Minus 31: The Nagpur Files

Story: Set during the COVID-19 lockdown in Nagpur, the film follows a cop as she solves a high-profile murder case. The investigation involves a missing girl and a politician who doesn’t want this case solved. Will the police officer crack the mystery?

Review: Director Pratik Moitro serves us an edgy and dark crime drama against the backdrop of the dreadful COVID-19 lockdown milieu and medical crisis. A young and fiery police officer, Preksha Sharma (Rucha Inamdar), investigates the murder of a well-connected businessman, Dayanand Pande (Rajesh Sharma). The case is fraught with hurdles, such as non-cooperative family members, politicians obstructing the investigation, and a missing girl, Preksha Meshram (Nisha Dhar), a wannabe hip-hop star who's a vital link in the case. While trying to solve the mystery, Preksha has to deal with her ill-tempered father Anupam Sharma’s (Raghubir Yadav) tantrums.

Written by Moitro, Charulata Maitra and Ankit Bhuptani, the story is not an edge-of-the-seat whodunnit as such. But it is more of a layered watch as it depicts hustling lower middle-class youth and strained family dynamics as elders fail to consider the next generation’s viewpoints, ambitions or needs. Preksha Sharma and Preksha Meshram have similar backgrounds—no mother figure at home and bullied by the men who raised them. There’s also the forensics guy Gautam Agarwal (Shivankit Singh Parihar), who cannot see eye to eye with his parents and resorts to alcoholism.

From beginning to end, the film’s atmosphere is keyed-up, whether it’s the dark alleys of slums or a dingy tannery, the characters’ personal lives, corruption during the greatest humanitarian crisis or the background of the murder itself. And all this is set against the hip-hop culture that the lower strata of society resorts to as a way of expressing their angst.

Rucha Inamdar is powerful as a strong-headed cop, a dutiful daughter and a young woman who wants more from life. The parallel between her and the missing rapper is an interesting take. Shivankit Singh Parihar and Rajesh Sharma also stand their might as performers, but Raghubir Yadav steals the show as the bitter and maimed ex-policeman. His scenes with Rucha are worth a mention, especially when she confronts him for making her life difficult.

The movie's soundtrack by Hip Hop Bhaiya and Yash Sahai, and Udayan Dharmadhikari (who has also scored the background) is impressive and goes well with the film’s look and feel.

Minus 31: The Nagpur Files may not be a thrilling watch and is also slow, but it’s worth checking out if you like dark and edgy crime dramas.