THE LAST NOTE

By Nikhil Shibnauth
1. EXT – RURAL HOUSE YARD – EVENING

ARPANA (40’s) gathers her bags as she gets down from the car.

ARPANA

Tum har baar yahi karte ho! Waiter ko ye sab bolne ki kya

zaroorat thi?

AMAR (40’s) checks for all his things as he alights the car.

AMAR

Woh waiter nahin tha, meri maa! Mera dost tha! Hum saath

mein college mein…

ARPANA

College mein tha, to apni beti ke baare mein, ghar ke baare

mein, naukri ke baare mein, SAB kuch bataanaa zaroori hai?

Uska number hi le lete…

AMAR

(remembers something, going back to car)

Are! Khushi ka gift to gaadi mein hi reh gaya!

ARPANA

(shakes her head and goes to open the door)

Reh nahin gaya, bhool gaye tum!

CUT TO

INT – RURAL HOME – LIVING AREA

ARPANA opens the door, gets in, drops her bag on the sofa.
 ARPANA

Ye Khushi bhi na! Khushi! KHUSHI! Yeh TV kaun dekh raha hai,

betaa? Aapka bhoot?

AMAR

(ecstatic, enters with a small gift box in his hand) Khushi

kahaan hai?

ROOM

AMAR opens the door and turns on the lights.

KHUSHI (18)’s lifeless body hangs from the ceiling.

A ring covers all sounds.

AMAR shouts Khushi’s name, runs towards her to bring her down.

ARPANA rushes to the room and shrieks.

AMAR moves the overturned stool away as he brings KHUSHI’s body

down, breaks the phone wire out of her neck, while mouthing

something. ARPANA tries to slap KHUSHI awake.

AMAR moves back to fetch something, and notices a letter on the

table.

As AMAR reads the note, his expression turns from frantic panic

to guilt. He crumples the note and throws it under the bed before

going back to Khushi’s body.

 FLASH TRANSITION TO

ROOM – SOME TIME LATER

A police photographer takes pictures of [Link] police

officer bends down to look under the bed.

Camera moves through the corridor to the living area, revealing

AMAR and ARPANA seated in the living room, while a FEMALE POLICE

OFFICER notes.

FEMALE POLICE OFFICER

Aapka naam?

AMAR

Amar Sarvan.

FEMALE POLICE OFFICER

(to Arpana) Aur aapka?

AMAR

Arpana Sarvan.

FEMALE POLICE OFFICER

Aur jo mari…?

AMAR

Khushi… Khushi Kumari Sarvan… hamaari beti…

FEMALE POLICE OFFICER

Uski umra?
 ARPANA

(looks at Amar not answering) 18 saal. Abhi June mein 19 ki

hone wali thi.

FEMALE POLICE OFFICER

Aapko koi shak, ki usne aisa kyun kiya? Koi boyfriend, ya

kisi se jhagda…?

AMAR

Humko kuch nahin pataa! Kuch nahin pataa hamko!

POLICE OFFICER returns with a crumpled note. FEMALE POLICE

OFFICER opens it, then looks at AMAR.

2. INT – SHADY BAR – EVENING

DHRUV (50’s but looks older) sits at a table. On the other side

of the table, another glass of whisky has been poured, but no one

is sitting there. DHRUV sips from a glass in his hand while

playing hangman on his mobile phone.

His mobile rings. He silences it, and continues to sip his

whisky, while playing.

WAITER hands DHRUV the bill after a head gesture. DHRUV’s phone

rings again. He silences it again. He slips a couple of bills

under the glass, and hands one over to the WAITER, with a forced

smile.
He gets up to leave, as the waiter takes the empty glass as well

as the one still full.

CUT TO

EXT - STREET OUTSIDE THE BAR – EVENING

DHRUV’s mobile rings again, and he answers.

DHRUV

My answer is ‘no’.

