On the other side of the battle line is his now-estranged bosom friend Sachin (played by Harshad), who is from an upper-class Kannada household, in whose good fortune Raghu sees his hardships magnified. A third character, Parveen (Donna Munshi), a young Muslim single mother, a friend of the young men, becomes a bone of contention between them. The trajectory of their friendship is etched out superbly. In the initial scenes, Sachin and Raghu see each other only on digital screens, in their respective YouTube channels, propagating outwardly opposite yet intrinsically similar ideologies. As the film goes further backwards, you see them together, hanging out, discussing life and career, and travelling to the beautiful outskirts of the city to gaze at the tranquil horizon. They easily slip in and out of different languages in their conversations, reaffirming that identity is something free-flowing, shapeshifting and accommodative. If friendship offers them a landscape of great freedom, radical politics imprisons them in watertight compartments.
Raghu Prakash, a debut actor, delivers an excellent performance. From a state of passivity, he erupts in rage so seamlessly, like a river suddenly undammed. He carefully brings to the fore the subtle signs of depression growing inside the young man. Harshad’s narrative is brilliantly restrained, never once sinking into sentimentalism, even while portraying the intense collapse of Raghu’s friendship with Sachin and Parveen, or the young man’s fatal descent into exasperation. Yet, the pain is registered, with none of the nuances lost. Raghu cuts a deeply tragic figure who loses sight of himself in a political war that isn’t his.