Netflix’s new release, ‘Haseen Dillruba,’ is a psychological thriller that tests the boundaries of love and crime, where sense and justice blur amid overwhelming emotions.
Rani Kashyap is under investigation as the lead suspect in her husband’s murder. Rishu, her husband, apparently died of a head wound before a cylinder blast destroyed his body, leaving only his left hand with Rani’s name tattooed on it.
Suspicious timing, with Rani outside the house at the exact time of the blast, puts her under police radar. The inspector-in-charge believes her to be guilty of murdering her husband with the help of her lover, Neel.
She slowly begins revealing details of their perplexing marriage during interrogation, which ends up pushing the truth further into the void, making the case more complex.
Who killed Rishu? Where did Neel disappear to?
Haseen Dillruba ending explained in detail:
The Interrogation
From the very beginning, Rani Kashyap (Taapsee Pannu) is under the police’s radar as the lead suspect. Rishu’s (Vikrant Massey) undying love for Rani was etched on his wrist, the only thing remaining that proved the corpse as his.
Throughout multiple questions, even when she is beaten up under police custody, she maintains her innocence and doesn’t reveal Neel’s (Harshvardhan Rane) whereabouts. However, at one point, she has to go through a lie detector test. Only at that moment does Rani’s façade begins unravelling as she becomes nervous and anxious.
She slyly puts a nail under her shoe, which helps maintain a constantly high heartbeat, lest the truth might get out. The interrogator questions the timeline that led to the blast. With Rani’s heartbeat already high from the beginning, there is no conclusion.
The nail trick is later discovered, and she has to re-do the entire process. Her heartbeat remains normal throughout, shocking everyone.
When her heartbeat was already high for the first lie detector, she was asked about what happened that day on 30th November. She narrated the entire incident, tweaking facts at will.
For the second lie detector, she has to answer in Yes or No and is asked about her name, age, if she killed her husband, if she had any relationship with Neel, and if her lover had killed her husband.
The Timeline
As the story progresses along the lines of Rani pitching her innocence and the police stoic on their suspicion, a blurred video of Neel jumping into the river behind their house right before the blast surfaces, strengthening suspicion.
Rani keeps denying all accusations. The timeline, as revealed towards the end, is narrated from Rishu’s POV — Rishu’s parents go out-of-town that day, so the couple plans to bring his friend home for supper.
He then goes to the store to get the necessary ingredients. Surprisingly, Neel returns to the residence to continue his affair with Rani. Rishu shows there sooner than intended, and the three of them have a heated argument.
During the intense exchange, Neel threatens to leak a sex tape of Rani and him after Rishu labels him a “sex offender.” Rishu loses his cool, and a fight breaks out. To save her husband, who Neel was choking, Rani hits her former lover in the head with frozen ribs.
Blood pools near Neel’s head, who dies from the injury. Rani goes hysterical and offers to call the police, but Rishu reassures her that it was an accident and she is not at fault.
They have one final chance to cover their trace, and Rishu decided to cut his left hand, which has the tattoo ‘Rani’ and sets the place on fire, framing Neel as the murderer.
The Revelation
The revelation occurs five years after the case has come to a close. Inspector Kishore Rawat, who was in charge, is transferred to a new place. While waiting for the train, he notices a crime fiction novel, ‘Wrath of Kasauli’ by Dinish Pandit from which Rani used to quote often. It was also the only work by the author Rishu had read.
While reading the book, the entire plot unfolds in the inspector’s brain — Rishu, to cover tracks, cut both his and Neel’s left hand. Neel’s dead body was dragged into their spare kitchen, and Rishu put on the former’s jacket and cap. Rani was still in shock but managed to gather the guts to clean the blood traces, while Rishu was still recovering from the shock of cutting off a body part.
As per the plan, Rani soon left the house for the meat vendors, keeping in her appearance. She managed to get rid of the murder weapon — the rib — by having it sliced at the meat vendor. Meanwhile, Rishu worked to set up the area for the blast.
Rani later reached her home lane and began feeding the street dogs while Rishu escaped from the house’s back door through the river. The blast happened a while later, removing all traces of the crime.
The dramatic scene ends with Rishu meeting with Rani in a train station, where they reconcile after staying apart for obvious reasons. The camera focuses on Rishu’s lost hand.
Here’s a breakdown of the climax by Netflix:
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