Mystery, crime and thrillers are some of the most sought after genres in cinema. We have many examples of masterpiece movies from these categories. India right now is one of the biggest markets for crime dramas. Here is a list of Bollywood movies that were inspired from true incidents. If you are a fan of the genre, you may have already seen some of them but these movies are definitely worth a rewatch too.
Directed by Meghna Gulzar, ‘Talvar’ is the story of the 2008 Noida double murder case where a little girl Aarushi Talwar and a live-in house servant were found murdered and the parents of the girl were convicted for the crime. Irrfan Khan plays the character of Ashwin Kumar, the officer-in-charge for the investigation. The supporting cast includes talented actors like Neeraj Kabi, Sohum Shah and Konkona Sen Sharma.
No One Killed Jessica(2011) – Netflix
‘No One Killed Jessica’ is a thriller that is directed by Raj Kumar Gupta and came out in 2011. The film has two of the strongest actresses of the industry Vidya Balan and Rani Mukherjee as the lead. Jessica Lall, a model was shot dead in a bar full of people in 1999 and the Prime Suspect was the son of a politician. The movie is inspired from that event and shows how Jessica’s sister Sabrina joins forces with a journalist Meera to investigate the case.
Charles Sobhraj a.k.a ‘Bikini-killer’ is one of the most infamous criminals not only in India but the whole world. Randeep Hooda plays Charles in this engaging thriller ‘Main Aur Charles’ directed by Prawaal Raman. Adil Hussain, Richard Chadda, Tisca Chopra play other important characters. The movie shows Charles using his charm to seduce women and commit crime after crime and finally escaping a jail after being arrested.
The Stoneman Murders (2009) – Amazon Prime Video
If you are a crime-buff, you should have heard about the strange killings in Mumbai during the 80s. People lying in the footpaths were killed mercilessly and their heads were thrashed using huge stones. ‘The Stoneman Murders’ is loosely based on that event and slightly fictionalizes it. Kay Kay Menon plays a suspended police officer who badly wants to catch the killer who is out in the city killing footpath dwellers. Arbaaz Khan, Vikram Gokhale, Rukhsar, Virendra Saxena play important characters. It is a must watch if you like serial killer movies.