JAI

Normal log ‘hello’ bolte hain, Dhruv.

DHRUV

Normal log paagalon ki tarah phone bhi nahin karte, Jai.

JAI

Baat hi aisi hai.

DHRUV

Oh! Tab bhi, mera jawaab hai ‘no’.

JAI

Please! Us baat ko kitne saal ho gaye. You were the best

lawyer I had. Dost ki haisiyat se I’m telling you it’s… it’s

time to move on!

DHRUV

I HAVE moved on! Main ne vakaalat chhod di hai!

 JAI

Bas ye ek case. Iske baad main kabhi phone bhi nahin

karunga. I promise. [DHRUV sighs] Ek baap par uski apni beti

ke suicide ka blame lagne wala hai, Dhruv…

DHRUV stops dead in his tracks.

CUT TO

3. INT – URBAN MANSION – LAVISH OFFICE AREA - NIGHT

JAI (50’s) cuts the call and turns to VIKAAS (late 40’s). Other

men are also in the room.

JAI

Kaam ho gaya. He’s taking the case.

VIKAAS

Aur Vivek ka naam is mein nahin aayega?

JAI

Sir, iski koi guarantee nahin… Par agar aaya bhi, to…

VIKAAS (nearly threatening)

…to mere naam par koi aanch nahin aani chahiye Mr. Jai.

VIKAAS exits the room, followed closely by a guilty JAI.

DINING AREA

VIVEK (18) sits at the dinner table, spaced out, and he turns to

look at VIKAAS storming out.

SHEELA (early 40’s) comes behind VIVEK and puts her hand on his

shoulder.

VIVEK shakes her hand off, and stares back down.

FADE TO BLACK

4. EXT – COURTROOM – DAY

TITLE CARD: JUDICIAL ENQUIRY – DAY 1

A small crowd stands outside the courtroom, controlled by police,

with journalists on the front of the line.

JOURNALIST

Nyaay ka nayaa roop, ya jantaa ki ankhon mein dhool? Khushi

Sarvan ki khudkhushi par DPP ne bithaayi judicial enquiry. 3

hafton mein ye 5wan teenage suicide, jisse jaake khuli DPP

ki neend. Kya saamne ayega koi aaropi? Kya isse badlega

Mauritian legal system? Kya khatam hoga khudkhushiyon ka ye

silsila?

DHRUV walks from the middle of them all, refusing to speak to

journalists. He stands in front of the courtroom, contemplating

his old workplace. He takes a deep breath and walks in.

INT – COURTROOM – DAY

As the opposing lawyer, Uttam settles down, the magistrate

enters, and all stand.

Uttam calls Amar to the stand, and asks him where he was when

Khushi took her life. Amar answers that he was out with Arpana,

as he wanted to gift a new mobile phone to Khushi. Upon being

asked what had happened to the earlier phone, Amar answers that

it was broken and he does not know how. Uttam proposes a scenario

where Amar was the one who broke the phone over a strife with the

family. Dhruv objects.

Uttam goes on to ask if he has any knowledge of the suicide note

that the police found at the scene. Amar denies knowledge of it,

stating that he was still in shock when he found it.

Uttam ends his interrogation. Dhruv has no counter-interrogation.

Arpana is called onto the stand. Answering to whether she noticed

changes in the behavior of Khushi recently, she defensively tells

Uttam that their home was a happy one. She tells him that they

had Khushi after 9 years of being married, and she could not

conceive after. Khushi was the princess of their home. And a very
happy princess on that. Khushi had just started university some

months ago, and had finally made some friends.

CUT TO:

SC 4.3 – INT. Khushi’s place – few months ago. Day.

Khushi rushes to greet Jenna and her friend, Vivek, at the door.

Khushi introduces them to Aparna, and Aparna looks proudly at

Khushi. Aparna asks if they are all okay to have lunch before

starting their assignment, and they all sit at the table,

chatting and eating.

