Bulbbul

In a 19th-century Bengal village, Bulbbul is married off to wealthy lord Indranil at the age of five, starting a life she does not choose. She grows up under Indranil's household while developing a close, protective bond with Satya. The village whispers about a witch called the chudail, a legend that shadows Bulbbul's world from the start.

Bulbbul and Satya grow up as close friends, sharing stories and imagining the chudail together. Their innocent companionship becomes a quiet rebellion against the expectations placed on them. The legend of the chudail threads through their afternoons and secret conversations.

Twenty years pass and Satya returns from London after five years away. In the interim, Indranil's mentally challenged twin Mahendra is killed, and his widow Binodini moves to an outhouse; Indranil has left the village. Bulbbul has stepped into Indranil's role in his absence, while the village doctor Sudip regularly visits to check Bulbbul's injured feet.

With another murder in the village, Satya grows suspicious of Doctor Sudip's involvement. He suspects Sudip of being linked to the killings attributed to the chudail, though the evidence remains murky. The fearsome reputation of the chudail hangs over Bulbbul and the villagers alike.

A village boy tells Bulbbul that his mother killed herself after her husband took a second wife, prompting Bulbbul to seek out the man. The pursuit exposes the painful gender injustices faced by women in the area. Bulbbul's curiosity marks the start of a personal awakening.

Through flashbacks, Binodini is shown as jealous of Bulbbul and hints that Bulbbul loves Satya. Her plotting plants seeds of mistrust in Indranil's mind and drives a wedge between Bulbbul and Satya. The past begins to shape the present with dangerous consequences.

Bulbbul and Satya had been collaborating on a story, but heartbroken, Bulbbul burns the manuscript in the fireplace. Indranil retrieves only the title page, misreading the names as evidence of an affair. His anger hardens into a resolve to separate Bulbbul from Satya.

Enraged, Indranil beats Bulbbul and mutilates her feet with iron bars, leaving her bedridden. While she recovers, Mahendra assaults her, and in a sadistic moment, suffocates her accidentally. The violence shatters Bulbbul's innocence and seeds a new, terrible awakening.

After the trauma, Bulbbul undergoes a supernatural transformation, turning into a powerful and fearless woman. A blood-red moon signals the goddess Kali's support as she embraces a mission to defend women and punish those who harm them. The change marks the birth of the chudail within Bulbbul.

From then on, Bulbbul acts as an avenger, targeting men who abuse, murder, or exploit girls. Her killings blur the line between monster and savior, and she is effectively the chudail the village has feared. Among her targets, Mahendra is also killed as part of her quest for vengeance.

In the present day, Satya escorts Sudip toward Calcutta as the village road is terrorized by the chudail. A driver is killed in the commotion, and Satya confronts the possibility that Sudip is innocent. He shoots at the chudail but ends up in a confrontation with Sudip; a forest fire erupts, revealing Bulbbul's true identity as the chudail.

A year later, Indranil returns to his empty estate, unaware of the fates that befell his family. Satya leaves the village, burdened by guilt for not stopping the tragedies. That night, Bulbbul appears to Indranil, smirks, and hints that she will kill him as revenge.