Year: 1989
Runtime: 154 mins
Language: Hindi
Brothers Kishan and Karan are raised in Bombay. Karan departs for studies in America, while Kishan becomes entangled in the criminal world, serving the drug lord Anna Seth. Upon Karan’s return to Bombay, Kishan strives to shield his brother from the underworld, but events spiral beyond his control.
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Read the complete plot breakdown of Parinda (1989), including all key story events, major twists, and the ending explained in detail. Discover what really happened—and what it all means.
Karan Choudhary [Anil Kapoor] and Kishan Choudhary [Jackie Shroff] grew up on the rough streets of Bombay, where survival meant sticking close to each other. To give Karan a better chance at life, Kishan begins working for Anna Seth [Nana Patekar], a powerful gangster who runs an oil factory that hides a web of illegal schemes. Karan returns to Bombay after finishing his studies in the United States, unaware of the depths of Anna’s criminal empire or Kishan’s exact role in it. Meanwhile, Inspector Prakash Nair [Anupam Kher], a friend to Karan, suspects Anna’s criminal ties but cannot mount a case without solid evidence.
The tension thickens when Anna plots to remove Prakash during a family reunion with Karan. In a bid to shield his friend, Kishan secures an earlier flight for Karan, yet the plan goes awry as Anna’s men shoot Prakash, who dies in Karan’s arms. Paromita “Paro” Nair [Madhuri Dixit], Prakash’s sister and Karan’s childhood friend, begins to doubt Karan’s innocence, even as Karan learns from Anna’s former messenger Iqbal [Sameer Kakkar] that Anna is the true mastermind behind Prakash’s murder and that Kishan works for him. The two lovers find themselves pulled into a dangerous web of suspicion and confiding hurt, and their bond tightens even as Paro slowly trusts Karan again.
A few days later, Abdul [Suresh Oberoi] is arrested, and Karan identifies him as one of Prakash’s killers. Kishan warns Karan against testifying, and the tension spikes when Abdul extorts silence by threatening Kishan with danger back at home. The pressure mounts as Karan weighs the cost of truth against the fragile safety of his brother and his beloved Paro. When Karan is called to identify the assailants at police headquarters, Abdul’s threats push him toward a grim choice: stay silent or risk Kishan’s life by testifying. He chooses to keep quiet, and instead decides to get close to Anna by joining his gang, attempting to navigate the murky loyalties from within.
Anna tests Karan’s resolve by ordering him to shoot Iqbal, who, in a final twist, shoots himself so Karan can proceed with his covert mission without carrying the burden of guilt. The next day, Anna orders Karan to eliminate rival gangster Musa [Tom Alter], accompanied by his gunman Francis [Shivkumar Subramaniam]. Karan ends up killing Francis and switching sides to Musa, abducting Rama Reddy [Kamal Chopra] to bring him to Musa. He stages evidence of Rama’s betrayal, snapping pictures that imply Rama shot Francis, and then murders Rama on Anna’s orders. With Musa’s help, Karan completes Abdul’s removal and advances his own plan to avenge Prakash’s death.
As the plan unfolds, Karan and Paro marry and start to dream of leaving the city behind. Musa reveals to Karan that he had been manipulated, which leads Anna to strike back with decisive force: on their wedding night, he shoots and kills both Karan and Paro. The tragedy leaves Paro’s sister and Karan’s friend Kishan burning with vengeance, and he heads to Anna’s residence to deliver his own brutal reckoning, burning Anna to death as a final act of retribution for the losses that crushed his brother and his city.
Last Updated: October 09, 2025 at 14:31
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