Nawazuddin Siddiqui has made a career out of playing the evil man, so he gets into his role in “Haraamkhor” with ease, bringing the right kind of sliminess to Shyam’s character that will make you despise him. Tripathi as Sandhya is wonderful too, but it is Irfan Khan and Mohd Samad, the two boys who play Kamal and Mintu, who are the two standout performers in the film.

Though the scenes are repetitive, Sharma does succeed in walking the edge between intensity and airiness and transporting the audience into this simple and confined world. As the uneasiness builds, you brace yourself for an explosive end.

Unfortunately, when it does come there is a sense that everything that preceded it was designed to lead up to it and, as grisly as it is, like everything before, this scene too does not move you. I didn’t feel for any of the characters and I was let down by this emotional disinterest.

For once, don’t watch a movie for the actor playing it. Give this film a try, and you will be awed by the performances of the young stars. The story is dark, the ending is not happy, but the journey is highly entertaining as well as educating about an issue that is not often spoken about.  

Haraamkhor’s characters are supposed to have shades of grey, but their blandness can never be mistaken for maturity. About the most shocking thing about this major-minor affair is its sloppiness.