Kaante

Story:

Kaante is a 2002 Indian Hindi-language action-thriller film directed by Sanjay Gupta, written by Milap Zaveri, and starring an ensemble cast including Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjay Dutt, Sunil Shetty, Lucky Ali, Mahesh Manjrekar, Kumar Gaurav, Namrata Singh Gujral, Rati Agnihotri, Rohit Roy, Isha Koppikar and Malaika Arora. Set in Los Angeles, the film follows six Indian men who are detained without evidence by the police. Feeling wronged and vengeful, they team up to plot a bank heist that would leave the Los Angeles Police Department penniless. However, once things go out of hand, they start suspecting each other’s identities, resulting in violence and chaos.

PLOT

In Los Angeles, six men of Indian origin, with a criminal record, are detained by the police and interrogated about stealing a truck full of laptops and its whereabouts. Their deep antipathy towards the police for arresting them without any evidence, just because the witnesses had seen an Indian at the crime scene, grows into a daring plot. Sparked off by Jay “Ajju” Trehan (Sanjay Dutt) and seconded by Yashvardhan “Major” Rampal (Amitabh Bachchan), they all hatch a plan to rob the bank (American Services Bank) in which lies the funding for the Los Angeles Police Department. In return, Ajju reveals that he stole the truck and splits the steal with everyone else.

Marc Issak (Suniel Shetty) is a bouncer who hates that his girlfriend has to work as a club-dancer and wants to rescue her from the club owner Cyrus (Gulshan Grover), by paying him the required money. He also has an ongoing spat with Ajju about his girlfriend. Major has a sick wife who he has to look after by supplying her with medicines and injections. Andy (Kumar Gaurav) is a software engineer having divorce and custody troubles, as his wife won’t let him meet their child. He is also jobless and has financial troubles. Bali (Mahesh Manjrekar) and Mak (Lucky Ali) are two drug-peddlers who live off the street selling and buying illicit drugs under a drug lord. They meet when Bali is being chased by some drug dealers and meets Mak in an alley where he is adjusting something in his car. He agrees to save him only if he splits his loot. They agree to work thereafter.

After the six guys get released from jail, they meet up again to discuss the bank robbery. Andy believes the loot from the truck Ajju stole earlier would be enough to gain custody of his son, but when his lawyer tells him that the money is insufficient, he again goes back to the gang. On a hotel roof top, they start planning the robbery in which they familiarize themselves with the bank and get cars, weapons and gadgets to do this. Soon they establish their hideout in a warehouse where Major reveals that the bank will be looted the next day instead of the day after as previously planned, to thwart anyone’s hidden agendas.

The robbery proceeds as planned, but they find a SWAT team waiting for them outside the bank. They are engaged in a gunfight, and Mak is hit by a bullet while saving Major. They all escape and meet at their hideout. Mak, who was hit, is not allowed to be taken to the hospital, and Major treats his wound with some Black Label Whiskey.

They all have verbal scuffles after which, Ajju, reveals that he has kidnapped the Police Chief. They interrogate him and learn that one of them is an undercover cop. This strikes suspicion among them, and they decide to bring the stolen amount to their hideout. Major learns that his wife has died. Ajju befriends Marc and tells him to elope with his girlfriend, where he also reveals that he actually knows English and was purposefully talking nonsense to the cops. When they return, they find Bali dead, killed by Mak for being inhuman in his interrogation of the Police Chief. Ajju reasons that Mak is the undercover cop, but Major disagrees because he believes Mak saved him during the gunfight at the bank. Marc backs up Ajju and points his gun at Major.

They all arrive at a Mexican stand-off, as Andy retreats and runs away with the money. The four of them shoot each other, after which Major apologizes to Mak for not saving him. In reply, Mak apologizes, saying he was just doing his duty as he is the undercover cop, and that he was the one who buzzed the cops at the bank to arrive. Major realises his mistake and shoots the already dying Mak in the head. Marc’s girlfriend is shown waiting for him at the airport, and Andy is shown at the end driving off the highway pursued by a police helicopter, with Mak’s voice narrating the story, leaving the end to the discretion of the audience, followed by ending credits.