Anubhuti Kashyap's mystery thriller, Accused, starring Konkona Sen Sharma and Pratibha Ranta, tells the story of a doctor's desperate attempt to clear her name after being accused of sexual misconduct. Dr. Geetika was brilliant at her job, though her colleagues often considered her too harsh or strict. Geetika admitted to criticizing resident doctors if they made mistakes, but she firmly believed her approach was aimed at achieving the best results. She had zero tolerance for inefficiency and didn't hesitate to remove doctors from cases she didn't deem suitable. It's to be expected that someone like Geetika would have detractors, but she wasn't concerned, though that was before complaints were filed with hospital authorities.
Geetika prided herself on being one of the best gynecologists in the country, and at Chapelstone General Hospital, she was admired by resident doctors and nurses alike. So when the accusation of sexual misconduct surfaced, Geetika's life began to unravel. It had taken years of hard work and dedication to build her reputation, and within just a couple of days, most of her colleagues had already declared her guilty.
Director: Anubhuti Kashyap
Writers: Sima Agarwal, Yash Keswani
Stars: Konkona Sen Sharma, Pratibha Ranta, Sukant Goel
At first, she didn't take the accusations seriously. She decided to abide by hospital policy and cooperated with the human resources department when they decided to investigate the matter. A former journalist, Bhargav, was brought on board to analyze the allegations and determine their veracity. He was concerned that more than fifty nurses and doctors who had worked with Geetika had decided to leave their positions, suggesting she wasn't an easy person to deal with.
Some of her colleagues, particularly Dr. Cooper, told Bhargav that Geetika was an obsessive control freak and had behaved rudely toward him. Dr. Cooper had made a mistake during surgery, and Geetika had corrected it, which had clearly wounded her ego. With each passing day, the number of complaints increased; some left anonymous emails, while others wrote anonymous letters and deposited them in the hospital's complaint box. But it didn't stop there; someone posted online about Geetika's inappropriate sexual conduct, and it quickly gained traction.
One of the comments perfectly described the layout of Geetika's house, and even her wife, Meera, wondered if the woman she loved had hidden secrets. Geetika wanted to handle everything herself, which only led to more misunderstandings between her and Meera. The situation spiraled out of control when Meera discovered that Geetika had lied about being busy at work when, in reality, she was on sick leave. The hospital practically forced her to take leave and wait for her name to be cleared. A doctor, Carol Simmons, came forward to report Geetika.
Although the other cases were anonymous, Carol didn't want to hide her identity and told Bhargav that Geetika was a sexual predator. She was a junior anesthesiologist when Geetika fired her after publicly humiliating her for not doing her job properly. Carol tried to contact Geetika to have the word "negligence" removed from her termination letter, and that's when Geetika allegedly asked her for a sexual favor in return. Geetika vehemently denied the accusation. According to her version of events, she was having dinner at a hotel when Carol called her repeatedly, so she asked her to come in. When Carol explained her situation, Geetika refused to make any changes to the termination letter. She thought Carol was making false accusations because she wanted revenge. Unfortunately, with the mounting accusations, Carol's testimony, and Geetika's erratic behavior, most people around her assumed she was guilty.
The finale of "Accused" revealed that Geetika was indeed being framed. Meera had decided to hire the private investigator Angad had recommended because she wanted the truth to prevail, and also because she couldn't shake the feeling that Geetika might be cheating on her. Her friendship with his ex-girlfriend, Sophie, didn't sit well with her. She wondered if they had reconnected, and perhaps after everything Geetika had been through, she had found solace in Sophie.
Meera's colleague, Angad, added fuel to the fire because, well, he liked Meera. Secretly, he hoped that one day Meera and Geetika's marriage would collapse and he would step in as their savior. So when the private investigator told her his findings, he decided to share only one aspect. There were photographs of Geetika and Sophie together at her restaurant's opening, and seeing Geetika pictured outside Sophie's apartment left Meera devastated.
Meera planned to confront Geetika, and that's when Geetika decided to share revealing material she'd gained access to. She'd hacked into the hospital's server and discovered that the emails had likely been sent by a single person, establishing that Sophie had been framed. She traced the IP address and location and found that most of the emails originated from a particular public library or coffee shop. Now, it was highly unlikely that all the accused lived in the same neighborhood and frequented the same library and coffee shop.
Geetika thought this was all the evidence she needed to prove her innocence. But instead of being pleased for Geetika, Meera passed on the photographs the investigator had sent her. She expected Geetika to explain what she'd been doing. Geetika reasoned that she'd enlisted Sophie's brother, Mark, to help her hack the server, and since it was all illegal, she didn't want to involve Meera. But Meera refused to believe she'd have to spend the entire night with Sophie just to find evidence. Geetika didn't know what to say.
