Stolen Movie Review: In this Prime Video drama-thriller film, two urban brothers, Gautam and Raman, find themselves diving into more and more dangerous situations after they witness a woman’s baby getting kidnapped in a desolate railway station. Desperate to help this innocent woman, they get sucked into a dangerous world, one which they were not ready to face.
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Stolen Prime Video Director
Karan Tejpal
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Stolen Movie Writers
Karan Tejpal, Swapnil Salkar, Gaurav Dhingra
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Stolen Movie 2025 Cast
Abhishek Banerjee, Harish Khanna, Mia Maelzer, Sahidur Rahaman, Shubham
The film has a runtime of 92 minutes.
Stolen Movie Review
In Karan Tejpal’s debut feature film, Stolen, we are taken on a nightmarish journey through the terrifying realities of rural India that exposes the atrocities that come with poverty. The film is a tense whodunit that will leave viewers on edge throughout as we understand the consequences of societal mistrust.
The film follows two brothers, Gautam and Raman, who get entangled in a kidnapping case when a baby is suddenly abducted from the arms of its sleeping mother, a tribal woman, at a desolate railway station. This one decision propels them through a maze of suspicion, misinformation and a constant escalating violence. The film left me feeling deeply disturbed, and I remember feeling somewhat similarly while watching 2015’s NH10. It sometimes gets so relatable that it makes you feel uncomfortable, even if you’re in the comforts of your own home.
The film doesn’t dilly-dally on divulging the kidnapper’s identity. However, that’s not the focus or the big mystery here. The film delves into something more complex and unravels the societal order that exists in our society, which the brothers get a first-hand experience of. Justice is a grey area in our society, especially when you don’t come from privilege. It’s not guaranteed, and even then, you have to go through a lot of hoops to find a sliver of it. At other times, the justice comes at a cost, and it’s fuelled by rumour and prejudice.
In the midst of this mess is Abhishek Banerjee’s Gautam, who transforms from a mere observer to an active participant, simply trying to do the right thing. Of course, there’s nuance there as well as he transforms throughout the film’s runtime from one person to someone completely different. His transformation, thanks to his experiences, makes this a relatable watch as society shapes his very existence.
On the other hand, Shubham, as Raman, works as the film’s moral compass and pulls Gautam and the audience through the quagmire that is this film’s discussion surrounding morality. Lastly, Mia Maelzer, as Jhumpa, brings out a quiet resilience that hits hard, and her desperation at her horrifying situation makes your heart sad.
In his debut film, Tejpal is fantastic and draws you into the film almost instantly. He leaves us feeling horrified and on edge throughout, and holds on to the tension fantastically. Stolen showcases the dichotomy of modern India without missing a beat. It showcases how misinformation is spread through social media, and it’s so relatable that it’s hard to refute. The coexistence of modernity with deep-seated prejudices is brought to the screen extremely well and makes you think beyond what is shown on-screen.
I found the film to be extremely disturbing, more so because the performances are exceptional. For the urban population, it will make you think and bring to the foreground the injustices that we see around us, but choose to ignore, to hold on to some sort of sanity in our lives. It’s raw and unfiltered and leaves you thinking long after the end of the runtime. However, I will say that I didn’t enjoy some of the violence that the film portrays because it felt unnecessary to me. It feels like it’s added to get a visceral reaction out of the viewers rather than anything.
Final Thoughts
Stolen explores various themes of modern India where the modern and the orthodox clash every day. It also showcases how the marginalised society faces challenges every day of their existence to get some sort of justice. And, it explores how society and situations change even the best of people. All in all, the film is enjoyable and hard-hitting, only to leave us deeply disturbed by the end of it!
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