Qila

About the film

Qila (translation: Fort) is a 1998 Indian Hindi-language mystery drama thriller directed by Umesh Mehra and starring Dilip Kumar (in a dual role), Rekha, Mukul Dev, Mamta Kulkarni, Smita Jaykar and Gulshan Grover.

This marked the final film appearance of Dilip Kumar before his death on 7 July 2021.

Plot

A cruel and evil landowner Jagannath Singh is murdered and his twin brother Amarnath Singh decides to investigate. He finds the list of suspects is endless. The prime suspects are Jagannath's son Amar, Jagannath's abused wife Suman and a woman named Yamini who claims she was raped by Jagannath. Eventually, Jagannath's son Amar confesses to killing his father. He reveals that on the night of his father's death he accidentally shot him while trying to fight him off when Jagannath held Amar and his mother at gunpoint. Soon after the list of suspects grow, it is discovered that Jagannath's had many more enemies who could have killed him, including landowner Mangal Singh and even Jagannath's brother Amarnath, who doesn't seem to have got on well with Jagannath himself in the past. Yamini killed Jagannath for his wrongdoings to her brother.

Music

All songs are composed by Anand Raaj Anand with lyrics by Dev Kohli.

Reception

India Today wrote, "Qila, the story of a good twin and a bad twin, is more than just outdated, it's prehistoric. Dilip Kumar's long-drawn-out dialogue delivery is out of sync with the times. Only the still-lovely Rekha survives this mess." Screen wrote, "Director Umesh Mehra fails to retain audience interest. It’s a pity that he couldn’t utilise two of the most talented artistes of the country and exploit their potential to the fullest, instead of making them act in a hotch-potch of a movie".

Key details