Madras Cafe

A bus packed with passengers is halted by armed men in Jaffna, erupting into a brutal massacre. The violence establishes the film's tense, unflinching tone and shows the immediacy of the conflict. Survivors and onlookers are left grappling with the shock and the sense that nothing will be the same.

In Kasauli, Vikram Singh sits before a television and absorbs reports of the Sri Lankan president's death in a suicide bombing. The news expands the political stakes beyond the battlefield. The moment foreshadows the personal and national costs that will follow.

Vikram goes to a nearby church where a priest probes his supposed conspiracy. The priest's lingering questions push Vikram toward recounting his own story. The scene marks a shift from present danger to a deeper, personal narrative.

Five years earlier, the island's turmoil grows into brutal fighting between the Sri Lankan military and Tamil militant groups. Tamil youths join the Liberation Tamil Front under Anna Bhaskaran, a figure drawn from LTTE leadership. An Indian peace accord is proposed, but the LTTE refuses and Indian peacekeepers withdraw.

Robin Dutt, the RAW chief, calls on his best man to intervene as the crisis deepens. After briefing RD and his deputy Swaroop, Vikram is assigned to blunt the rebels’ momentum. The briefing signals India's active, behind-the-scenes involvement.

Vikram travels to Sri Lanka to assess options and gather allies. He meets war correspondent Jaya Sahni, whose reporting helps map the battlefield. An informant, Narayanan, directs Vikram to Shri, while Balakrishnan guides the overarching strategy from behind the scenes.

Vikram promises Shri armed support to challenge Anna, setting in motion a weapons deal scheduled for July 6. The plan relies on Shri taking a stand against the rebel leadership. Tension builds as both sides weigh the potential consequences.

The LTF ambushes the weapons consignment, wiping out the intended supply and killing one of Vikram's associates. Balakrishnan urges Vikram to retreat to the Colombo Safehouse, while Vikram's paranoia grows and SP begins monitoring Balakrishnan's moves.

Posing as a war correspondent, Vikram travels to Colombo to meet Mallayya, the LTF's effective second-in-command. RD argues for a political solution, while Vikram presses Mallayya to position himself as the rebels’ champion, fracturing the LTF from within. The gambit aims to tilt the balance of power.

A major Indian strike on the LTF base throws Anna's forces into disarray. Anna survives but Mallayya and Shri are killed, and the Indian Prime Minister resigns in the wake of the crisis. Vikram witnesses the collapse of the operation's momentum.

Back in Delhi, phone intercepts hint at Anna's plans, but Balakrishnan dismisses the suspicions. SP suspects a mole, and Balakrishnan destroys the remaining papers, fueling Vikram's suspicion that Balakrishnan is leaking information. Vikram tracks Balakrishnan’s movements with the help of his allies.

Vikram's personal life unravels as Ruby is murdered and Vasu is captured in Kochi. Balakrishnan is revealed to be leaking information with a man named Reed from Singapore and is honeytrapped, eventually committing suicide. Jaya's reporting helps verify the leaks from Bangkok, deepening the sense of betrayal.

RAW decodes intercepts confirming fake Balakrishnan passports and hidden accounts, signaling a Code Red scenario to assassinate the ex-Prime Minister. A coastline lockdown is ordered as a massive manhunt unfolds. The mounting pressure shows how the political landscape becomes inseparable from the war's harsh realities.

Vikram learns of a planned attack during the ex-Prime Minister's rally and races to the venue. As a wreath is placed on the stage, a suicide bomber detonates, killing the ex-PM and many others; Vikram arrives just as the catastrophe unfolds. The mission ends in failure, leaving him shaken.

Vikram files his report with the investigation committee, which accepts his account. RD resigns in the wake of the catastrophe, and Vikram retires from the service, returning to Kasauli. The present-day framing returns to the church, where Vikram reflects that the conflict has exacted a heavy toll and that no one truly wins.