The Toronto Film Festival’s Midnight Madness had its world premiere with “Kill,” a unique film that brings together three talents: Producer Guneet Monga Kapoor, Karan Johar, and director Nikhil Nagesh Bhat.
Unlike typical Indian cinema, “Kill” dives into the extreme action genre and unfolds entirely on an express train bound for New Delhi. The story revolves around Indian army commandos Amrit and Viresh, on a mission to rescue Amrit’s girlfriend, Tulika, who is being forced into an unwanted engagement. Things take a chaotic turn when more than 40 bandits, known as dacoits in India, board the train with intentions of looting and kidnapping. Amrit and Viresh must protect Tulika and her family, leading to intense, heart-pounding action within the confines of the train, all while dealing with the psychotic bandit Fani.
Director Nikhil Nagesh Bhat, hailing from Maharashtra and raised in Bihar, drew inspiration for the film from his extensive train journeys across India in the 1990s, where he encountered trains targeted by bandits, often from the same family. This experience planted the seed for “Kill.”
Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions is known for romances and melodramas, and having a film like Kill is something not only new for us but also for Dharma.
The film stars Lakshya in his lead debut as Amrit, Tanya Maniktala as Tulika, and dancer-actor Raghav Juyal as Fani. Bhat pushed them beyond traditional martial arts, incorporating the 12 different manual combat techniques that Indian commandos are trained in, resulting in thrilling action sequences.
“Kill” reunites Dharma Productions and Monga Kapoor’s Sikhya Entertainment a decade after the acclaimed “The Lunchbox.”
Karan Johar also talked about John Wick. While drawing a parallel he said, “I wouldn’t want to compare one to the other. I do know one thing, though, I say this with all modesty, I don’t think India’s actually seen a film like this at all. While it’s constructed in a train, the kind of unabashed, emotional violence that this film has, I would say, in fact, it is the most violent film ever made in India. Even John Wick still gives you some respite. This one is much more relentless.”
There are plans to develop “Kill” into a franchise, pending its reception after the Toronto premiere. Monga Kapoor expressed excitement about the future of the project. But all these descriptions look more exciting to us than the makers.
The film sounds crazily cool, let’s wait to see how it actually comes out to be.