Velu Naicker, who witnesses the brutal murder of his father, kills a corrupt policeman and escapes to Mumbai, only to become a gangster.
Acting
Kamal Haasan ages 40 years with zero prosthetics—just posture and eyes.
Direction
Mani Ratnam's first masterpiece; every frame borrows from Visconti and makes it sweat.
Score
Ilayaraja's 'Thenpandi Cheemayile' will live in your head rent-free forever.
Director
Mani Ratnam
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Loosely based on Bombay underworld don Varadarajan Mudaliar; the real don allegedly attended a screening and wept.
The 'Are you a good man or bad man?' question was improvised by child actor Narayanan after Ratnam kept rejecting scripted lines.
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