''Qatl'' is a 1986 Indian

mystery Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange'' Films * ''Mystery'' (2012 film), a 2012 Chinese drama film * ''Mystery'' ( ...

thriller film Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre ...

directed by R.K. Nayyar and starring

Sanjeev Kumar Sanjeev Kumar (born Harihar Jethalal Jariwala; 9 July 1938 – 6 November 1985) was an Indian actor. He is well remembered for his versatility and genuine portrayal of his characters. He acted in genres ranging from romantic dramas to thriller ...

Shatrughan Sinha Shatrughan Prasad Sinha (born 9 December 1945) is an Indian actor and politician. He is a Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha from Asansol (Lok Sabha constituency), Asansol constituency as a member of All India Trinamool Congress (TMC). Earlier he ...

Marc Zuber Zubair Ahmed Siddiqi (5 May 1944 – 28 May 2003), better known as Marc Zuber, was an actor who appeared in many British and Hindi films and television dramas. Marc Zuber was born Zubair Ahmed Siddiqi on 5 May 1944 in Lucknow, India. He ca ...

Ranjeeta Kaur Ranjeeta "Robby" Kaur (born 22 September 1956) is an Indian actress. She was trained at FTII. She has appeared in around 47 films. She has portrayed a variety of characters and her films include: '' Laila Majnu'' (1976), ''Ankhiyon Ke Jharo ...

Sarika Sarika Thakur is an Indian actress and costume designer. In 2005, she won the National Film Award for Best Actress for the English-language film ''Parzania''. She was also awarded the National Film Award for Best Costume Design for her work i ...

and

Ashok Kumar Kumudlal Ganguly (13 October 1911 – 10 December 2001), better known by his stage name Ashok Kumar and also by Dadamoni, was an Indian actor who attained iconic status in Indian cinema and who was a member of the cinematic Ganguly family. He ...

. The film released two months after Sanjeev Kumar's death and was the first of his several posthumous releases. This movie has been adapted from an American TV movie '' In Broad Daylight'' (1971), directed by Robert Day. The movie was remade in Kannada in 2008 as ''Sanchu''. Rakesh (Kumar) is a blind man with an attractive wife Rohini (Sarika). Unknown to him, his wife is having an affair with another man Ranjeet (Zuber) behind his back. When Rakesh's wife is murdered in her paramour's home, he is the only suspect. Now it is to be seen whether a blind man can pull a perfect murder single-handedly.

Plot

Rohini (

) is an aspiring actor who is caught shoplifting in a shopping complex. Ranjeet (

), who was watching Rohini, comes to her rescue by pretending to be her partner and they both leave the venue together. Rohini tells Ranjeet of her deep hunger to be an actress while struggling to make ends meet. Ranjeet offers to make her an actress as he owns a theater and produces shows, at the same time making advances towards her. Rohini accepts and returns his sexual advances for a lead role. The director ( T.P. Jain) of an upcoming play berates Rohini, who catches the attention of another actor-director Rakesh (

). Rakesh helps Rohini pick up the nuances of acting and she turns into a fantastic performer. They fall in love and get married, however a freak stage accident injures Rakesh, who while trying to protect Rohini loses his eyesight. While in hospital, Rakesh undergoes therapy to come to terms with his blindness and a nurse Sita (

) helps him learn to read braille and move around using a stick. Despite his efforts to lead a normal life, Rakesh becomes depressed due to his condition and dislikes people taking pity on him, ultimately taking refuge in the love and dedication towards him of his wife, who has quit theatre to take care of her blind husband. It turns out that Rohini has been having an affair with Ranjeet and plots to be back on stage to continue the affair. She manipulates Rakesh to encourage her to rejoin the theater and request Ranjeet to provide roles for her. To support Rakesh while she is away at the theatre, Rohini hires Sita to be a full-time nurse. During a rehearsal, Ranjeet mistakes Sita for Rohini, but is unapologetic about his physical contact. Sita knows about the affair, but chooses to keep it to herself. One day, while visiting Ranjeet's house to pick up a package, Rakesh finds out about the affair and is distraught. He swears revenge and starts planning by making himself familiar with Ranjeet's house, nearby surroundings, hailing a cab and sound based target shooting. He purchases a voice recorder from Century Bazaar shop and fits it to his residential telephone so that it can record all conversations made through the phone. He creates a situation where Sita leaves her job and a helper dog is purchased by Sita from Mr. Wadia (

Dinesh Hingoo Dinesh Hingoo (born 13 April 1940) is an Indian actor who plays comic & supporting roles in Hindi films. He had appeared in over 300 films, from ''Taqdeer (1967)'' to ''Be Careful (2011)'', and is known for his laughter and impersonations inclu ...

