Bhakshak tells the true story of a young journalist, Vaishali, who starts looking into a report on physical and sexual abuse happening inside a shelter home for underage girls. In the end, the young woman’s efforts gain national attention, and the shelter’s victims are freed. This is how Vaishali successfully pressured the corrupt local authorities to take action against Bansi and his people.
After her brother-in-law’s beating and SSP Jasmeet Gaur telling her there’s little the police can do on the case without solid proof, Vaishali comes up with an ingenious plan to rattle Bansi. She gets her cameraman Bhaskar to approach a local politician and tell him that Bansi’s man, Mithilesh, is willing to testify about the abuse inside the shelter.
The angered politician calls Bansi to warn him that he has an inside traitor. Ever the rational man, Bansi gets close to killing poor Mithilesh but soon realizes where the false information came from.
Meanwhile, Vaishali is diligently reporting on the case and trying to increase her online presence. She records a report about the killing of a welfare officer, who just so happened to be demanding the government investigate the abuse allegations against the shelter. Of course, the police failed to arrest anyone for the murder.
To further rattle the hornet’s nest, Vaishal claims she has written definitive proof of what happens inside the shelter. The paper she’s holding is blank, but Bansi and the rest of the guilty who are watching don’t know that.
The video has the desired effect as higher-ups in the government request for the police to investigate the shelter. Jasmeet calls Vaishali to give her the good news that she’s now able to go into the shelter and free those girls from the horrific conditions they’ve been forced to live in.
Unfortunately, after the raid, the girls will be interviewed about their experiences by the same child welfare agency run by Mithilesh. This means the perpetrators are unlikely to face consequences anytime soon.
How does Vaishali finally get national outlets interested in the abuse allegations?
In an attempt to gather evidence of the abuse, Vaishali tries convincing Sudha, the shelter’s former cook, to go on the record about what she witnessed during her short stay there. Unsurprisingly, the young woman doesn’t want to come forward. She’s scared for her safety.
Sudha eventually relents after Vaishali gives her a passionate speech about the importance of doing the right thing. She tells the camera everything she has witnessed inside the shelter.
According to Sudha, what happens inside the shelter is beyond harrowing, and I’m grateful the movie didn’t show the abusive practices in detail. Bansi and his men would put the young girls through horrific sexual and physical abuse. The ones unlucky enough to fall pregnant would be murdered.
What leads to the shelter victim’s eventual rescue?
With the video of Sudha’s testimony all over the internet, the higher-ups have no choice but to raid the welfare center and rescue the victims.
In the film’s most satisfying sequence, the Munawwarpur police force led by Jasmeet raids the shelter and removes all the girls from its premises. Outside, a swarm of reporters, including Vaishali, are waiting to report on the matter, which has become national news. Local politicians, including Mithilesh, are holding press conferences and promise to bring the perpetrators to justice.
How does Bhakshak end?
When Bansi is arrested, his eyes meet Vaishali’s, and he smiles at her with the arrogance of a man who thinks he’ll be able to weasel his way of this legal trouble.
The film’s final scene is of Vaishali reporting for her channel. In her monologue, she berates the viewer for not caring enough to intervene in cases like this. She criticizes the modern-day social media-fuelled tendency to jump from one trendy story to the next.
What did you think of the ending of Bhakshak? Comment below.
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