Logout
Introduction
In 2010, there was a lesser known thriller titled Knock Out (a remake of the 2002 English film Phone Booth), that saw the late Irrfan Khan playing the role of a businessman caught in the conundrum of a phone call that he receives at a phone booth. You can’t initially tell whether he remains a victim of his circumstances or the one at the receiving end of his past antics. In 2025, Irrfan’s son Babil delves into a similar space (and a similar character) with his Hindi film Logout. In many ways, Logout seems like an upgradation from Knock Out by incorporating the social media culture in a screen-life thriller. The zone remains similar to International screen-life thrillers like Searching (2018) or Missing (2023), or even products closer to home in the form of an AI-gone-rogue-kind-of-a-film CNTL (2024) or even a story of friendship in the digital work in the form of Kho Gaye Hum Kahan (2023). The common thread connecting the themes of these films is the focus on the virtual lives of their characters, either in the wake of a conflict that is essentially used as a content for consumption, or to the lines blurring and the characters themselves turning into a source of consumption. Logout tilts towards the latter wherein the protagonist Pradyush “Pratman” Dua (an incredible Babil Khan) shares similar sentiments.
Story & Screenplay
Written by Biswapati Sarkar, one of the interesting aspects of Logout remains the characterization of Pratman. As the drama unfolds, you are witness to the dual personality of Pratyush – one that is ‘Offline’, and the other that is ‘Online’. The latter often takes precedence even as you learn about his ‘Laila Majnu’ sketches gaining him popularity and a huge fan-following in the virtual world. In fact, you realise that Pratman is hungry for validation in his virtual avatar – you see him as a slave of the algorithm while constantly refreshing the page to keep a tab on the number of his followers, while secretly competing with a rival influencer in a race to 10M! You see him promoting a vegan brand, and often shutting up trolls online. The ‘real’ side of things though paint a different picture – he has had a breakup with his ex-girlfriend who in turn is about to marry another man, he indulges in a bucket of fried chicken (despite promoting a vegan-life brand online), while also doubling up as the same troll whom he silences online. The overlapping personalities of Pratyush aka Pradman is oddly that defines his character in a drama that chooses to exploit this very trait of his.
You can make out that Pratyush is socially awkward and not used to people around him. When he interacts with his manager JD (Gandharv Dewan), it is always either on chat or over the phone. There is not a single scene wherein you see the duo together. In fact, the early signs of Pratyush’s awkwardness is showcased in a scene with his sister (Rasika Dugal). You can see that the duo share a relatively cordial equation together with Pratyush playfully bullying his sister by referring to her as ‘fatty’. But at the same time, Pratyush is always distracted and into his phone, much to his sister’s annoyance. You can make out that Pratyush is not used to people around him while even distancing himself from his parents thereby making him socially awkward, almost a meta-take on Babil Khan himself who was trolled on social media for being ‘too much of a green-flag’.
In many ways, Logout can also be touted as a horror given the situations that follow. Being under digital arrest is probably the worst nightmare for an influencer, something that Pratyush discovers after his phone is stolen. His only source of communication initially is a computer app that houses the voice of a mysterious fan (Nimisha Nair). The interactions range from being panicky to calm and tense, even as you witness the protagonist literally being pulled to the ground. In fact, his state resembles that of a mouse in his kitchen that has been caught and filmed for an online vlog. The only difference is with respect to the stalker fan, who chooses to witness her reality in the virtual world with simple demands and dire consequences!
I liked how the writing showcased degrees of tension in a confined space featuring an invisible obstacle that creates havoc in the life of the protagonist. There are several sub-themes that contribute to the larger theme of a digital arrest. In a scene, you see Pratyush choosing to refrain from a potential FIR despite the perpetrator leaking a private photo of his on his social media page, just because he was inching towards the 10M mark. This was directly reflective of the greed to juice out a personal benefit despite being in a serious situation. In another scene, you see the protagonist ‘discovering’ an ancient relic, a landline telephone that he hacks in a way to use it for his benefit. The challenge – he doesn’t remember the numbers of his near and dear ones. This is reflective of his initial trait of being a slave of the algorithm and his phone, almost being in a ‘cell’ of sorts.