CUT TO:

SC 4.4 – INT. Courtroom - present. Afternoon.

Uttam interjects that this was when the trouble started. Arpana

defensively responds that it was normal young adult behavior. She

insists that all happy homes have issues, small discussions,

small fights. He taunts whether a particular incident comes to

mind. Dhruv objects.

Uttam reads the suicide note to Aparna – “Dearest Dad, I do not

want to be the reason of your shame. Forgive me if you can.” And

asks what she thinks of it. Aparna stays quiet. Uttam asks if

Amar was a good father. She quietly answers, yes. He asks if

Khushi was a good girl. She tears up, looks at Amar, and says
yes.

Dhruv does not counter-interrogate, and the session is adjourned.

SC 5 – INT. Dhruv’s house. Night.

Dhruv is having flashes of himself, screaming, and his son. He

rushes into his cabinet, takes out a pill, then drinks it

together with a shot of whisky. As he calms down, he looks at

himself in the mirror, then rushes to the television in the

living room. Dhruv’s home is not very well lit, and looks like

the residence of a hoarder.

The news reports that the first day of the judicial enquiry saw a

powerless defense lawyer, and that the autopsy report will be the

subject of the next interrogation.

Dhruv is seen pondering.

SC 6 – INT. Amar & Arpana’s dining room

Arpana is serving food from take-aways into respective plates.

Amar is looking into the distance. Arpana lays the plates and
sits. She looks at Amar, and puts her hand over his. He jerks her

hand off, saying he is not hungry. He goes into Khushi’s room,

sits on her bed.

Arpana comes to the room, and stops at the door, looking at Amar,

then slowly moves and sits at Amar’s feet. “We’re in this

together”, she says, raising herself to hug Amar. Amar sobs,

asking what he did wrong, and accepts her embrace for a few

moments, before hesitantly breaking free, and reaching out for

his mobile phone.

A message is seen, from a private number, saying “Sorry Sir”. He

looks at Arpana, with an expression of doubt on his face.

SC 7.1 – INT. Courtroom - Day

Uttam continues to interrogate Arpana about Khushi’s habits. He

presents a neighbor’s statement, that about a week before the

incident, Aparna was heard arguing with Khushi. Aparna narrates.

CUT TO:

SC 7.2 – INT. Khushi’s place – a week ago. Afternoon.

Khushi is seen getting ready to go somewhere. Arpana teases her

that she is going to be the head-turner of the evening. Khushi

responds that it’s just a fresher’s party in the university. Such

things happen in movies.

Arpana takes Khushi’s bag, and says this does not go with the

dress she’s wearing, and reveals a new bag as gift for her.

Khushi is really happy, and tells Arpana to leave it in the room.

Arpana, wanting to help, opens the old bag to transfer the things

to the new one, and finds a pack of cigarettes. Khushi stammers,

saying that the cigarettes belong to Jenna. The argument ensues,

and Arpana throws Khushi’s bag to the ground, while Khushi shouts

how no one believes her, and that she is old enough to be treated

as an adult. Amar tries to calm the situation.

CUT TO:

SC 7.3 – INT. Courtroom – present. Day.

Uttam posits that the last few days were tense then. Arpana

answers positively, and says that such tiffs are common, and that

it was not the first time. Uttam asks if it was reason enough for

Khushi to be beaten.

Arpana staunchly replies in negative, saying that both she and

Amar have never ever laid a hand on Khushi.

CUT TO:
SC 7.4 – INT. Khushi’s place – a week ago. Afternoon.

Amar follows Khushi into her room, sits her down, and tells her

to stop crying. Then he calmly asks her where the cigarettes came

from. Khushi guiltily admits that she had bought them, because

she wanted to try. Amar jokes that she should have taken only

one, not a whole packet. Khushi laughs, saying that it was her

first time. Amar says that it hopefully is the last. Khushi

agrees, saying she does not understand what people get from it.

