and arrested by police. Meanwhile, one of the group members spots Kripal entering Vohra's residence. Arguing that if Kripal had been loyal, he would have taken the cyanide pill to kill himself, Sanathan concludes that Kripal was a police informer. Sanathan also accuses Veeran of helping Kripal and orders her into house arrest. On the day of the mission, Sanathan orders the group to move and tells Wazir to kill Veeran. However, Veeran breaks free and kills Wazir. In the meantime, Jaimal and Sanathan execute the plot. Jimmy is shot dead while stopping Kedar Nath's motorcade on a bridge. Sanathan, as planned, fires the missile to blow up Kedar Nath's car. On the run, Sanathan finds himself being tracked closely, not by the police but by Veeran herself. Veeran lures him into the depths of wood and shoots him dead. Veeran, who has not been exposed as a member of the group, visits Kripal in prison. She hugs Kripal, and while embracing him, she slips Kripal his cyanide pill and departs. The movie ends with a shot of Kripal lying dead peacefully on his prison bed and a shot of the back of a moving pickup tractor where Veeran is peacefully sleeping upright with a nose bleed, indicating they both took the cyanide pill. Cast Tabu as Virender Kaur a.k.a. Veeran Chandrachur Singh as Kripal Singh a.k.a. Pali Om Puri as Sanatan Kulbhushan Kharbanda as Commander Kanwaljit Singh as Inspector Vohra S M Zaheer as Khurana Raj Zutshi as Jaswant Singh Randhawa a.k.a. Jassi Banwari Taneja as Kripal Singh's Grandfather Jimmy Sheirgill as Jaimal Singh a.k.a. Jimmy Ravi Gossain as Kuldeep Suneel Sinha as Wazir Singh a.k.a. Wazira Amrik Gill as Nanoo Navnindra Behl as Veeran's mother Soundtrack The score and soundtrack are composed by Vishal Bhardwaj with lyrics by Gulzar. The CD of the soundtrack features several background pieces from the film. Release Maachis was originally scheduled to be released on 18 October 1996, but was delayed a week to 25 October 1996. Controversy Maachis was banned in Malaysia by the censor board on grounds that "it may hurt religious sentiments." Accolades Notes References External links 1996 films 1990s Hindi-language films Films about terrorism in India Films featuring a Best Actress National Award-winning performance Films about massacres of Sikhs Films scored by Vishal Bhardwaj Films directed by Gulzar Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment National Film Award winners Insurgency