The tenth episode of “Shantaram” begins with a flashback of Lin Ford, aka Dale Conti, as a prisoner at Pentridge. He felt relieved for the time being as he found himself surrounded by books inside his cell. Lin was not a criminal by heart but rather an aspiring philosophy student and a wannabe paramedic, but the world failed to see beyond his prisoner’s tag. The other prisoners kept calling him “dog,” as they suspected Lin was a snitch who had told everything to the authorities. One of Lin’s allies in prison gave him a toothbrush to use as a weapon in order to defend himself, but Lin stated that he had never actually stabbed anyone before. Nevertheless, he had to use his weapon, whether it was his brain or a sharp piece of metal, to defend himself when other inmates surrounded him and took him by surprise when he entered the laundry room. At that moment, Lin didn’t back down but responded in the most heroic way by knocking down the goons. Lin wasn’t a bad person no matter what he did or what his fate turned out to be, so being recognized as a “dog” was an insult to him, and he had to stand up for himself. The never-ending flashbacks Lin experiences are somehow related to his current circumstance, in which he is caught in a rattrap as his enemies surround him like a pack of hounds. Will Lin be able to defend himself this time as well? Or will any of his activities bring up severe issues in his life? Let’s look at that now.
Spoilers Ahead
Why Didn’t Karla Want Lin to Leave India?
Previously, in “Shantaram,” Episode 9, we saw how Maurizio lied to Raheem and framed Lin for stealing Raheem’s drug money, after which Raheem had been frantically looking for Lin. Prabhu came to Reynaldo after Didier delivered a message to the slum, but Lin was still puzzled as to why these Nigerian goons were chasing him. Lin went to Didier’s room to hide for the time being while his friends gathered information about his new enemy. Lin was tired of running away and surviving in such a dreadful situation, but he was helpless at the same time. Since he believed his fate was in the hands of others, everything around him turned out to be bitter. Lin’s mind was troubled by the uncertainty of his life, and he felt that no matter how far he ran, he had to stop once and for all.
Karla came back home from her dinner date with Lin, but she didn’t appear so happy. Karla told Lisa that she finally managed to stop Lin from leaving Bombay, albeit in a problematic way. She informed Lisa, revealing her deal with Kavitha, that if Kavitha dropped the article on Lin, Karla would inform her about the underworld’s dirty business with foreign prostitutes. Karla was up to something that would risk her life forever; therefore, in order to keep Lin in Bombay, she had to leave India. She may have intended to drag the entire underworld and expose their evil business in front of the media. She would therefore need to obtain her passport and leave India in order to save her own life. Lisa was aware that Karla had finally found someone to love, but she couldn’t spend her life with him. Karla, on the other hand, had no regrets because she had fallen in love with a man who was willing to help the residents of the slum to make a change. She, therefore, felt that Lin should remain in India rather than her because the slums of Sagar Wada needed him.
Did Lin Find Maurizio and Exact His Revenge?
As Lin was in great danger, Prabhu began tracking Raheem’s gangs and discovered that Raheem was staying at a hotel called Colaba. Meanwhile, Didier brought Abdullah and told Lin that Maurizio had lied to Raheem about Lin being his drug dealer and that he had swindled Raheem’s money. Lin was furious when he discovered that Maurizio had used his name when he had nothing to do with his business. Prabhu told them of Raheem’s whereabouts, and Lin was ready to catch them. Didier ordered him to stop and grab the pistol, exactly like at Pentridge, when a fellow convict handed Lin the pointy toothbrush, but Lin refused to take it up again. Lin and Abdullah, with the help of Prabhu, entered Raheem’s room and thrashed him and his guys. They informed Raheem that they had no knowledge of their money or drugs and that Lin was being set up by Maurizio. So, Raheem promised Lin not to follow him anymore, and his fear of being apprehended pushed him to declare that he would return to Nigeria and never come back to India. Lin urged Raheem to contact his partner, who had captured Maurizio. However, Maurizio had already cut the band tied to his wrists with a scissor. When the guy attacked him, Maurizio stabbed him with his scissors and escaped. Meanwhile, after learning of Maurizio’s whereabouts, Lin went wild and rushed out of the hotel in search of him. Prabhu tried to stop him and warned him that fighting with the thugs was not Lin’s thing and that he should just walk back home, which Lin couldn’t do since his anger had driven him insane for vengeance, putting himself in grave peril. In the flashbacks, we witness Lin come out of the laundry room after beating those fellow inmates, only to be attacked by other prisoners, after which he was admitted to the hospital. Therefore, Lin realized that his act of vengeance would only place him in greater danger, yet despite this, Lin couldn’t stop himself from seeking justice for himself and meeting Maurizio to make him feel what it felt like to be wrongfully accused.
