A distant relative of mine
named Shankar
used to work for Uttamrao.
Right.
I know that.
What about that?
He told me
about Rukminibai's desperation
for a child.
And the mantra for bearing a child
is my speciality.
I'm famous for that.
Just how did you get so famous?
I'm an honest man, saheb.
I guarantee people that
I'll return their money
if they don't have a child.
Some women
do what it takes to bear a child.
I don't return their money.
And those who don't bear one
get their money back.
Those who bear children
spread the word.
And those who get money
also spread the word.
That's all it takes to be famous.
I'm telling you the truth.
I haven't done anything!
Keep talking!
You met Rukmini.
After that?
Then I asked them if could
carry out a special ritual
to find out why Rukminibai
wasn't getting pregnant.
But before I could do that
I set up a fake ritual
with Shankar.
[dramatic music]
[ominous music]
I can sense the presence
of a powerful spirit in this mansion.
We can't proceed until
we find out what the spirit wants.
But for that
I'll need one of you
to act as a medium.
Medium? What does that mean?
It means the spirit
will possess your body
and tell us what it wants.
Who's going to do it?
Who is it going to be?
Will we be OK?
I mean is it safe?
Absolutely.
Once you're possessed, you won't
know what's happening around you.
Alright.
Let's do this.
I'll do it.
Then come sit here.
[fast-paced, tension-filled music]
[slow, ominous music]
[chants mantra]
[eerie, fast music]
[silence]
What is your name?
Who are you?
I'm a spirit dwelling
on this Peepal tree.
[suspenseful music]
Will you answer our questions?
I'll need a chicken.
Granted!
Now ask me.
Ask me anything you want.
Why did Rukminibai
suddenly stop menstruating?
Tell me why!
[loud chuckle]
My dark spell
won't make her belly swell!
Until I am pacified
I will not let an heir
be born in this house!
[fast, suspenseful music]
Tell me how to pacify you.
Look at that tree!
Make a home for me near that tree!
Kneel before me and
light a lamp every day!
Will you do it?
We will, we will.
Will that be enough for you?
No!
I want a human sacrifice!
Sacrifice a little girl.
Unless you sacrifice a human
this woman will not bear a child.
[groaning sounds]
Did you hear what the spirit said?
You'll have to sacrifice a human for him.
A girl who hasn't started menstruating.
Once you offer this spirit
blood from her privates
Rukminibai will bear a child.
You heard him.
Didn't you?
[Kamli coughing]
After hearing all that
Ganpat told them
they discussed the problem.
Uttamrao was against doing any of this.
But Rukminibai
Rukminibai didn't give him a choice.
I hope you're kidding.
It's not easy.
There you are.
We're going to do
what the psychic has asked us to do.
Are you out of your mind, Rukmini?
I want a child.
Do you really think
this is going to work?
What makes you think it won't?
[eerie music]
The spirit wants a human sacrifice.
Of a prepubescent girl.
Here.
Here, take this.
Keep it.
Here.
Rukmini!
I'm the one who people call barren!
Not you!
They gave the task of
killing a prepubescent girl
and getting her blood
to Sopan and Yashwant.
[whistling sound]
They never wanted to kill anyone.
But Uttamrao promised them
15 rupees and a bottle of booze.
And they couldn't resist that offer.
They took her to a wooded area
and killed her.
They took the blood
from her privates and
brought it to the mansion.
[loud thud]
Why the hell did you rape her?
I did not rape her!
That motherfucker Yashwant did.
He raped her before killing her.
And then?
After that?
I had decided to do the first ritual
and be happy with whatever I get.
Because I was sure these people
won't sacrifice a human.
Help me understand something.
You did this just for a paltry fee?
No!
Not just for that.
After hearing about the ritual
at Rukminibai's mansion
I would have had plenty
of customers in Manvat.
But Uttamrao actually killed a little girl
got her blood and
called me over.
[suspenseful music]
I was scared shitless.
But it was important for me
to play along.
[eerie music]
Where is the body?
Huh?
Where did you dump
the little girl's body?
Umm
same place where we killed her.
Never do that.
What then?
Understand that
this spirit is the boss.
We've made it happy
but what about his lackey?
His lackey?
There are Pandhryas all over the village
and they're hungry.
Always dump the body around them.
The spirit takes the blood
Pandhrya takes the body.
Well, OK.
No one knows about it yet.
Huh?
It's not too late to move it.
Hmm.
Don't worry.
You'll get what you want.
Everyone waited for a month.
Rukminibai didn't get her period.
So Uttamrao asked Ganpat
why this wasn't working.
So he said
the sacrifice wasn't
enough for the spirit.
And that it needs more blood.
So then?
So then
we committed a second murder.
Oi!
It's too far away, you'll miss the target.
[chuckles]
Have you eaten?
No?
I've got an extra roti.
I'll share one with you.
OK?
Come!
[ominous music]
So I gave her the roti.
Just then, Yashwant arrived.
And grabbed her neck.
[sharp slicing sound]
Ganpat took the second girl's
blood and again did the ritual.
