India, Dec. 13 -- Actor Tisca Chopra's directorial debut, Saali Mohabbat, evokes a feeling of deja vu, like the aftertaste of a certain dish whose name we can't recall. But it's a lingering memory of something strong and uncommon. The answer lies within the context itself, as Saali Mohabbat seems to have grown from the same seed that came in the form of a short film, Chutney, a few years ago. Tisca played the lead role of a woman who knows more than she shows in that sinister little film, a trait that is shared by the protagonist of her feature film here, Smita, played by Radhika Apte.

But what made the short film so memorable was the way the details were never spoon-fed to the viewer, and the intrigue unfolded along the way without requ...