) for him to move around, thus proving his inability to perform daily tasks without support. One day, after listening to a recorded conversation between Rohini and Ranjeet to meet at his apartment at 4 P.M., Rakesh leaves the house in a disguise, without the dog. He finds his way to the apartment and kills Rohini using Ranjeet's revolver. Police assume Ranjeet is guilty and take him into custody. A rather sluggish and annoyingly slow inspector Shatru (

), who is known to crack every murder, is given the case. He believes that Rakesh is the murderer but finds it impossible to get the right evidence. While Shatru falsely builds a case against Sita as murderer, she confesses to protect Rakesh. Unable to let Sita take the blame for him, Rakesh confesses that he is the real murderer. Judge (

Saeed Jaffrey Saeed Jaffrey (8 January 1929 – 15 November 2015) was a British-Indian actor. His career covered film, radio, stage and television roles over six decades and more than 150 British, American, and Indian movies. During the 1980s and 1990s he wa ...

) at the hearing finds it difficult to accept that a blind man can murder someone on his own without being noticed. Rakesh proves his crime by taking the police and the judge through each and every action on the day of the murder. While taking an aim at an alarm clock to show his voice-based target shooting, he accidentally shoots dead Ranjeet, who incidentally has just entered his house with a new girl. Rakesh is punished for his murder of his wife and imprisoned for 7 years but is found not guilty of killing Ranjeet. Rakesh is released early from prison due to his good behavior and the movie ends with his going home with Sita to start a new life and Inspector Shatru seeing them off. An old fakir (

) is seen singing a specific song throughout the movie. He has no dialogues or involvement elsewhere but his position on the roadside is critical to Rakesh's sense of hearing and hence the plot.

Cast

as Rakesh *

as Inspector Shatru *

as Sita *

as Rohini (Rakesh's Wife) *

as Ranjeet *

as Old Fakir *

as Wadia *

Jankidas Jankidas Mehra (1910 – 18 June 2003) was an Indian actor of Hindi cinema, cyclist, production designer, and writer. He made over 1000 film appearances between the 1930s and 1997. Biography Sports Jankidas served as the only Indian member of ...

as Keshav Rana (Umbrella Store Owner) *

Keshav Rana Keshav is an South asian male given name which is a modern form of name Keshava, one of the many names of Lord Krishna and Lord Vishnu. Notable people with the name include: * Keshav Bansal (born 1991), Indian entrepreneur * Keshav Vaman Bhole (1 ...

as Zafar Ali *

as Judge (Special Appearance) *

Ameen Sayani Ameen Sayani is a popular former radio announcer from India. He achieved fame and popularity all across the Indian Subcontinent when he presented his ''Binaca Geetmala'' program of hits over the airwaves of Radio Ceylon. He is one of the most imi ...

as TV Interviewer (Special Appearance) *

Kader Khan Kader Khan (22 October 1937 – 31 December 2018) was an Indian actor, screenwriter and film director. As an actor, he appeared in over 300 Bollywood films after his debut film in the 1973 film '' Daag'', starring Rajesh Khanna, in which he ...

as roadside singer (Special Appearance)

Music

The music is composed by Laxmikant Pyarelal and the songs have been penned by

Rajinder Krishan Rajinder Krishan Duggal (6 June 1919 – 23 September 1987) also credited as Rajendra Krishan, was an Indian poet, lyricist and screenwriter. Biography Rajinder Krishan was born in a Duggal family at Jalalpur Jattan on 6 June 1919, in Gujrat ...

and

Anand Bakshi Anand Bakshi (21 July 1930 – 30 March 2002) was an Indian poet and lyricist. He was nominated for the Filmfare award for Best lyricist a total of 40 times, resulting in 4 wins. Early life Anand Bakshi (Bakshi Anand Prakash Vaid) was born ...

. #"Kisi Ka Dil Jo Todega, Khuda Kya Usko Chhodega" -

Anup Jalota Anup Jalota, (born 29 July 1953) is an Indian singer, musician and actor, best known for his contributions to the Bhajan genre of Indian Music. He is popularly known as the "Bhajan Samraat" (Emperor of Bhajans).Lata Mangeshkar Lata Mangeshkar () (born as Hema Mangeshkar; 28 September 1929 – 06 February 2022) was an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer. She is widely considered to have been the greatest and most influential singers in India. Her cont ...

#"Kahan Jaa Raha Tha, Kahan Aa Gaya Hu" -

Kishore Kumar Kishore Kumar (born as Abhas Kumar Ganguly (); 4 August 1929 – 13 October 1987) was an Indian playback singer and actor. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest, most influential and dynamic singers in the history of Indian music. He ...

#"Koi Nahi Koi Nahi" -

Lata Mangeshkar Lata Mangeshkar () (born as Hema Mangeshkar; 28 September 1929 – 06 February 2022) was an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer. She is widely considered to have been the greatest and most influential singers in India. Her cont ...

#"Ya Allah Yeh Mohabbat" -

Kavita Krishnamurthy Sharada Krishnamurthy, popularly known as Kavita Krishnamurthy or Kavita Subramaniam, is an Indian playback and classical singer. She has recorded 50,000 songs in 45 various Indian languages including Hindi, Bengali, Kannada, Rajasthani, Bhojp ...

External links

*{{IMDb title, 0302955, Qatl 1986 films 1980s Hindi-language films 1980s mystery thriller films Indian mystery thriller films Indian detective films Films scored by Laxmikant–Pyarelal