If in The Dirty Picture, Vidya Balan wore her sexuality on her sleeve, in Hate Story, Paoli uses her sexuality like a favoured currency in the stock market. Hate Story pushes the envelope so hard, all the contents spill out in a torrential tumble of tantalising power-play set within the world of corporate battles and gender conflicts.This is a most riveting and aesthetic saga of a woman’s revenge against the man who’s wronged her since RK Nayyar’s Inteqaam – except for the fact that Paoli does things Sadhana in Nayyar’s film could have never imagined.

There are memorable shots – Dam staring with agonised eyes at Sid’s office while having car-sex with a stranger outside, a moment of acute tension when she meets Raj’s wife in court. One more encounter follows – but let’s leave something to the imagination. Appreciate, if you will, the thriller, not the diet-erotica – that’s rather an anti-climax.

On the whole, HATE STORY banks on the age-old vendetta theme, but what takes it beyond the mediocre mark is the cat and mouse game played by the protagonist and antagonist, besides, of course, the bold and provocative scenes that add spice to the proceedings. Though engaging in parts, there’s no denying that the second hour seizes your attention, making it a watchable experience.