But Ghajini miscalculates. Sanjay, standing before a mirror, watches his own 15-minute timer run out. He looks at Ghajini, then at his tattoos, then at the mirror. He doesn't remember the last 14 minutes. But he does remember the first rule his past self tattooed on his left palm: "If he talks, he's lying. Kill him."
Sanjay Singhania (35) is a celebrated architect in Mumbai, known for his "memory palaces" — buildings that tell stories through spatial design. He's charming, obsessive, and deeply in love with a classical dancer named Kalpana.
A brilliant architect with no short-term memory uses a system of tattoos, polaroids, and recorded video diaries to hunt down the elusive kingpin who destroyed his life — unaware that his target is using his own condition as the perfect hunting ground. THE STORY ACT ONE: THE FRAGMENTED MAN
But Ghajini is no ordinary villain. He's a master of psychological warfare. When he discovers Sanjay’s condition, he begins a twisted game: leaving false clues, planting fake tattoos, even sending a lookalike to pose as Kalpana’s sister. Sanjay’s system — his only weapon — becomes unreliable.
One night, he witnesses a brutal crime: Ghajini Dharmatma, a charismatic but ruthless human trafficker disguised as a philanthropist, murders a witness who could expose him. Sanjay tries to intervene. Ghajini's men beat him with a iron rod, causing massive brain damage. The specific injury: . He can remember everything before the attack, but new memories vanish every 15 minutes.