“Vedaa” is a 2024 film directed by Nikkhil Advani. The film stars John Abraham as Abhimanyu Kanwar, Sharvari as Vedaa, Abhishek Banerjee as Jitendar Pratap Singh, Tamannaah Bhatia as Raashi, Ashish Vidyarthi as Kaka, and more. “Vedaa” follows Major Abhimanyu Kanwar, an ex-soldier from the Gurkha Regiment who, after being stripped of his rank, returns to a small village plagued by unorthodox mentality and a makeshift commission that delivers death sentence to those who try to have a relationship outside their cast.
Vedaa (2024) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
Why Does Vedaa Want to Leave Barmer?
The story opens in Barmer, a small, dusty village in western Rajasthan, where we meet Vedaa, a young woman in her early twenties, juggling more than most can handle. She’s attending a local college that’s crawling with troublemakers, the kind who have nothing better to do than loiter outside and harass female students.
Not a day goes by without Vedaa getting heckled by these goons. Fed up with the constant harassment, she’s desperate to leave the village behind. For Vedaa, the only way out is to land a decent government job, either by pursuing her master’s degree or by making the cut through the sports quota by joining the college boxing team.
The catcalling goons aren’t the only issue plaguing Vedaa’s village. The real problem is the outdated, rigid mindset that still grips the community. People believe in the “higher caste, higher status” nonsense, with Brahmins and Rajputs sitting on their imaginary thrones while treating Dalits like dirt under their feet.
According to them, Dalits should just keep their heads down and follow orders. To make matters worse, these so-called ‘high caste’ thugs even crash weddings uninvited, beating up both the grooms and brides for daring to fall in love across caste lines. In their eyes, intercaste marriages are an unforgivable sin, something that deserves the death penalty rather than celebration.
Vedaa’s brother, Vinod, is also in love with a girl from a higher caste, which, of course, is a big taboo. His father keeps warning him to cut ties or risk the entire family being killed. With these daily acts of injustice against the lower castes, the community is desperate for a savior — someone to fight for their rights. This is where Major Kanwar of the Gurkha Regiment comes in.
Who is Abhimanyu Kanwar?
Abhimanyu Kanwar is no ordinary soldier. He is a top-tier Indian Army major, a veteran of both strategy and combat. We get a front-row seat to his skills when he single-handedly takes down a room full of terrorists in a high-stakes operation. During one of his missions, Kanwar’s orders are to extract Ilyas Kashmiri, a high-value target responsible for the deaths of countless innocents.
The mission is personal for Kanwar because Ilyas had a hand in the brutal murder of his wife, who was kidnapped and killed after being exposed as a civilian informer. Despite strict orders to bring Ilyas in alive—because the terrorist held vital intel—Kanwar’s hunger for revenge takes over. He executes Ilyas, unable to let go of the lives, including his wife’s, that were senselessly taken. As a result, Kanwar is stripped of his rank, and pension, and dishonorably discharged from the military.
Can Kanwar uncover the truth behind the village’s dark secrets?
After being discharged, Kanwar returns to his late wife’s village and is made aware of the harsh truths and unorthodox mentality that often plague small villages. Thanks to his father-in-law, he lands a job as an assistant boxing coach at the local college. Just as he’s settling in, things take a dark turn. A few days later, Kanwar finds the body of a woman stuffed inside a red suitcase. Her crime was that she chose to marry outside her caste.
Everyone in the village knows exactly who’s behind the murder, but fear keeps their lips sealed. Those who are brave enough to speak up, the police threaten them into silence either by offering them money or killing them. Even the village Pradhan, Jitendar, is well aware of the atrocities happening under his nose. But instead of taking action, he looks the other way, feeding off the fear he’s cultivated in the people. Half of the murders in the village are due to intercaste marriages, and somehow, Kanwar’s own brother, Suyog, always seems to have his name tied to the bloodshed.
Kanwar defies the village’s tyranny to stand up for Vedaa
Within a few days, Kanwar starts to see the power dynamics of the village. It’s run by the high-caste people like Jitendar and Suyog, who make sure no one dares question their authority. When Vedaa tries to sign up for the boxing team, Suyog humiliates her, telling her to mop the floors instead.
Even the head coach, scared out of his wits, refuses to train Vedaa, afraid of what Suyog and his goons might do. But when Vedaa stands her ground, Suyog stops her in the middle of the road, tearing apart the money she’d saved for a boxing kit and reminding her of her “place.” When Kanwar learns about it, he tracks down Suyog and his men and beats them to a pulp, all without revealing his identity. Not stopping there, Kanwar goes against the village’s backward rules and agrees to coach Vedaa himself.
Why Does Vedaa Go on the Run?
Soon enough, Suyog and Jitendar find out about Vinod and Gehna’s relationship. Since Vinod is from a lower caste, Jitendar, and his brother humiliate his entire family, forcing them to hold shoes on their heads and apologize to Aarti’s family. Vedaa witnesses it all, and the sight makes her blood boil. To guys like Jitendar and Suyog, this unorthodox mentality is the law, and they genuinely believe this is how the world should work.
When Vinod elopes with Aarti, Jitendar tricks them into returning to the village, promising a marriage, but instead, he has them slaughtered. Vedaa barely escapes with her life. The same night, Kanwar confronts Jitendar, warning him to change his ways—or he’ll be history. As soon as Vedaa and Kanwar leave, he calls his men and orders them to bring back their heads. Even the police, who are supposed to uphold the law, join the hunt for Vedaa and Kanwar.
Vedaa (2024) Movie Ending Explained:
Did Vedaa and Kanwar Reach the Court?
Vedaa, to make her voice heard, asks Kanwar to take her to court so she can fight for justice and expose Jitendar and Suyog under the Dalit Protection Act. Kanwar isn’t ecstatic about it as he knows the system all too well and doubts it’ll make a difference, but he remembers his wife’s words that even if the odds are slim, you should try and not give up.
They hide out at Vedaa’s uncle’s house. However, for a measly ten thousand rupees, the uncle sells them out to the goons and the cops. Forced to go on the run, Vedaa even chops her hair short to pass as a boy, trying to slip under the radar. After days of being on the move, they’re captured. But Kanwar and Vedaa manage to break free, taking down Suyog and his men in the process.
Eventually, they make it to the court, but so does Jitendar with his gang. They lock down the entire place to stop Vedaa from reaching the judge. Nevertheless, despite everything, Vedaa enters the court and pleads her case to the judges, demanding justice under the Dalit Protection Act. In the end, Kanwar succumbs to his wounds, but not before taking down Jitendar and his thugs, making sure his death isn’t in vain.
