Vishal Atreya’s debut film, Tatsama Tadbhava, chronicled the story of Arika (Meghana Raj), a middle-aged woman who had no choice but to file a police report after her husband didn’t come for two days. Arika met with Arvind Ashwathama (Prajwal Devaraj), a seasoned cop with an impeccable record. Arvind doesn’t just register complaints; he sees them through. His eyes focused on the complaint while his mind played with the objective. The film kicked off with Arvind meticulously solving a burglary case in a few minutes. Fast forward to the present, and we see Arika, who has lost all sense of joy and doesn’t even celebrate her birthday. She even refused to share her plight with her daughter, Nidhi. The latter wanted to be there for her mother but often got annoyed when Arika refused to let her. Thus, left with no other choice, Nidhi asked her grandfather to bring her the case files.
Spoilers Ahead
How Was Sanjay’s Relationship With Arika?
Arika was a control freak, and thus, she needed to have everything perfect and organized. Clothes must be folded a certain way, and the broomstick can’t have any dirt on it. Every item in the house had to be in a certain position, and it couldn’t even differ by an inch. Some described Arika’s house as a torture house, while others claimed it to be a military camp. Arika and her mother-in-law weren’t on good terms, probably because the latter never blessed their marriage. She was under the impression that Arika had forced Sanjay into marrying her. Also, the old woman said Arika was a bad omen, as she lost her first child in a road accident. Arika had a different story to tell. She and Sanjay were madly in love. Arika never received any love or support from her father. Sanjay was there to treat her when she was sick and lift her spirits wherever she felt down. However, like every relationship, the couple had bad days too. Sometimes, Arika would get angry and storm out of the house.
Where Were Sanjay’s Body And Glasses Found?
The police found Sanjay dead, and with it, Arika became the prime suspect. This was because the dead body was found in her basement. Arika maintained that she was innocent and had no idea that Sanjay’s body was sitting in her basement, inside a truck. Arika mentioned that the day Sanjay disappeared, they had a huge fight. Sanjay followed his usual reaction and left midway. Arika tried to find him, but it was no use. Moreover, Arika even got into a mild accident while she was looking for him. Therefore, she had to abandon her search in the middle and go to the hospital. It turned out that Arika was four months pregnant. This was shocking, as after Arika lost her first child, she was told she would never be able to conceive. While this was shocking for many, Arika called it a miracle. The news of Sanjay’s death was leaked to the media. Thus, Arvind was under pressure to solve the case ASAP.
Almost all of Sanjay’s items were returned to Arika, except his glasses. The specs were later found in Siddharth’s car, along with Sanjay’s prints. Siddharth (Balaji Manohar) was the MD of Sanjay’s company. The duo weren’t on good terms, and their disagreements often led to physical conflict. Siddharth called this a coincidence, as Sanjay had been in his car many times. However, this couldn’t be possible, as Sanjay was wearing the same glasses when he went missing. So, did Siddharth meet Sanjay that night? Yes! He did. In reality, Siddharth was gay and had been having an affair with Pawan, one of his colleagues. While they were getting intimate, some barflies attacked them. Fortunately, Sanjay saved them and drove them to the hospital. After that, Sanjay left the hospital.
Who Are Akira And Mathew?
Akira was Arika’s twin sister and her biggest rival. Akira’s fiancé, Mathew (Aravinnd Iyer), told Arvind that Arika had killed both Sanjay and Akira. In his eyes, Arika was a highly intelligent psychopath capable of murder. Akira had told Matthew that her sister controlled her entire life: what she ate, where or with whom she slept, and whatnot! Akira even said that Arika would not hesitate to kill her if she didn’t do her bidding. Akira was different, said Matthew. She used to see the world differently and loved to live multiple identities, like Chandni, Rose, Juliet, and many more. A few months into their relationship, Akira went missing. When Matthew came across the news of Sanjay’s death, he figured Arika had killed Akira too. However, Arika maintained that Mathew was a liar, as she never had any sisters. She even filed a complaint against Matthew to get him to stop following her. But there was another possibility. Maybe Arika was fed up with her marriage and was lonely. This led to her inventing a fake twin sister and trapping Matthew. Since Matthew was a bum, convincing him was child’s play. She needed a shoulder to cry on, and Matthew became that shoulder. However, Arvind still believed that Arika had something to do with Sanjay’s murder. Maybe Arika had an accomplice who killed Sanjay while Arika was out gathering alibis. Therefore, he put Arika on the polygraph test, and it became clear that Arika and Akira were two different people. This meant Matthew had been telling the truth this entire time.
Was Akira Real Or Just Arika’s Imagination?
As Tatsama Tadbhava neared its end, it left us with the most pressing question. Who was the one raising Nidhi? Was it Arika or Akira? Arika’s father, Shankarappa, wanted a boy, but after his wife gave birth to twin girls, he became agitated. He kept Arika and gave Akira to their housemaid, Nancy, to get her killed. Since Nancy was childless, she raised Akira as her own. However, when Akira saw Arika, Nancy confessed everything. This was the story Arika told Nidhi, but this, too, wasn’t the truth. In reality, Arika was schizophrenic and had been suffering from a mental disorder. Arika’s parents never cared for her. This left her lonely and traumatized. Thus, Akira was just a figment of her imagination. Akira was something Arika created to battle her traumatic life. Also, Arika and Akira were semordnilaps (words that are spelt differently when read backwards). Arika was emotional, while Akira was creative and exciting. Also, the personality Sanjay fell for was Akira. When Sanjay learned about it, he confronted her. Sanjay told her it was Akira; he was in love with her, not Arika. This made Arika lose control, and she murdered Sanjay. Arika couldn’t come to terms with what she did, nor did she have the capacity to. This was the point where Arika’s second personality took control to save her. So, it was Akira who put Sanjay’s body in the truck. She also drove to Mysore and intentionally got into an accident to create an alibi. Akira also broke Sanjay’s watch intentionally to trick the forensic report. Three days after Sanjay’s death, Akira claimed to have found the body.
Since Arika was clinically unstable, she couldn’t be held responsible for her crimes. However, she was sent to a psychiatric facility to make sure she wasn’t a threat to those around her. After years, Arika was released and resumed her life. This brought us to the present time, where Arika was raising Nidhi as Akira. Thus, it was clear that Arika still wasn’t ready to accept that Akira wasn’t real. Despite what anyone told her, Arika was convinced that she had a twin sister. This became more clear when Arika knocked the same knock that she used to do to invite Akira.
Post-Credit Scene: Does Arvind Have A New Case?
Tatsama Tadbhava boasts an exciting post-credit scene. After the credits, we saw Arika and Nidhi visiting the police station to report her grandfather missing. The duo stated that he hadn’t been home in a couple of days. What if Arika killed him because he gave Nidhi Sanjay’s case files? The post-credit scene also showed Arvind Ashwathama. He was asked by his superiors to report to Shirasangi to spearhead a suicide case. The case was peculiar, as not one but a total of eight people had committed suicide. Each of them died a different death but at the same time. Moreover, all their bodies were found unclothed. The last person who died was the police officer investigating the same serial suicide case. Now, the same dangerous case had landed on Arvind’s table. It could also be possible that both cases are connected in some way. Whatever the case, Arvind Ashwathama would fight tooth and nail to solve it.