Lin arrived at Maurizio’s but was unable to locate him. Instead, he discovered the body of Raheem’s man downstairs. Lin discovered Modena and Lisa’s passports and realized that Modena might be the one who stole money from Maurizio, and Lisa knew everything about their business. So, he dashed to Karla’s place, where he found Lisa. Lisa greeted him, but Lin was mad at her as he believed Lisa could be involved in this dirty business with Maurizio. He urged Lisa to contact Maurizio on his behalf, but Lisa declined. She constantly claimed that she had no idea about Maurizio’s plot to set him up with Raheem’s stolen money. She claimed to be innocent and that all she wanted to do now was leave India to live her life peacefully. However, Lin realized that only Lisa could provide him with Maurizio’s details, so he took her to Didier and requested he send a message to Maurizio. Maurizio got the message while he was in Zhou’s palace and called Lisa back. Lisa lied to him that she and Modena would meet him at night at Modena’s apartment. Lin asked Lisa to be around him because only that way could he persuade Maurizio to come inside the apartment. Lisa reluctantly accepted and was afraid, too, since she knew that if Maurizio found out that Lisa had accompanied Lin, she would have more risks on her way.
What Did Karla Promise to Kavitha?
Karla, on the other side, was giving Kavitha all the facts about Zhou’s palace and the business of foreign prostitutes so that Kavitha would abandon the article on Lin and focus on exposing the Bombay underworld. Karla brought Lisa with her, and Lisa told Kavitha how Walid Sah had delivered her to Ruzul as a bribe and how he had been killed after all that. She informed Kavitha that Ruzul did not agree with Walid’s proposition, despite having sexual pleasure with Lisa, and that this was the reason for Ruzul’s death. But Kavitha was curious about the current prostitute, Sunita, who was being used as a pawn in the game at Zhou’s palace. Karla told Kavitha that she would bring Sunita as well, who would testify on record and make a prime witness for her report. Kavitha’s promise to drop Lin’s story would have little impact on Lin’s safety in Bombay because Officer Nightingale had already arrived in India after receiving a fax from Nishant. He came to Bombay National to meet Nishant and Kavitha.
When Nightingale approached Kavitha and inquired about Lin, aka Dale Conti’s whereabouts, Kavitha lied, saying Lin had fled India and she had no idea where he was. Nightingale could see that Kavitha was lying to him, but she didn’t care what he thought. She was ecstatic about the new story she was going to publish, which would expose the mafia business and their overseas prostitute industry. She informed Nishant that she was going to work on the piece for which Lin’s story had to be dropped. However, Nishant agreed to do that, but Nightingale had already made up his mind to investigate Lin, and it appeared that he had no intention of giving up. So, he ordered the officer called Chavan to deliver to him all the hotel record files in Bombay so he could obtain Dale’s phony identity as Lin Ford and begin his inquiry to identify the most wanted fugitive in Australia.
‘Shantaram’ Episode 10: Ending Explained – What Did Maurizio Tell Lin? Why Did Lin Start Hating Karla?
Karla called Abdullah to bring her a bag full of cash so that she could give it to Sunita, with the help of which she would be able to live a decent life. Karla arrived at Zhou’s palace to speak with Sunita and advised her to value herself more than she valued her love for Pandey. She told Sunita that Pandey had never loved her and had simply used her as a toy to have fun with. Pandey would never consider her before saving his own back since he was an established official in a higher position and had a family to look after. Sunita seemed convinced and agreed to reveal everything about Walid Sah’s business with Pandey to the media because Karla had assured her that if she did, she would be freed and given a large sum of money to begin her new life. While Karla was leaving Zhou’s palace, Zhou pleaded for her word that she would not be harmed by Khader Khan if she let Sunita leave the palace, so Karla promised her that she could just handle her own business without interfering with anybody else’s, and she would be alright. So, Zhou reminded her that circumstances made individuals sensitive and weak and that one should never forget their vulnerable side, so she asked Karla not to reveal any of the secrets Zhou had told her, and she would do the same.
Karla arrived at Kavitha’s apartment with Sunita, but when she returned to her house after getting her job done, she couldn’t find Lisa. Meanwhile, Lisa and Lin were attempting to catch Maurizio at Modena’s apartment. Maurizio returned from Zhou’s palace, where he revealed to Zhou how Modena took his money, but one thing he discovered in return was that Karla worked for Khader Bhai, and he now understood how Abdullah learned about his secret drug deal. He came to Modena’s house with a gun, intending to threaten Modena and take back all the money, but he was grabbed by Lin. After a brief scuffle, when Lin pointed a gun at Maurizio and threatened to kill him, Maurizio spilled the truth and told Lin that he misunderstood Lin as Khader Bhai’s informant who told Abdullah about his drug business. Though he had finally found out the truth that it was Karla who had been working for Khader and had been sharing information with him,
Lin was in love with Karla and had put all his faith in her. But, once again, he was betrayed by his love, just as he had been by Gemma. He approached Karla and informed her that he had learned everything about her connection to Khader Bhai and that he never wanted to see her face again. Karla had never imagined that Lin would find her truth in this manner. She was devastated but couldn’t do anything to change things between her and Lin and thus had to bid farewell to Lin, who now just simply hated her. Karla, on the other hand, went the extra mile and risked her life to expose the mafias and protect Lin, but she never told him about it. She felt that if Lin’s hatred for her helped him stay away from the dark underworld of Bombay, then she would accept the way things were and keep her distance from him. “Shantaram” episode 10 ended with such suspenseful tension between Karla and Lin that it piqued our interest to explore whether things might repair between the two lovers and if they could ultimately be together despite their misunderstanding.
See More: ‘Shantaram’ Episode 11: Recap And Ending, Explained: Did Officer Nightingale Catch Lin Ford?