He tells her that they will not stop her from exploring the

world, but to consider that when she is out, she is the pride of

Amar and Arpana. Amar playfully pushes Khushi’s head, and kisses

Khushi on the forehead.

CUT TO:

SC 7.5 – INT. Courtroom – present. Afternoon.

Uttam presents the autopsy report, where Khushi had previous

bruises on her body. Arpana says that she doesn’t know.

Dhruv has a flash of himself slapping his son.

Uttam asks whether she knows nothing about the traces of drug in

her system, too. She hesitates.

Amar tries to raise objection to the question. Dhruv does not.

Amar urges him to do something.

Dhruv is struggling with flashes of his son taking drugs and of

himself screaming.

Amar gets angrier and angrier at Dhruv for not doing anything.

Uttam continues asking if Arpana knew about her daughter taking

drugs.

CUT TO:

SC 7.6 – INT. Khushi’s room – a week ago. Night.

Khushi is lying in bed, in deep sleep. Arpana knocks at her door

and enters. She is apologetic, and comes to sit besides Khushi,

while explaining her anger. After talking for a minute or so, she

checks if Khushi is listening, and finds that Khushi is

inebriated. Arpana sits her down, and asks her sternly if she has

been drinking, to which Khushi sleepily answers no. Arpana smells

her mouth and finds no smell of alcohol. Khushi then says that

she feels weird, and throws up next to the bed.

CUT TO:

SC 7.7 – INT. Courtroom – present. Afternoon.

The magistrate brings the court to order.

Uttam repeats his question, whether Arpana knew about her

daughter taking drugs. Arpana answers maybe.

SC 8 – INT. Amar & Arpana’s house

Amar enters angrily, while the mob of journalists can be heard

outside. Arpana is at her heels, and as she enters, turns to the

journalists, and asks to be left alone.

Amar remarks that she has already made a show of them and of

Khushi by calling her an addict. Arpana says that she only said

what she thought was right.

Amar calls for the respect of Khushi, her modesty and reputation

being out for people to laugh at because of Aparna’s

‘truthfulness’. Arpana tries to reason with Amar, stating that

Khushi is no more, and that Amar does not know anything about

what she had to go through in her last days. Amar shouts out that

he knows! He barges into Khushi’s room and comes back with a

packet that he keeps on the table.

Arpana opens it off camera, and looks surprised. ‘I know!’,

exclaims Amar. Arpana holds his hand, as if wanting to say

something.
SC 9.1 – INT. Bar. Night.

Amar enters the bar to find Dhruv sitting at his habitual table.

Amar asks if he can sit. Dhruv indicates him to sit away from the

filled-up glass on the other side of the table. He sits.

Dhruv keeps his glass away and says that he was expecting them

earlier. Amar asks him why he is letting Khushi be slandered in

front of everyone. Dhruv answers that he cannot answer or fight

for them if they have things hidden from him.

Amar then talks about the duties of a parent, to frame the child,

and to constantly be in fear of whether you are right or wrong.

He admits hiding, even from his wife, a number of things, so that

Khushi’s name remains unsoiled.

Dhruv calls for a drink for Amar, as Amar talks about being a

friend more than a father to Khushi. Dhruv asks whether it was a

good thing. As he asks what he did wrong, he gets increasingly

annoyed at Dhruv, in the end saying that it was a bad decision to

try and talk to Dhruv.

As he reaches out for his pocket to pay for the drink, Dhruv

tells him about his own son, Ayaan, who died of an overdose. No

one is sure yet what led him to it.

[VO] CUT TO:

SC 9.2 – INT. Dark house – few years ago.

Dhruv enters a series of dark rooms, with people high as kites

laying around. The house is filled with mist, and he finds Ayaan

on a bed, lifeless, while some of his friends are trying to

reanimate him in their altered state.

CUT TO:

SC 9.3 – INT. Bar - present. Night.

