Thugs of Hindostan

Description

In 1795, when the Indian subcontinent was known as Hindustan or Hindostan, King Mirza Sikander Baig is killed by John Clive. The residents of his kingdom are massacred, and the land is annexed by the British. The only survivors are his daughter, Zafira Baig, and General Khudabaksh. Khudabaksh defeats the retreating enemy soldiers, and raises Zafira as his daughter, training her in the arts of warfare. Years later, Khudabaksh, now known as Jahaazi, leads a band of Indian bandits known as Thugs, who specialize in sea-based warfare and pose a serious challenge to the expanding British East India Company which has seized control of large parts of India. John Clive is alarmed, and assigns his right-hand man to counter the rising threat posed by the Thugs. Firangi Mallah, a good-for-nothing small-time Thug who makes his living by stealing necessary accessories, is recruited by the British to meet this challenge. He appears before Jahaazi and asks him for his refuge. Jahaazi accepts, and Firangi turns into a routine informer for the Company. He finds solace with a dancer named Suraiyya. Firangi aims to be an Englishman himself, and often dresses as such. Firangi betrays the Thugs on many occasions. Jahaazi, who wishes to straighten the wayward Firangi and bring him into the Thug life, gets suspicious and realizes the truth. He confronts Firangi and they have a duel. Jahaazi loses, and concedes defeat to Firangi, while expressing hope that he will change his ways. In the final encounter with the British at an abandoned fort, Jahaazi and Zafira fight the British and find themselves outnumbered and their ranks falling. Firangi and his cronies suddenly appear and turn the tide of the battle. Zafira defeats Clive, and justice is served. Jahaazi looks to the sky and realizes the infertile land has now borne fruit, suggesting that Firangi has now become an empathetic human, capable of greatness.