Like a great curry that you slow cook in earthenware, ‘Pune Highway’, simmers and  stews and builds up an appetite for a story well laid out. Every character is nuanced, plot lines tied up, and where there are plot-holes, well, quelle surprise. This movie has pockets! And like someone once said, these plot-hole pockets are where your audiences keeps their fan fiction ideas.

I watch ALOT of British crime TV and ‘Pune Highway’ felt like one of those. There’s friendship. There’s childhood trauma that begets adulthood quirks. There’s the dark secret that looms into everyday workings. There’s the cop who wants to do so much but can only do so much. And the lurking evil of a man with power. We see flawed characters. We see real stories. We see pasts with present consequences. And a plot twist you may or may not have seen coming but one that still has the impact to surprise you. And while you may have heard this story before, it’s definitely not a tired tale.

The locations deserve a definite mention. I would love to hang out on that terrace, or chill on those stairs, or drive down those ghats, or have some police wali chai below that ancient tree.

Bugs Bhargava Krishna, Rahul DaCunha, and the team behind and in front of the ‘Pune Highway’ camera, please take a bow. You have created something that stands out in a cluttered OTT market.

The film premiered at the 55^th IFFI 2024 and was theatrically released in India on 23^rd May 2025. It is now available to watch on Amazon Prime Video.

Cast: Amit Sadh, Jim Sardh, Anuvab Pal, Manjari Fadnis, Ketaki Narayan

Produced by: Rahul da Cunha and Seema Mohapatra

Directed by: Bugs Bhargava Krishna and Rahul da Cunha,

My Take: This movie has pockets! It’s a slow burn that will keeps your appetite for movie consumption whetted.

Come for: Rahul’s writing and Bugs’s brilliance

Stay for: The chemistry and camraderie between Amit Sadh, Jim Sarbh, and Anuvab Pal

Watch it for: A twist that is not tiresome, great supporting actors, and eye-candy locations

Rating: ****

© Ayesha Dominica

Ayesha Dominica is a fiercely independent writer who has been published regularly since age 13. When she's not intimidating strangers with her love for polysyllabic words and British Crime Shows, she works as an artist manager for DJ Russel. She is prone to withdrawal symptoms if distanced from her books or her Funko collection. But you can easily distract her with the colour yellow, anything Doctor Who, Supernatural, and music trivia.