Amar concludes that Dhruv knows the hurt that slandering a dead

child brings over the parents. Dhruv remains unmoved. Amar takes

out a packet from his jacket, hands it to Dhruv, saying that he

wants those who hurt Khushi to pay for their crimes, but without

the court or anyone knowing what is on the mobile phone. He

pleads that for people of his class, reputation is everything,

and leaves.

Dhruv picks up his phone, and calls someone, saying he has a

scoop.

SC 10 – INT. Vikaas’ residence. Afternoon.

Vikaas is livid. He is scolding Vivek for a message that he sent.

He says that he has worked hard to create the image he has today,

and that he will take ANY measure needed to protect his

reputation, even if that means disowning his son.

Jai walks in, escorted by Sheela. Vikaas points to a letter on

the table, saying that it came this morning, as he continues to

scold Vivek. Sheela tries to calm him down, but he admonishes her

as if she were a maid, not his wife.

Jai finally stops his rant, saying that Vivek will be required to

attend court. Vikaas tells Jai that he can get his hands dirty if

matters are going out of hand. Jai responds that no such thing

will be necessary.

SC 11 – EXT. Dumping ground. Evening.

Jenna is seen in front of a fire, carefully throwing in packets

of white powder. She ducks when a car passes by, then throws in

her mobile phone. A man comes, hugs an uncomfortable Jenna, then

looks around before dragging her away from the frame.

SC 12.1 – EXT. Courtroom. Day.

The media crowd has grown bigger, and a journalist announces that

son of millionaire philanthropist Vikaas has been summoned for

interrogation. Dhruv walks in together with Amar and Arpana,

ignoring the journalists.

SC 12.2 – INT. Courtroom. Day.

Dhruv finds Jai sitting on the other side, together with Uttam.

He makes a cold head gesture to him, and he guiltily responds.

Jenna is called to the stand. She is pregnant. Uttam asks her

about her relationship with Khushi, to which she responds that

she was her friend, but wasn’t at the time of her death. Upon

being asked why, she says that Amar did not approve of their

friendship. Uttam then asks if Khushi had ever talked of tense

relations with her family. Jenna answers that Khushi did not say

so, but with a father like that, she must have had issues.

Dhruv comes in for the counter-interrogation, and starts by

asking whether Jenna gave Khushi drugs at the freshers’ party.

Jenna deflects the answer, saying that Khushi was an adult, and

took drugs of her own accord. Dhruv insists on having a yes or no

answer. Jenna looks fierce, glancing at Jai, then says that she

entered the party to find Khushi already high, incapable of

standing up.

Dhruv then pulls out a photo of Jenna and Khushi together, with

caption ‘waiting for the party to start’ in stories. Jenna is

taken aback, and stammers where Dhruv got the picture from. Dhruv

ignores her question, and goes on asking whether Jenna gave

Khushi drugs or not.

CUT TO:

SC 12.3 – EXT. Party – few week ago. Night.

Jenna enters with Khushi, and they click the picture together.

Jenna introduces Khushi to her friends, and they move to the

parking lot for a smoke. One of the friends pulls out a joint,

and Jenna urges her to try, jokingly saying that you need to be

as high as us to be in our group. Jenna is then signaled by

another friend to go away.

CUT TO:

SC 12.4 – INT. Courtroom – present. Day.

Jenna swears that she has stopped taking drugs, and that she is

dedicating herself to her kid now. Dhruv further goes to ask

whether that was the last she saw of Khushi, to which she says
yes.

Dhruv then asks why the animosity towards Amar. She says that the

few times she encountered him, he made her feel uncomfortable.

Dhruv asks whether he was at Khushi’s place after the party.

Jenna says that she had gone to drop Khushi.

CUT TO:

SC 12.5 – EXT. Khushi’s house – few weeks ago. Night.

