Between 2000 and 2001, a chilling series of murders grips the Chincholi Forest region along the Andhra Pradesh–Karnataka border. The victims are women who are found decapitated after sexual assault, and the police label the pattern as “effigy murders.” The case captures nationwide attention, yet the truth remains stubbornly unsolved for 18 long years.
Bhaskar Shiva Kandukuri, a village-based private detective, is driven by a haunting personal tragedy. Fourteen years earlier, his brother Ravi was arrested for the murder of Rahima, a woman he loved despite a caste difference. Ravi insisted on his innocence, but circumstantial evidence sealed his fate. After being released on bail, Ravi died by suicide amid social humiliation. Bhaskar had once noticed a Shiva Linga chain near Rahima’s Muslim household and suspected ritual involvement, a theory the police dismissed and the case closed.
In the present, Bhaskar assists local police with minor investigations. A wealthy man, John Philip [Shafi], hires him to recover a lost mobile phone. Bhaskar retrieves the device from a resort security guard and returns it, even as he discovers compromising videos on the phone that complicate the trust surrounding the case.
Soon another effigy murder shakes the region, and this time the crime scene bears the unsettling detail of an extra finger being removed. The deceased is identified as Sravani [Divija Prabhakar], and her sister Lakshmi [Raashi Singh], who is also Sravani’s own kin, seeks Bhaskar’s help when the investigation stalls. Bhaskar teams up with his police friend Indrajith [Shiva Ramachandravarapu], but a black van deliberately mows him down, leaving him injured. Lakshmi then joins the investigation, bringing a personal stake and new resolve.
A closer look at the old case files reveals eerie patterns: effigies resembling the victims carved from wood decades earlier and clothing that seems too old for the times. With the help of Karnataka CI Shankaracharyulu [Devi Prasad], Bhaskar traces hospital markings on the clothes to a local medical practitioner, Dr. Yogesh. Sravani’s husband Kishore confesses to an illegal abortion performed by Yogesh that ended in tragedy, but further evidence suggests the serial killings may not be directly connected to that incident.
More murders follow, and witness testimonies reveal that the victims were transgender individuals. Bhaskar deduces that all the effigy victims were abandoned transgender women, which explains the lack of missing-person reports and points toward a ritualistic, ritualistic human-sacrifice motif tied to black magic practices. Doctors linked to earlier autopsies are found dead, including Dr. Nagaraj, whose home contains an effigy.
Lakshmi recounts the myth of Bhasmasura, whose severed head is said to retain power, connecting the murders to a ritual aimed at reviving that ancient force. Bhaskar uncovers links to forensic officer Rudraveni [Varshini Sounderajan], who had falsified autopsy reports. Before Bhaskar can question her, Rudraveni dies by suicide, leaving behind a trail that implicates a man named Lingeshwar, also known as Dhanav.
Lingeshwar is revealed to be Basha, a mechanic involved in trafficking transgender women for ritual sacrifice. He assaults witnesses, including Indrajith, before meeting a fatal end itself when he is impaled. In his death, Basha reveals that his brother is orchestrating a final sacrifice and that Lakshmi is the intended victim.
Bhaskar follows the trail to Shukrahalli, Gulbarga, where he uncovers manuscripts detailing a ritual that requires 17 sacrifices to obtain the Aatma Lingam, with an 18th sacrifice—self-immolation—to resurrect Bhasmasura. The mastermind is revealed to be CI Shankaracharyulu [Devi Prasad], who has secretly organized the murders over 18 years under the veneer of police work.
The climactic confrontation takes place at Shankar’s ancestral home as Bhaskar confronts the corrupt officer and tries to halt the ritual by destroying the ashes and appealing to reason. Shankar immolates himself, believing it will resurrect Bhasmasura, but Bhaskar manages to rescue Lakshmi and end the ceremony.
Official praise follows Bhaskar’s exposure of the conspiracy, but the film closes on a chilling note. A call arrives from Rudra, the last surviving member of Shankar’s lineage, who cryptically declares that “the real game begins now.”
> "the real game begins now."