The commentary in the drama is directly reflective of the dichotomy that is showcased through the life of the protagonist. You realise that when Pratyush wasn’t under a digital arrest, he was still ‘prisoned’ in the virtual world. And so when the conflict does come in the form of a digital arrest, there is a chance to escape from the ‘cell’, only for the protagonist to not realise this fact, thus becoming a dichotomy. On the other hand, the mysterious girl (Nimisha Nair) almost resembles the SRK fan from his movie Fan (2015), who incidently is an alter ego of the star! Here the star remains Pratyush, and the girl is his fan with simple terms and conditions – a trait that soon turns toxic and dire. There is literally a digital cat and mouse chase that is on between the duo, something that is played out with a lot of tension and flair given the exchanges involved.
The part where the film stumbles is in the final act that incidently ties itself in the cold open of the opening act. The grammer slightly tilts and the staging suffers even as the writing treads into a moderately different territory. I did feel that the writer was probably trying to be a little more ambitious with the setting, as opposed to a more intimate setup that was already created during the course of the film. The sequence of events almost got too dramatic to a point that they felt a part of a different film with respect to the final face-off that reduced the impact of the drama. It was almost similar to the anti-climax of Crazxy (2025) that latched on to the tension for most parts of the runtime while opting to go in a completely different direction at the end. The ending suffers but luckily the messaging still holds on, thereby summing up a screenplay that was tense for most parts of the runtime but fell short of a ‘Knock Out’ at the end.
Dialogues, Music & Direction
The dialogues are excellent particularly with the social-media lingo that forms an integral part of the narrative. Even the smaller nuances of showcases typos during chats, or the representation of screen-life through the gaze of the protagonist, was indeed an effort worthy of being applauded! The music and BGM exploits the themes of the drama pretty well, while playing an integral part in elevating the degrees of tension that is prevalent in many scenes. The cinematography comprises of frames that work on the feature of claustrophobia effectively. The intimate setup of the frames allow you to be acquainted with the dual life of the protagonist while also maintaining a thread of curiosity and anxiety that play great supporting cameos in the film. I also liked how the lighting did give a neo-noir kind of a feel to the film, despite the proceedings falling short with its VFX. The editing is crisp and sharp for most parts of the runtime maintaining the urgency in the drama through some interesting match cuts and fast cuts to aide the narrative. The only issue was in the final act when the editing pattern felt choppy while unable to raise the tension owing to a tense meltdown.
Director Amit Golani does a pretty solid job here in creating an intriguing world that is marred by the presence of social media. This also includes the characterization of the protagonist which not only fits seamlessly into our world today, but also represents a character that is around us (or worse, you). There is a considerable grip on the drama given the levels of tension that flair at various points in the narrative. The falter is with respect to the staging in the final act that didn’t carry the same momentum which the drama had acquired over its duration. Nevertheless, the direction is pretty handy and commendable.
Performances
The performances are pretty good wherein all actors manage to shine. Tanvi Chandna has a good screen presence, and she manages to impress here with her performance. Rasika Dugal as Pratyush’s sister is sincere and earnest while holding her own despite a limited screentime. Gandharv Dewan as JD sets the tone well in the cold open sequence at the start of the film. This, while adding a lot of urgency through his voiceover. Nimisha Nair as the mysterious girl (deliberately concealing her name to avoid spoilers) is intimidating and playful both at the same time. Just like Pratyush, you cannot gauge the implications of her actions through her casual yet mildly creepy voiceover, and the unpredictability works in her character’s favour. She does well in the final act as well despite the writing being a little sketchy.
The soul of the drama has got to be Babil Khan who is absolutely brilliant as Pratyush. There are layers to Pratyush that are reflective of his dependency on his social life, while also doubling up as his vulnerabilities. And he exploits this character trait exceptionally well through the various shades of calm, investigation and urgency, all of which are synonymous to either his character or the situation that his character finds himself in. From creating content to being a content himself and the subsequent realisation that follows, this can also be regarded as a coming-of-age story for him in the digital world. And he brings such nuances with his performance that remains one to cherish and savour.
Conclusion
Despite a few flaws, Logout boasts of an in-form Babil Khan who neatly steers an engaging screen-life thriller thereby making it a solid watch. Available on Zee5 (streaming from Friday, 18th April ’25 onwards).
