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''Rudhra'' is a 1991 Indian
Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...
-language
action thriller film The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as D ...
directed by Sasi Mohan. It stars K. Bhagyaraj, Gautami,
Lakshmi Lakshmi (; , , sometimes spelled Laxmi, ), also known as Shri (, , ), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism, revered as the goddess of wealth, fortune, prosperity, beauty, fertility, sovereignty, and abundance. She along with Parvat ...
and Mansoor Ali Khan. The film was one among the
Diwali Diwali (), also called Deepavali (IAST: ''Dīpāvalī'') or Deepawali (IAST: ''Dīpāwalī''), is the Hindu festival of lights, with variations celebrated in other Indian religions such as Jainism and Sikhism. It symbolises the spiritual v ...
releases of 1991. The bank robbery scenes of the film were inspired by that of the American film ''
Quick Change ''Quick Change'' is a 1990 American crime comedy film directed by Howard Franklin and Bill Murray (in their directorial debuts) and written by Franklin. Based on the novel of the same name by Jay Cronley, the film stars Murray, Geena Davis ...
'' (1990). The core plot was inspired by the French film ''
Nikita Nikita may refer to: * Nikita (given name), people with the given name, including variants * Nikita, Crimea, a town in Ukraine * Nikita the Tanner, a character in East Slavic folklore Film and television *''Little Nikita'', a 1988 film * ''La Femm ...
''.


Plot

Mayaandi, a notorious convict, orchestrates a daring escape from prison with the aid of the prison staff to brutally murder Rudhra's entire family, leaving her orphaned. A neighbor informs Rudhra that she witnessed the perpetrators fleeing the scene and identifies one of them as Mayaandi. Rudhra soon realizes that her father, Gopal, a police officer, was instrumental in Mayaandi's current imprisonment. Rudhra reports the crime to the police, but they are unable to take action against Mayaandi, as he had returned to prison after the murder, thereby establishing an alibi. Rudhra receives a letter from her late father, in which he reveals his investigation into Mayaandi's connections with corrupt police officers and politicians. She discovers a video cassette containing incriminating evidence and hands it over to the DSP, only to discover that he is complicit in the conspiracy. The DSP attacks Rudhra, intending to molest her, but she kills him in self-defense. Although the court establishes her guilt, Rudhra refuses to divulge the reason behind her actions. Consequently, she is sent for inquiry under the supervision of DSP Lalitha, an honest and incorruptible officer. The conspirators, realizing that the video cassette they seized from Rudhra was not the incriminating one, continue to pursue her, but Lalitha rescues her after receiving an anonymous tip. Rudhra shares her story with Lalitha, who is unaware of the original cassette's location. The next day, while being transported to court, Rudhra escapes from the police. With no other option, DSP Lalitha is forced to encounter-kill Rudhra. It is then revealed that Lalitha had allied with Rudhra and had staged the fake encounter to protect Rudhra from the world. Since, the police department is unsafe, Lalitha disguises Rudhra as a boy and entrusts her to Madurai, a thief with a reputation for intelligence. Lalitha briefs Rudhra on Madurai's exceptional abilities, citing a daring bank robbery he committed in broad daylight, evading the police with ease. Interestingly, Madurai utilizes the stolen funds to support orphaned and disabled children, as well as underprivileged individuals in need of medical care. Rudhra develops strong feelings for Madurai. Although Madurai is initially hesitant, he eventually agrees to assist Lalitha in unraveling the conspiracy. Madurai soon discovers Rudhra's true identity. Meanwhile, the corrupt officials remain skeptical about Rudhra's death and dispatch their men to tail Lalitha and Madurai's timely intervention rescues them from harm. After hearing the full story, Madurai devises a plan to bring the conspirators to justice. So, he randomly contacts police officers, inquiring about Mayaandi. He shortlists DCP Sundararajan and ACP Mohan as the perpetrators involved in Rudhra's family's murder. Although unaware of the cassette's existence, Madurai lures Sundararajan and Mohan by claiming to possess the video cassette they were searching for, offering to exchange it for money. He skillfully manipulates Sundararajan and Mohan into confessing their crimes with Mayaandi, which he secretly video records as evidence. He uses this recording to threaten them. However, Mayaandi reveals that he possesses the video cassette, exposing Madurai's ruse. Mayaandi now captures Madurai, Lalitha, and Rudhra. To escape, Madurai creates a diversion, claiming that the video cassette has a duplicate copy stored in a bank locker belonging to a central minister. This clever ploy leads to the arrest of Sundararajan and Mohan. Madurai, Lalitha, and Rudhra engage in a fierce hand-to-hand combat with Maayandi and his henchmen. Ultimately, Madurai fatally shoots Maayandi, cleverly staging the scene to make it appear as though Lalitha had fired the shot in self-defense, retaliating against Maayandi's attempt to shoot her. Before the police arrive to intervene, Madurai and Rudhra make a swift escape.


Cast


Soundtrack

The music was composed by
Gangai Amaran Gangai Amaran (born Amar Singh) is an Indian composer, playback singer, lyricist, actor, film director and a screenwriter in Tamil films. Personal life Gangai Amaran was born in Pannaipuram in Theni district, Tamil Nadu in December 1947, as ...
. The lyrics were written by Vaali and Gangai Amaran.


Reception

''
The Indian Express ''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932 by P. Varadarajulu Naidu. It is headquartered in Noida, owned by the ''Indian Express Group''. It was later taken over by Ramnath Goenka. In 1999, eight y ...
'' wrote the film "beguiles you .with its quickpaced narration". Sundarji of ''
Kalki Kalki (), also called Kalkin, is the prophesied tenth and final incarnation of the Hinduism, Hindu god Vishnu. According to Vaishnavism, Vaishnava cosmology, Kalki is destined to appear at the end of the Kali Yuga, the last of the four ages i ...
'' wrote the film, despite having so many opportunities for providing thrills and twists, squandered them. The film ran for over 100 days in theatres, and Gautami won the Film Fans Association Award for Best Actress.


Legacy

Sasi Mohan later directed '' Sivantha Malar'', also inspired from ''Nikita'' and again starring Gautami.


References


External links

*{{IMDb title 1990s crime action films 1990s Indian films 1990s Tamil-language films 1991 action thriller films 1991 crime thriller films 1991 films Fictional portrayals of the Tamil Nadu Police Films about assassinations Films about contract killing in India Films about corruption in India Films about organised crime in India Films scored by Gangai Amaran Films set in prison Girls with guns films Indian action thriller films Indian crime action films Indian crime thriller films Indian films about revenge Indian remakes of French films Tamil-language Indian films Films based on works by Luc Besson