Jenna helps Khushi walk to the house. Khushi is unable to walk on

her own. As they walk, the light of front room of the house comes

on, and Amar steps out, rushing to help Khushi. Jenna stops at

the doorstep. Amar takes Khushi in, and comes out to tell Jenna

that she does not want her or her friends anywhere near his

daughter. Jenna walks back closely followed by an angry Amar, and

gets to the back of the car.

CUT TO:

SC 12.6 – INT. Courtroom – present. Day.

Jai jots something on a paper before Uttam, and he stands up,

saying that Jenna is a proven drug addict, and that her statement

should be disregarded. Jenna retorts that it is all true, and

gets defensive upon being called a drug addict. Uttam says that

she will spin another story on another day of the trial, and that

her credibility as a witness is little to none. Jenna starts

shouting – “ask Vivek, since he was there.”

The court is brought back to order, and the magistrate orders for

Vivek to be called.

Jai steps forward, saying that his client will not be present,

since he considers Dhruv might be biased against him. Upon being

asked further clarification, Jai reveals that Vivek’s step-mother

used to be Dhruv’s wife, and that presenting the witness at the

mercy of Dhruv might just lead to personal vendetta. He calls for

voir-dire, asking for Vivek to struck as witness.

The magistrate adjourns the session, and tells the court to wait

for a decision on the voir-dire, provided Dhruv can gather enough

evidence to link Vivek to the case, instead of hearsay from a

junkie.

SC 13.1 – EXT. Amar’s house. Day.

Dhruv looks around, sees a surveillance camera, and walks in that

direction. Three men can be seen in the background.

SC 13.2 – EXT. University. Day.

Dhruv is talking to people on the campus. The three men appear to

be following Dhruv.

SC 13.3 – EXT. Vikaas’ residence. Day.

Dhruv appears to be waiting for someone, looking around. A car

passes in front of him and stops a little further. Sheela comes

out, and she asks whether Dhruv is preparing to rob her of

another son. Dhruv does not answer. Sheela says that Vivek is an

innocent boy, already troubled by what’s happening, and asks

Dhruv to stay away from him. Dhruv looks down, starting to shake.

She moves away, then turns back, comes closer to Dhruv and tells

her to be careful. Dhruv walks away, clearly disturbed.

SC 14.1 – INT. Dhruv’s house. Night.

Dhruv is having flashes of his son once again. He reaches for his

medicines, and finds that the bottle has been emptied, as he

tries to breathe to calm himself down. He rushes into his living

room and pours a large glass of whisky, gulping it as fast as he

can, then sits down against the wall, wincing in pain.

 CUT TO:

SC 14.2 – INT. Hospital – a few years ago. Night.

Dhruv is sitting down against the hospital wall, sobbing,

waiting. His clothes are unkempt. Sheela rushes in, and he rises

to his feet, shaking his head in negation. Sheela is taken aback,

and slams him hard on his chest, crying out ‘I told you… I told

you… You did this’ before crumbling to her feet as the camera

focuses on a blinking bulb.

CUT TO:

SC 14.3 – INT. Dhruv’s house - present. Night.

A crash is heard. Dhruv opens his eyes. Stones are being thrown

at his house. He tries to protect himself, lifts himself up and

runs out.

SC 14.4 – EXT. Dhruv’s house. Night.

As he rushes out of the door screaming, he sees three masked men

running towards him. He slams the door shut, panting. The men

barge in. One man holds him against the open door, asking him –

‘where is it?’, while the others look for something around the

house. Dhruv musters the courage to grab on to a nearby lampshade

and hits the man with it. The man is shocked, and they are heard

fleeing in the power cut.

SC 14.5 – INT. Dhruv’s house. Night.

Dhruv is being interrogated by the police. They ask him if he

knows who they were. He answers negatively. When asked if they

took anything away, he answers that they did not find what they

were looking for.

SC 14.6 – EXT. Street near Dhruv’s house. Night.

