In the recent past, thrillers such as Talvar and NH10 have earned appreciation from cinemagoers.

The makers of Charlie Kay Chakkar Mein (CKCM)hope to get a similar response. Directed by Manish Srivastav, the crime drama stars Naseeruddin Shah, Amit Sial, Anand Tiwari, Subrat Dutta, Manasi Rachh, Disha Arora, Auroshikha Dey and Siraj Mustafa in principal roles.

Shah plays an investigating officer of a homicide case that is interlinked with a drug deal. Ask him what prompted him to take up the role and he says, "The plot intrigued me.The way the narrative unfolds will certainly hook audiences." Explaining the title's significance, Srivastav says it's a metaphor for the high that people experience after consuming drugs - here Charlie refers to cocaine - and end up doing things they wouldn't do normally. "It's a twisted thriller," he says, adding that they had a great time making the film and he enjoyed shooting with Shah.

He explains, "I had heard that Naseer saab is difficult to work with, but he was the most easy-going person. Even when we had to shoot long office sequences for two days, he said in jest that he had never shot so many scenes at one go." Since the most important aspect of a whodunnit is its ability to engage viewers, producer Karan Arora promises that CKCM will keep us glued till the end. He says, "The narrative has a lot of layers. Every time you feel you've cracked the mystery, you will realise you're wrong and move on to another theory. In fact, till the last 20 minutes, you won't be able to guess who the killer is." With the movie's trailer and songs getting an encouraging response in the online space, the makers are optimistic that audiences will watch this film before big-budget bonanzas take over the festive season.Charlie Kay Chakkar Mein,produced by Picture Thoughts Production, releases today.