A Psychoanalytic Analysis of the Hindi Film Dhurandhar: Trauma, Moral Anxiety and Identity Fragmentation

Dhurandhar is a contemporary Hindi espionage thriller that, beyond its action-driven narrative, offers a psychologically rich portrayal of trauma, identity fragmentation and ethical conflict under conditions of extreme coercion. This psychoanalytic analysis approaches the film as a psychological text, examining how prolonged exposure to violence, sustained role performance and moral compromise shape the protagonist’s psychological functioning. Drawing on classical and contemporary psychoanalytic frameworks including, Freud’s structural model of the psyche, repetition compulsion, and group psychology; Lacan’s theory of imaginary identification; Winnicott’s concept of the false self; and Shay’s formulation of moral injury, the paper traces the progressive erosion of ego integration, moral coherence and subjective continuity in the central character. The analysis further explores how national belonging operates as a form of primary identification, drawing on Freud’s (1921) account of the ego ideal to illuminate the psychic costs of sacrificing personal identity in the service of collective allegiance. Particular attention is given to culturally shaped masculinity and emotional suppression, contextualised through Kakar’s psychoanalytic work on Indian male identity. The role of silence and non-symbolization is examined to show how the failure of language under trauma displaces reflection into repetitive action. The antagonist is analysed as a projected shadow figure through which disowned aggressive impulses are externalised rather than integrated. Overall, the paper argues that Dhurandhar portrays survival not as resolution but as an ongoing psychic condition marked by emotional constriction, ethical strain and fragmented subjectivity, underscoring the value of psychoanalytic perspectives in the study of contemporary Indian cinema.