Khuda Haafiz

Faruk Kabir's 2020 Indian film opens with a young couple looking for work after the 2008 economic crisis. Sameer and Nargis lose their jobs and months later find work in a country in the Middle East; when his papers are delayed she travels first. Nothing is heard from her after she arrives, and Sameer begins searching for his wife in a country he does not know. The film is about human trafficking and states that it draws on a real case. Its first half is built on bureaucratic helplessness: a man caught between an embassy, the police and an interpreter, unable to convince anyone. In the second half it turns to action and Vidyut Jammwal's fight scenes come forward. The difference in tone between the halves is marked. Who it's for: viewers who like Indian action and rescue narratives. Who it's not for: anyone who would rather not approach sexual violence and trafficking; the film shows them directly.