Bagheera

"Bagheera" (2023) is a Tamil-language psychological romantic thriller film directed and written by Adhik Ravichandran and produced by Bharathan Pictures. The film has Prabhu Deva, Srikanth, and Amyra Dastur in leading roles and explores the twisted mind of an individual driven by childhood trauma and betrayal.

In 2023, "Bagheera" (Prabhu Deva) is an insane man who kills women under different disguises. Police are led by Inspector Sai Kumar as he investigates the unusual killings, wherein the victims are transformed into statue-like bodies. Ramya, a psych student, initiates a case study on Bagheera. A mysterious app called "Bagheera" appears, which enables men to file a complaint against women who supposedly cheat on them. The killer subsequently attacks those women. Ranjith, a stalker, files one such complaint against Ramya. Bagheera manipulates Ramya into falling for him and takes her to a secluded house in Sri Lanka, where he previously murdered and preserved his victims.

As the narrative unfolds, a blind man stumbles upon Bagheera's diary in Braille and turns it over to the police, disclosing his dark history. Young Prabhu, in 1999, was adopted by the family of his friend Murali following his mother's death. The two were inseparable, sharing The Jungle Book, which Prabhu used to call himself Bagheera. Prabhu develops a crush on a girl whom he affectionately refers to as Rabbit but loses his eyesight and is separated from her after a traumatic experience. Murali kills himself years later after learning about his wife Reshma's infidelity. Prabhu regains his sight but loses his mind and starts attacking adulterous women, viewing each one of them as Reshma.

Today, Prabhu spares Ramya when he realizes she is Rabbit and was wrongly accused. He gets arrested and sent to treatment for his state of mind.

“Bagheera” is aurally and visually interesting but marred by too much melodrama and a confusing screenplay. While Prabhu Deva gives a one-of-a-kind performance, the movie has problems with tonal inconsistency, uneven plot, and flawed representation of mental illness and gender roles.
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