Is Sector 36 based on true story? Explained

A still from the film (Image via Netflix)

Sector 36, starring Vikrant Massey, Deepak Dobriyal and Akash Khurana.was released on Netflix on September 13, 2024. The Bollywood crime thriller probes into such themes as serial killing, cannibalism, and poverty. The official synopsis of the film reads:

“When several children disappear at the hands of a serial killer in Sector 36, a corrupt cop is forced to pursue the chilling case at all costs.”

The somber themes of Sector 36, and the realism with which they are depicted on screen, have led the viewers to wonder if the movie is based on a true story. As the trailer of the film itself clarifies, the film is inspired by “true” and “shocking” events. Aditya Nimbalkar's thriller is loosely based on the horrific 2006 Nithari serial murders.

Sector 36 is based on the infamous Nithari case

The film is a creative recreation of a case that sent shock waves throughout India in 2006. Nithari is a village in Noida that became a national topic when chilling details emerged from it in December 2006.

For some time before the breakthrough, young women, mostly minors, were going missing in Nithari. Despite repeated complaints, the local police were allegedly inactive. Eventually, the residents approached SC Mishra, a former president of the Resident Welfare Association (RWA).

With his help, several body parts, some already decomposed and others in the middle of the process were found in and around Nithari. As the Nithari case soon became a media sensation, Moninder Singh Pandher, a wealthy businessman, and his servant, Surinder Koli, were arrested.

Lifestyle Asia published a report on September 12, 2024, detailing the various stages of the investigation. Upon interrogation, Koli confessed to abducting, s*xually assaulting, murdering and then dismembering the victims, mostly children and young women. Koli also admitted that he would indulge in cannibalism.

This is the shocking case Sector 36 is based on. As legal proceedings went on, on February 13, 2009, both Pandher and Koli received the death sentence. However, the legal battle to bring the suspects to the book turned out to be a tedious affair, reportedly due to the lack of proper evidence apart from the confession of Koli.

On 16 October 2023, the Allahabad High Court acquitted both the accused of all charges related to the serial killings. The court observed that the prosecution failed to provide convincing evidence.

How does Sector 36 differ in the details?

While the details about the serial killing are depicted with realism in the film, it is loosely based on the Nithari case. The names of the accused, for instance, are changed in the film.

The film also brings in the perspective of a policeman to the affair, as Deepak Dobriyal plays Inspector Ram Charan Pandey, a mostly corrupt man who finally has to shrug off his indifference when things get too personal.

Though the film is not a non-fictional recreation of the real-life case, it captures the chilling essence of the true events it is based on.

Sector 36: Cast and crew

The film was directed by Aditya Nimbalkar, and the screenplay was penned by Bodhayan Roychaudhury. The film was edited by A. Sreekar Prasad, and Saurabh Goswami handled the cinematography.

The cast includes:

Vikrant Massey as Prem Singh
Deepak Dobriyal as Ram Charan Pandey
Darshan Jariwala as SP Rastogi
Mahadev Singh Lakhawat as Const. Bishnoi
Deepak Rai as Jail superintendent
Ajeet Singh as Pathak

Sector 36 is currently streaming on Netflix.

Edited by Bharath S