Jenna is slapped by one of the men in black, who says that they

did not find it. Jenna says that he was the one who messed up, to

which the man slaps her again.

SC 15.1 – INT. Courtroom. Day.

All rise for the magistrate. Vivek is present, together with

Vikaas and Sheela. Vikaas tells Vivek to stick to the script.

The magistrate calls for the three lawyers, telling them that he

will disregarding the voir-dire if there is concrete evidence,

but cautions Dhruv to tread lightly. The magistrate also

acknowledges the attack on Dhruv, and urges him not to take

unnecessary risks, saying that he better not miss if he is

attacking the king.

Vivek is called to the stand.

Uttam asks him what his relationship with Khushi was, to which he

replies that they were merely acquaintances. Asked whether he was

with Khushi and Jenna on the night of the party, he replies that

he gave Jenna a lift to help Khushi reach home, after which he

went away from there. He adds that he had no idea of what

happened to Khushi before seeing it in the news.

Dhruv starts his counter-interrogation with asking about Vivek’s

and Khushi’s relationship again. Jai objects, calling it

harassment. Dhruv rephrases and asks when Vivek met Khushi for

the first time. Vivek says that he cannot recall. Dhruv posits

that they were close, based on footage of them together on

campus. He also reveals footage of Vivek entering Khushi’s house

together with Jenna.

Jai argues that this does not show proof of their togetherness,

since they were always in a group, it would still be called

acquaintances. He posits that Dhruv is simply trying to link

Vivek to the case to give the media an antagonist.

Dhruv calls attention towards the apology message that Amar

received, saying that it had been traced to a number registered

to him. Vivek answers that it was when he learned about what had
happened to Khushi. He posits that it was actually a condolence

message, rather than an apology. Dhruv asks again if it was just

an apology, or was he being apologetical about having been an

abettor to Khushi’s suicide.

Uttam objects, saying that Dhruv is merely creating stories.

Earlier, he wanted Vivek to be convoked as a witness, and that

now he is being targeted as a suspect.

The magistrate orders the lawyers to approach, and asks Dhruv

whether he has any concrete evidence that Vivek is indeed linked

to the case. Dhruv asks for some more time. The magistrate agrees

to wait for a few more days.

SC 15.2 – EXT. Courtroom. Day.

Amar is adamant that nothing should come out. Nothing is worth

the reputation of his dead girl. Dhruv tries to argue that this

is the only way they can have Vivek punished, and aspire to find

those who were behind the messages. Amar sits on the bench and

buries his face in his hands. Dhruv sits next to him. Arpana

stands at a distance, looking at everything that is happening.

Dhruv tells Amar that he came out of his retirement for this

case, on the behest of Vivek’s lawyer. Amar is surprised. Dhruv

posits that Jai had had this planned since the very beginning,

that they did have something to hide. And deep inside he knew

that it was a trap. Still, he found in Amar the pain of a father

who saw his child fall into an abyss. Dhruv says that his fight

is for justice to Khushi, not that it will bring Khushi back, but

it may help others in her situation. Arpana has now approached

them. Amar says no, and abruptly takes off in the opposing

direction. Dhruv looks defeated, and walks towards the court

room, while Arpana watches on.

SC 16 – INT. Bar. Evening.

Dhruv sits, defeated, waiting for the bill. He looks across the

table at the opposite chair, and hangs his head in shame. The TV

starts talking of the case, and the reporter asks whether Khushi

deserves justice or not. Dhruv smashes a glass at the TV, then

looks at the barman and says that he will pay for it, then dashes

out, wearing a look of disdain.

SC 17.1 – INT. Courtroom. Day.

Dhruv calls Vivek back on the stand, showing him pictures of

Khushi’s dead body. Vivek winces, breaks down, and starts crying

while trying to control himself. Dhruv asks for permission to

examine Vivek’s phone to determine the relationship between him

and Khushi. Vivek looks at Vikaas with an expression of fear,

while Uttam dismisses this as another lame attempt from Dhruv to

link Vivek to the case.

