The Buckingham Murders Plot Synopsis
The Buckingham Murders is a 2024 crime thriller by Hansal Mehta and stars Kareena Kapoor Khan in the lead role. It follows a messy police investigation when a young Sikh boy goes missing in Buckinghamshire. And one of the detectives on the case happens to be Jasmeet ‘Jass’ Bhamra who is reeling from the murder of her own son. However, she is forced to set aside her personal grief and do her best to find the missing boy, Ishpreet Kohli.
However, the town seems hellbent on stopping her at every step as everyone is hiding something. Her boss, Inspector Hardik ‘Hardy’ Patel insists on resolving the case quickly. The kid’s parents, Daljeet and Preeti Kohli have a troubled marriage. And the prime suspect is of a different religion, creating a communal divide and uproar.
Well, with all those plot twists and a shocking conclusion, here is an ending-explained article on the movie, The Buckingham Murders.
Why doesn’t Jass believe Naved?
The suspects in the case happen to be two Muslim teenagers, Saquib and Naved, the Imam’s son. Saquib’s DNA is all over Ishpreet’s corpse and the car where the boy is found. When interrogated, Naved claims that they were at the park to buy drugs. The runner was none other than Ishpreet. The men didn’t have enough money and when Ishpreet refused to compromise, Saquib drowned him in a fit of anger, according to Naved.
After that, the details get fuzzy. Saquib and Naved state that they lost the car keys. Naved never gives any reason as to why they left the kid in the car. And he claims that they could open it without the keys because it is an old car. The case is closed and Saquib is taken into custody.
But the car seat was never wet. On top of it, the kid’s bag is missing. There is also a second DNA on the corpse which no one has been able to identify. When Jass brings it up, Hardy shuts her down and keeps provoking her till she punches him and gets taken off the case.
Why does Hardy kill himself?
At the beginning of the movie, it is shown that Hardy’s sister, Shalini is in a coma due to drugs. Jass finds out that it was sold to her by Saquib and Syringe, Ishpreet’s pseudo-uncle. While Syringe went to jail, Saquib was sent to rehab because of his age and the fact that he cooperated by snitching on Syringe.
Jass meets with Saquib and he finally tells the truth. A flashback shows what really happened. There is indeed an altercation as the teens don’t have enough money to pay Ishpreet. Saquib refuses to give back the drugs and instead, threatens to tell on Ishpreet if he doesn’t stop dealing. Ishpreet in return, threatens to expose Saquib and Naved for having an affair. Saquib pushes him in the water after which he lets him go with a warning.
Alone, Saquib and Naved go skinny dipping and that’s when they find Ishpreet’s dead body in the lake. Saquib wants to take him to the hospital but Naved is scared of his father. Unable to find the car keys, the boys leave Ishpreet’s body in the forest and run off.
That night, Hardy spots Saquib’s car and Ishpreet’s body. Wanting to frame Saquib for ruining his sister’s life, he breaks into the car and leaves Ishpreet inside. He then picks up Naved and coerces him to frame Saquib. Naved is convinced when the cop’s accomplice, Detective Simon claims that Saquib will only get a few years in prison.
At present, upset that Simon and Hardy lied, Naved works with Jass and sets up a trap. They lure the cops to the forest and surround them. Hardy tries to escape but Jass points out that it is all over. He realises it too, as he apologises to his sister and kills himself.
What is the real killer’s motive?
Throughout the movie, it is shown that Daljeet is abusive to his wife, Preeti. Wanting an out, she has Ishpreet murdered and tries to frame Daljeet. However, she is caught when she has Syringe’s brother, Prithvi killed and the cops find Ishpreet’s bag while sweeping his house. Prithvi uses Ishpreet’s burner phone to contact Preeti and that’s how Jass is able to nab her before she leaves the country. A flashback shows her schemes:
Preeti never wanted a kid but Daljeet adopts Ishpreet without consulting her. He makes her a mother and a servant. He also allegedly has an affair with the kid’s piano teacher, Indrani. Ishpreet’s paternal grandmother dotes on him but after she dies, Preeti is forced to take care of him. Unfortunately for him, Daljeet takes out a life insurance policy for Ishpreet and his business is not doing well. Preeti uses these factors to frame him.
She seduces Prithvi, a young man who has always liked her and gets him to drown Ishpreet. She also thinks that it is the best way to punish Daljeet as he loves his adoptive son. However, Prithvi starts getting clingy with Preeti which annoys her.
And after Saquib is freed, he panics. Worried that Prithvi may snitch, Preeti sleeps with him and messages Daljeet to come home. Just as he arrives, she breaks up with Prithvi. Upset, he gets slightly aggressive with her while trying to change her mind. Daljeet misunderstands as he thinks Prithvi is molesting his wife and he kills him.
Jass asks why Preeti didn’t report Daljeet’s abuse but she claims it’s pointless as the cops never do anything. Instead, he would be alerted of her snitching and take it out on her.
Is Jass able to get over the murder of her son?
Jass’ father and her therapist believe she has transferred to Buckinghamshire because she is running away from her problems. He tries to explain that she needs to face her sadness head-on or she will never be able to untie herself and live her life. Throughout the movie, we see Jass struggling to find closure as all she sees is her son’s murder when she closes her eyes. She still holds onto his things including the blood-stained shirt he was wearing when he died.
But as she solves Ishpreet’s murder, she starts coming to terms with her own son’s death. When she gets the life insurance policy payout she had made for her son, she throws it in the fire. She also burns his bloody shirt with the rest of his clothes. Her memories of the murder are replaced with the happy memories she has of him. However, she still cries while thinking of him at the end of the movie.