Bhishma

Kapoor Malhar's *Bhishma* attempts a ambitious narrative sleight-of-hand—positioning itself as a tender romance that pivots into psychological thriller territory—but the execution falters under the weight of its own ambitions. The film's central conceit, revealing that our protagonist is actually a fugitive serial killer masquerading as mentally disabled, mirrors the structural trickery we've seen in films like *Badla* or even *Ugly*, yet it lacks the meticulous plotting those films possessed. Kiara Advani delivers a serviceable performance as Paro, though she's largely reactive to the narrative's revelations rather than actively driving her character's arc. The real burden falls on the male lead to sell both the convincing innocence *and* the chilling sociopathy, a dual performance that needed more nuance than what's delivered here.

Where the film stumbles most acutely is in its emotional architecture. The first half genuinely engages—there's something disarming about the man-child protagonist, and the romance doesn't feel entirely unearned. But once the twist lands, the film struggles to articulate what it's actually trying to say about deception, trauma, and moral ambiguity. It's content to shock rather than explore. Director Malhar seems more interested in gotcha moments than in the psychological unraveling that should haunt Paro afterward. Compared to *Phobia* or *Raaz Reboot*, which at least committed fully to their psychological horror frameworks, *Bhishma* reads as t