The magistrate warns Dhruv to stop playing around and present

concrete evidence, if he has. Dhruv says that he has none.

Arpana rises, and says that they have Khushi’s old mobile phone,

that is in possession of Dhruv. Amar angrily looks away. Dhruv is

urged to produce it, and he removes it from a hidden compartment

in his briefcase.

Uttam contests the presentation of the mobile phone, saying that

what lies in there may have been manipulated. The magistrate

reminds him that he can have it verified, but Dhruv’s claim will

be looked into, to see whether it actually has any merit.

Dhruv starts looking for something on the phone, but stops mid-

way, looks at Amar, and rather asks Vivek what he would find if
he opened their chat.

Vivek musters up the courage, looks at Vikaas, then sits up and

says that they would find messages between boyfriend and

girlfriend.

CUT TO:

SC 17.2 – INT. Khushi’s house – a few months ago. Day.

Vivek and Khushi are working together. Vivek touches Khushi’s

hand, and she blushes.

FADE TO:

Khushi is texting on her mobile phone, looking like she is madly

in love.

FADE TO:

Khushi opens the door and falls in the arms of Vivek, and leads

him away from the living room.

FADE TO:

Khushi talking on the phone, saying what if someone sees these

videos. Vivek’s voice says that these are locked on his mobile
phone, so no one can have access.

FADE TO:

Amar helping inebriated Khushi into her room, before walking back

into the yard, where Jenna gets into the car, and Vivek, the

driver, pulls down his window, and says ‘Sorry Sir’.

CUT TO:

SC 17.3 – INT. Courtroom. Day.

Vivek says that he did not see Khushi again after this. He looks

at the audience to see that Vikaas is gone. He continues that he

got a message from an unknown number, that sent him one of their

private videos, and asked for money, else the video would be made

public. He calls Khushi a blackmailer.

Amar hurls back the accusations at Vivek, saying that he was the

one who leaked the videos to a person, and they asked for sexual

favors so as not to divulge anything.

CUT TO:

SC 17.4 – INT. Khushi’s house – a few weeks ago. Night.

A strange quiet has taken the place of the usual chirpiness.

Khushi, Amar and Arpana are eating silently, and upon a ring of

her mobile, she gets startled.

She takes the phone and rushes into her room. Amar follows her,

and sits besides her. He shows concern about the change in her

behavior for the past few days.

Khushi tries to tell her something about having made a mistake.

Without listening to her, Amar sermons her about the

responsibility she has to not bring any shame to the family.

CUT TO:

SC 17.5 – INT. Courtroom. Afternoon.

Dhruv reads the messages she was sent by the unknown number,

giving out that the person blackmailing Vivek was blackmailing

Khushi too. He posits that the person must have been someone who

had the trust of both, and was close enough to them to know

intricate details about their lives.

Vivek’s eyes open wide, and he looks at Jenna. Jenna tries to

flee, but is caught by the policemen standing there. As she is

being caught, she keeps pleading that she did not want anyone to

die, and that she did this for her baby.

SC 17.6 – EXT. Courtroom. Afternoon.

The media is in frenzy, while the reporter tells the audience

that Jenna will be tried for manslaughter and blackmail. It is

assumed that her co-conspirators are still at large. As Amar

exits the courtroom, he recalls the hardships that Khushi went

through, that led her to take her own life. As he talks, Vivek

exits the courtroom and faces Amar, who is no longer angry at

him. He steals his gaze and hurries to go to his car.

SC 18 – INT. Bar. Evening.

Jai comes to meet Dhruv, and informs him that he will be

representing Vivek against Jenna from blackmail. He asks if Dhruv

would like to work for him again. Dhruv declines and drinks the

second glass of whisky he always keeps on the table, while an

apparition of his son raises his glass to him.

THE END