Everyone waited for
a few days again.
She still didn't get her period.
Uttamrao was losing his shit.
He asked Ganpat to come and meet him.
Uttamrao!
Rukminibai!
Uttamrao!
Who is it?
Who's that there?
Come here, you asshole.
[door opens]
What kind of psychic are you?
You should've guessed this.
[eerie music]
It is feeling suffocated.
It needs to be set free.
Who?
Who needs to be set free?
Who?
[sniggers]
I feel like thrashing you right now.
Well!
Where were we "Dr. Storyteller"?
Continue.
Who is it?
Who's that in there?
It's me, maalik. You called
You son of a bitch!
Have you been taking us for a ride?
We've spent a fortune and
wasted our time on rituals
only because you asked us to.
We even slaughtered two people
and it's been a waste!
Please listen to me, maalik.
Remember what you said?
Umm
If you don't bear a child, I'll return your money.
Return the money!
Please listen to me, maalik.
It's your guy's mistake.
What!
I had told you
very clearly that
we need the blood of a little girl.
Shut up, you dumbfuck.
That's what we gave you.
Yes, you did.
But before you gave it to me
she was raped.
Look at this.
How do you expect
the remedy to work?
That pervert Yashwant
couldn't keep his dick in check.
Asshole. [whispers]
What now?
How do we solve this now?
[suspenseful music]
There is a way.
You need to
sacrifice another girl.
Listen!
I've had enough of this nonsense!
I don't want your remedies and
I don't even want my money back!
Maalik.
We've made another grave mistake.
I realised it when I was taking to Mai.
She was born breech, right?
Yes.
She dreams about
hidden treasures, right?
Yes.
Why didn't you tell me this?
Why is that important?
There's a treasure hidden
under this Peepal tree.
The spirit has been guarding it!
For many years!
It is tired of its duty and that's
why you're facing its wrath.
Damn.
What the hell does that mean?
Unearth that treasure
and set the spirit free.
Only then can it bless
Rukminibai with a child.
You get the treasure
and Rukminibai gets her child!
You can kill two birds
with one stone.
Please don't think twice.
Let's get done with the next ritual.
[eerie music]
Ganpat came back 8-10 days later.
He said
that he's learnt a new
form of witchcraft
from some Bengali Baba.
"Of elevens, a goat and the earth."
He said the spirit now wants
the blood of a woman, not a girl.
Eleven women will have to be sacrificed.
And Uttamrao and Rukmini
agreed to all of this?
Rukmini was craving a child.
And Uttamrao was
craving that treasure.
Why wouldn't they agree?
I think this was when
you sent us that anonymous letter.
Yes.
But Paranje was of no help.
And then
Sopan and Yashwant
committed the third murder.
[ominous music]
[whirring followed by a thud]
That's a bull's eye.
I was 20 feet away.
You're quite the pro.
It's me who's killed her.
So you collect the blood.
She's alive.
Bloody hell.
[suspenseful music]
[music builds]
[loud thud]
Sugandhabai's sacrifice wasn't enough,
so you killed another one?
But didn't you decide to stop after
you got paid for the first ritual?
And yet you just kept on killing!
He promised to pay me
100 rupees for the ritual.
My daughter is suffering
from tuberculosis.
I need to buy expensive injections
and get X-rays done.
And you call yourself a psychic?
You were ready to kill people
to save your own daughter?
In the fourth murder, you had
only taken a few body parts.
Why?
I'm a psychic, saheb!
I need to keep things mysterious
for others to believe me!
That's why for the fourth ritual
I asked for a head
some flesh from the chest
and a little finger.
Apart from this
I had also carried out a grand ritual.
A special ritual.
And yet, nothing happened.
What the hell did you think
was going to happen?
The treasure was supposed
to force its way to the top!
Did you really believe
this was going to happen?
Uttamrao and his mother did.
But we never heard the
clinking of the treasure.
And Uttamrao
was so furious that he yelled at me.
So then I asked
Yashwant and Sopan
to take me to the place
where they hid the body.
There was still one more ritual to go.
You marked a circle around
the body and placed nuts in it.
I guess I must have.
What is that supposed to mean?
This didn't really mean anything?
Do you know how many
sleepless nights Sir wasted
reading books about black magic
just to figure out
what those markings meant!
This is all a hoax!
We're clueless and illiterate people!
At least you are educated!
Shouldn't you have figured this out?
[loud smack]
Sorry.
I kept calm for too long.
I just couldn't control it.
[heavy breathing]
[soft whimper]
After the fourth murder
why were you hiding in Baramati?
CID officer Ponkshe arrested
Uttamrao and Rukminibai.
So I thought he'll come
after me next, and so I fled.
If you weren't here
for the treasure rituals
why were the other murders committed?
I have no idea what happened.
I think they must have
found another psychic.
[sobbing]
This is unbelievable.
But then why were
the other murders committed?
Exactly.
That's what we were wondering too.
When that CID officer Ponkshe
had arrested
Rukmini, Uttamrao and
a few others among us
I had visited Rukmini.
