Jalsa Plot & Ending Explained
Jalsa is a drama about a conflict between a celebrated journalist and her cook. It delves into the idea of power dynamics and classicism. It is currently available on Amazon Prime Video.
Maya Menon (Vidya Balan) is a successful journalist who lives with her mother and Ayush, her physically disabled son (Surya Kasibhatla). Ruksana (Shefali Shah), her cook, looks after Ayush and is like a family member. Ruksana is the mother of two children, a son, and a daughter.
The film begins with Maya returning home after a successful interview. She appears to be exhausted after a couple of celebratory drinks with her boss. She tries to book a cab but can't find any, so she drives home.
She falls asleep while driving as a result of her exhaustion, resulting in an accident. She collides with a girl who walks in front of her car. Maya is seen panicking as she considers whether to help the injured girl but ultimately decides to drive away. She doesn't call an ambulance or tell anyone about the incident, and she tries to forget about it all. But things become complicated when her loved ones are thrown into the mix, and she is forced to fight for her reputation.
ENDING
The injured girl is later revealed to be Ruksana's daughter, Alia (Kashish Rizwan). The next day, Ruksana appears distressed and goes to the hospital, where her daughter is admitted. She thought her daughter was staying home to study, but she was out with her boyfriend.
She approaches Maya and asks for her assistance in obtaining justice for her daughter. Maya has connected the dots and determined that she is, in fact, the driver who hit Alia. She appears to be distressed and guilty. Alia is transferred to a better hospital with a private room.
Meanwhile, Rohini (Vidhatri Bandi), a new reporter and Maya's intern who is going through a financial crisis, wants to cover this story. She is determined to find out who caused the accident and believes this could be her golden ticket. She begins her investigation and comes across CCTV footage. The video clearly shows Maya's car colliding with Alia. She brings this evidence to the police station.
Truth Untold
She wants the officer to use this information to file a case against Maya. The two officers, Pradeep (Ghanshyam Lalsa) and More (Shrikant Yadav) refuse to do so and eventually admit to taking bribes and picking a fight with a bystander.
The officer explains that he is about to retire and that his daughter is also getting married. So he can't risk the investigation because if the footage leaks, it will severely damage his reputation.
They later reveal that they blackmailed the son of a politician, whose banner was covering the camera, and used the money they received to pay Ruksana. Rohini is in a gherkin. On the one hand, she wants to expose the truth but wonders if it will be of any use. Meanwhile, the audience notices the guilty conscience devouring Maya. She finally decides to tell everyone the truth and approaches Rohini, who assists her in recording a statement.
Revenge
Alia's boyfriend confronts Ruksana with the truth about that night, including the fact that Maya was the driver. Ruksana appears heartbroken and betrayed. She begins to suspect that Maya is the one paying her a ridiculous sum of money to buy her silence.
She goes to Maya's house to resign, but Maya's mother persuades her to stay. She begins doing her daily chores while waiting for Maya to return home. But then she gets up and walks Ayush to the beach.
She considers abandoning Ayush near the ocean tides. She wishes to punish Maya by putting her in a similar situation. Meanwhile, Maya's mother calls to tell her that Ruksana and Ayush have left the money at home.
Maya realizes the gravity of the situation and rushes to find them. She gets stuck in traffic before making it to the beach.
She notices Ruksana is just playing with Ayush, confirming Rukhsana's decision not to exact revenge. The film concludes with the two women sitting in silence, taking in the situation before them.