Haraamkhor review : Indian cinema comes of age with this mature portrayal of child sex abuse

This is where Haraamkhor is undoubtedly a winner. Jugal Hansraj as the abusive chachaa was too much of stock character, much more fragile and prone to quick unravelling, than a complex and deep character like Shyam. Kahaani 2 perhaps deserves a nod because of its ability to deal with issues that go untouched in mainstream cinema, but Haraamkhor drives home quite a few points that the other fails to. Kahaani 2 is a through-and-through Bollywood thriller, which sacrifices authentic characterisation and narratorial edge for the sake of cheap thrills and a callously pulled escape with the help of a (weirdly) friendly, rather heroic ex.

Haraamkhor gives you no respite. It is impossible to make an escape into the happy wilderness of Bollywood cliches, and the sense of foreboding turns into two dead bodies lying in a field of blood, with two children sitting in the distance, whose lives have changed forever.

How many lives do these haraamkhors change each day?