Dharmathin Thalaivan

Dharmathin Thalaivan (1988) is a Tamil action film directed by S. P. Muthuraman. It stars Rajinikanth in a dual role, opposite Prabhu, Suhasini and Khushbu. The movie follows Raju, a man who joins a non-violent movement after his brother's murder. As he prepares to start his family, fate intervenes when he meets a man who resembles Balu but leads an underworld life. This encounter leads to a series of events that reveal Raju's past, question his principles, and transform his life for the second time.

Balu (Balasubramanian), a gentle and amiable university lecturer, lives with his younger brother Raju, his maternal uncle Rangarajan, and his cousin Sumathi. As Raju, short-tempered, land-shark, drunkard, immensely spoiled by the pampering of his educated brother Balu and the fresh, wild beauty Sumathi. Balu’s death causes Raju to die, and he promises never to become angry or drink alcohol again. Sumathi, crushed, sinks into deep depression and swears she will never marry. This dilemma is compounded when Raju and Sumathi relocate to Bangalore, where Raju finds work at a garage run by Devi.

It is during one of these visits that Raju meets his brother’s double, Shankar, who steals cars every day from the garage. Everything changes, Shankar has a change of heart and turns police informer. He indeed does fall in love with Sumathi, but she rejects him because she still cannot forget Balu. Sumathi is picked up by an irate smuggler, Bhaskar, to carry diamonds. Shankar is initially hesitant to give in to Bhaskar’s demands, but when Bhaskar doesn’t back down, a physical confrontation breaks out, and Bhaskar goes to jail. Sumathi discovers her true love in Shankar, and the film concludes with the weddings of Shankar and Sumathi, Raju and Devi, with Shankar appearing in the guise of the deceased Balu.

Dharmathin Thalaivan is an entertaining, action-filled family melodrama that mixes emotions, change of heart and redemption with good doses of humour and romance. What makes the film truly exceptional is this emotional core, terrific music, and the even-better-than-it-sounds dual-role performance. With high-octane action sequences paired with personal emotional beats, the show has managed to create a perfect tone that hooks you right in. A remake of the original 1978 Hindi film Kasme Vaade, it does so in a familiar with fun, nostalgic, and ultimately very moving cinematic way.