That's when she told me
about the initial murders.
Didn't you know that already?
She didn't know Sopanya
had told me everything.
Ah.
I acted like I was hearing it
for the first time.
If you want the police
to stop suspecting us
[clears throat]
you'll need to commit another murder.
[suspenseful music]
If someone is killed while
we're here in prison
the police will be convinced that
we are not responsible
for the previous murders.
I gave Sopanya her message.
But he refused to commit
another murder.
And Yashwant?
He had fled quite a while ago.
But then
who killed the other people?
I'm sorry I don't want to
be a part of this mess.
[eerie music]
I've not been helping you
for free, you asshole.
This is what I want in return.
[ominous music]
[loud thud]
So
these people were killed
only to mislead the police?
Yes, saheb.
[suspenseful music]
Help me! Help!
Each one of the victims belonged
to a different caste, saheb.
The Barhates have been spared.
Oi!
Answer me you idiot!
You know what's happening
in the village!
[loud thud]
Because of all this
the police stopped suspecting
Uttamrao and Rukminibai.
Which is why they were
released from jail.
And what about Kondya?
You killed him
because he killed your goat.
I still don't buy that.
Kamlay! Come, let's play!
So what is it that want me to do?
So
all the victims so far
have been women and girls.
They're suspecting it has
something to do with our rituals.
Here's what we need to do.
What 'you' need to do.
Find a little boy
from among us and
So that Kulkarni will stop suspecting us.
And he'll probably go back to Mumbai.
A little boy from among us?
Who are you talking about?
Kondya!
[suspenseful music]
I don't
I don't think I can do this.
Why not?
He's a good kid.
His mother is in prison
because of me.
So that's
Sheshabai.
Yes, saheb.
The same one who went to jail
in the Janaki Dairy case.
[panting]
Listen.
You fucking tramp.
In that case
how about we kill
your daughter instead?
That sound better?
Does it?
Who's going to kill Kondya?
Tukya's told me that
he doesn't want to be
part of this mess.
For 15 rupees and some booze,
you'll find a lot of people.
Should we take a break?
Saheb
I never wanted to kill Kondya.
He was Sopanya's nephew.
Even he tried to talk Akka out of it.
[suspenseful music]
We don't have a choice, Sopanya.
You don't have to do it.
We'll find someone else.
Happy?
Here.
Now go.
Finally, I found Bajya and Palya.
They used to work in the dairy.
I convinced them.
And that's how Kondya
You know the rest, saheb.
In this entire Manvat case
you paid attention
to every little detail.
But you made a mistake
by killing Kondya.
Correct.
But then
why didn't you kill Babu?
It wasn't that easy.
There were police officers everywhere.
And so we decided to take him
away from Manvat and kill him.
But would they have
also killed Kamli?
Who knows?
Tell me something, Samindri.
Yesterday
you refused to help me.
So
what changed today?
It agreed to do this for Kamli, saheb.
I don't think
my sister would take care of her.
My girl has seen
unspeakable things in
that mansion, saheb.
[suspenseful music]
I've never trusted anyone, saheb.
But I'm trusting you.
Please look after my girl!
Please take care of her!
[sobbing]
Shukla will take you
to the judicial magistrate
in the afternoon.
I want you to tell him everything
that you just told me.
He will record your statement.
We can then find a public prosecutor
and start the process of
making you a prosecution witness.
OK?
OK.
Samindri, Sopan and Ganpat Salve
can all be witnesses, Sir.
So you've solved this case too, Sir.
Thank you, Bhosale.
We'll need to inform
the Home Minister right away, Sir.
Right.
I'll call him.
We can do the press conference now.
The world needs to know
about your success.
Kadam.
We might have solved
this Manvat case.
But we haven't seen
the last of these incidents.
We need to make sure
they never happen again.
Finding criminals
is our job.
But
what we should really do
is neutrally examine the system
that nurtures these criminals.
When I say system
I mean all of this.
Everything around us.
I mean
faith
superstitions.
Umm, education.
Caste, creed, religion.
Poverty.
Government.
All of you.
And me as well.
And God knows what else.
We need to keep improving this system.
And for that
we must find the truth
behind the truth.
[clicking of cameras]
Solving a case
doesn't mean our work ends.
Every closed case
has its own consequences.
And dealing with them
as an officer isn't enough.
One needs to be a citizen
a human to understand them.
Perhaps
at the bottom of every crime
lies someone manipulating
the system.
In the fight between good and evil
they always seem
to choose the wrong side.
But
as the law of karma says
God is fair
and gives you
exactly what you deserve.
And
in case God forgets
we can always count
on our justice system
to give criminals
the punishment they deserve.
And then there are those
who are born with misfortune.
It is the system that takes
them down the wrong path.
They too deserve a second chance.
[upbeat music]
There is always a way
out of these complexities.
You may have chosen
the wrong path initially.
But if you try hard enough,
you'll always find a way.
The world can be a terrible place
but it is always worth fighting for.
We just need to find
goodness in people.
If we can find it
and nurture it
future generations will continue
fighting for this goodness.