Turns out, the suspect of a murder case has escaped custody and has gone on a frantic run, evading cops by a hair’s breadth. He has been shot in the leg by the sub-inspector in charge and isn’t, by any means, in the position to go far on foot. Perhaps the hotel could come in handy here? And if that were to be, how would a man like Subbanna, a man with no prior taste of crime whatsoever, take stock of the situation? More importantly, how will he slip through the goggles of some of his customers, who are only growing inquisitive with his now-strange behaviour?
The essence of Sandeep Sunkad’s new film lies right here. His is a film that makes a sincere effort to build the world first as it prepares simultaneously to slowly lower us into the belly of the drama. Tactfully, the writer-director creates a milieu that’s not only conducive for a mystery but also for life to unfold at an excruciatingly leisurely pace. We learn that aside from Subbanna, the town’s sub-inspector Mallikarjun (played by Gopal Deshpande) too has high stakes in this man-on-the-run dilemma and if he doesn’t apprehend this man again, his pending transfer to his hometown might be stalled. Worse, he could lose his job or even end up behind bars himself. We learn that there resides a lawyer in Melige who bears a grudge against Mallikarjun for an old case and is now suddenly in the realm to make things tougher for him. We also learn that this murder convict has a different version of the truth and that Subbanna is his only ray of hope at this point.
Leisure is certainly the operative word in the case of Shakhahaari because the film is resolutely very languid, at times even a little too placid. On paper, one gathers the subject matter to be tension-filled and fraught with anxiety but it becomes quite clear as the narrative plods along that Sandeep Sunkad wants his film to remain even-tempered for as long as possible. He instead wants to focus more on the mundanities, especially the domestic troubles of his other protagonist, Mallikarjun. And while his intentions are noble and fascinating, the relenting nature of his approach gradually starts to lose grip of the plot. A plot that has so much promise right from word go. We see that Mallikarjun is desperate to get done with the case because so much hangs on it, but the same desperation doesn’t somehow translate on screen.