She was horrified that not only was everyone around her trying to prove she was a sex offender, but even her wife had begun to suspect her. She wondered why Meera felt the need to hide her decision to apply for a position at a children's hospital and felt it was unfair to keep her out of the loop. Meera, on the other hand, felt Geetika had been inconsiderate despite all the sacrifices she'd made for the sake of the relationship. Meera had agreed to move to a new city and even put her career on hold so they could adopt a baby together. Geetika wasn't thrilled about the idea of motherhood and explained that Meera had never bothered to ask her what she really wanted.
Geetika and Meera had clearly not been honest about their feelings, and the heated conversation left them both frustrated and shaken. Geetika decided to live with her brother while Meera tried to sort through her emotions. Meera discovered that Angad had chosen to conceal the fact that the private investigator had found evidence confirming Geetika's theory. A man named David had broken into their house. She hadn't yet discovered why David was trying to frame Geetika, but Meera felt she had to share this crucial information with his wife.
She decided to end her friendship with Angad after he tried to sabotage her marriage. Meera met with Geetika and gave her all the information she had gathered. She still wasn't ready to get back together with Geetika, because it was clear they hadn't been honest. And the fact that Geetika hadn't hesitated to claim that Meera wasn't serious about her career and had implied that she had chosen to be with her only because marrying her made life easier for her. Meera and Geetika considered asking the police for help, but they didn't think it was a serious enough matter to warrant it.
Meera warned Geetika not to try to find David alone, as it could be extremely risky. But, of course, Geetika didn't listen and went looking for David at his workplace. As soon as David saw Geetika, he ran for his life. Geetika chased after him and begged him to talk to her for a moment. He ignored her and tried to escape, and that's when Meera came to his rescue. She thought Geetika would try to find David on her own, so she decided to follow her in her car. David was bleeding from the mouth when Meera's car pulled up in front of him. They decided to take him to Chapelstone General Hospital, and that's when Geetika discovered he was already a patient there.
David was receiving social assistance, and his case was being handled by Dr. Logan. The investigation revealed that Dr. Logan had framed Geetika to secure the position of dean. He believed himself more qualified for the job than Geetika and had instructed David to break into her home and take photos to make the accusation seem more legitimate. David was told he could only continue his free treatment if he did this, and lacking other options, he complied. David confessed to helping him, and the police eventually arrested Dr. Logan.
Police had found photos of Geetika's home on his laptop, and he ultimately confessed to the crime. Carole Simmons dropped the case as soon as she was told that the evidence showed all the accusations against Geetika were false. Simmons simply fled. Geetika had finally cleared her name, but at the cost of her marriage and her peace of mind. Shortly after Geetika's innocence was established, she was offered the dean's position again, but this time she declined. She didn't believe she was ready for the promotion. Geetika had always been an ambitious woman, and she believed that her ambition was the reason she had been framed.
Of course, that wasn't the reason she decided against the new position. She prided herself on being ambitious, and the fact that men like Dr. Logan and Bhargav felt threatened by her further demonstrated that the world still wasn't ready to accept that women could be better at their jobs than men. Dr. Logan said she didn't deserve the position because she didn't have as much experience as he did; Bhargav questioned Geetika's character because he couldn't accept that a woman could become the youngest department head and also the youngest dean of a hospital without taking shortcuts.
Geetika also acknowledged that she, too, had abused her position of power. She admitted that she could have been a little more forgiving with Carol; perhaps she wouldn't have made the same mistake again, but seeing how weak Carol was made her feel more powerful, and she felt a compulsive need to show her how she could completely destroy her life. Carol was fired from her job right before her wedding, which left her devastated. Geetika knew all this, but she chose to ruin her life simply because she could. Instead of creating a safe space for the women around her, she, like most men in positions of power, abused her position. She confessed that when men tried to exploit her weakness, she felt the need to show them their place, and when she recognized the same weakness in women, instead of showing compassion, she felt rage, a desperate urge to punish them.
Geetika didn't believe she was ambitious; she simply didn't know how to handle power, and she felt she needed time to reflect on her actions and decisions before taking on such a crucial role. She thought she had to become a better person, a more compassionate person. Geetika went to the hospital where Meera worked and begged to speak with her. She explained that Meera was right; she had been extremely self-centered. She was so focused on her career that she never considered how her decisions had affected her. She knew she deserved so much better and only hoped Meera would give her another chance. Geetika was ready to work on herself and her marriage, and to make sure that every decision they made in the future was one they both agreed upon. Meera didn't respond at first, and Geetika guessed that perhaps she no longer wanted to be with her.
During the final scene, Meera replied that she would be traveling to Meerut, and the last time she checked, the seat next to her was empty. The lovers couldn't hold back their tears as they embraced. Life had been quite unfair to them lately; they had had misunderstandings and arguments, but deep down they both knew they were madly in love. The fact that Geetika and Meera are traveling together to Meerut suggests that Meera will open up to her family and that Geetika will be there to support her during this difficult time. Even if her family refuses to accept their relationship, Meera will always have Geetika by her side.
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