A two-filmmaker push for a debut
Anurag Kashyap and Vasan Bala are presenting Aakhri Ride, a short thriller from first-time writer-directors Vijesh Rajan and Yashoda Parthasarthy. It goes live globally on Halloween, October 31, on Oh Short Flips, the YouTube channel curated by Kashyap.
The film puts three actors in pivotal roles: Panchayat‘s Chandan Roy and Faisal Malik, plus Aamir Dalvi, who appeared in Kashyap’s Kennedy. The premise is a Mumbai ride-share driver pushed to the edge over one desperate, chilling night.
An everyday cab ride, turned inside out
The directors say the idea grew from long cab journeys after meetings across Mumbai. They noticed the distance between themselves in the back seat and the driver, who was often carrying family, money and private worries on his phone. That “invisible social divide” becomes the engine for a horror-and-humour story about a man too consumed by daily trouble to notice what he has picked up.
For celebrity-watchers, the draw is the genre twist: a social observation that arrives as tension and laughs rather than a lecture. Vasan Bala calls the film “sharp, fun, quirky and with a beating heart.”
Why the Halloween drop matters
A Halloween rollout gives a thriller a clear calendar moment instead of letting it disappear in a crowded feed. The film has already built credibility with a run across genre hubs and Oscar and BAFTA-qualifying platforms, and now it comes to YouTube for a free, wide release. That sequence is worth noting for anyone tracking how shorts build attention before a public drop.
- Debut directors Vijesh Rajan and Yashoda Parthasarthy have worked with Kashyap since his GoW days.
- Kashyap says backing them was “an easy decision” after years of seeing their storytelling.
- Panchayat’s Chandan Roy and Faisal Malik share the frame with Kennedy’s Aamir Dalvi.
- The film lands on YouTube on October 31 after a rare global festival sweep.
What to do about it
Set a reminder for the free premiere on Halloween night. If you follow star launches and breakout roles, Aakhri Ride is a low-commitment way to see two familiar faces stretch beyond Panchayat while two major filmmakers champion new voices. The short’s blend of horror, humour and an unseen divide is exactly the kind of genre calling card that tends to travel.
Source: Hindustan Times
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