Kaatru Veliyidai (2017)

"Kaatru Veliyidai" (2017) is a Tamil romantic war drama by Mani Ratnam, who wrote, directed, and produced the film starring Karthi and Aditi Rao Hydari. During the 1999 Kargil War, the movie depicts an Indian Air Force pilot who, while held captive in Pakistan, reminisces about his complicated relationship with a doctor whom he loved. The fighter plane of Squadron Leader Varun Chakrapani (Karthi) is downed, and he is taken captive by the Pakistani Army. As a POW, Varun recalls his romance with Leela (Aditi Rao Hydari), a gentle and strong-natured doctor he encountered in Srinagar. Their romance starts after Leela nurses him after a crash. Despite being attracted to each other, Varun's rash behaviour and emotional fragility begin to surface. With their relationship growing stronger, Leela finds that Varun was previously linked to her deceased brother, Ravi, a fellow pilot. Even after a temporary separation, they get together once she meets him at his camp, but tension mounts once Varun shows a dominating and condescending attitude, particularly regarding gender roles and the meaning of life. Their relationship keeps deteriorating as Varun gives more importance to his army work and departs without keeping his words. When Leela gets pregnant, Varun does not commit, so she goes away and brings up the child on her own. In the current timeline, Varun and two other Indian soldiers escape their captivity in Rawalpindi and weather several perils until they're rescued and repatriated to India. Once back, Varun goes in search of Leela and, after three years, finds her. He finds out he has a daughter, Rohini. Afraid of rejection, Leela is amazed when Varun welcomes her back and takes charge of their child. "Kaatru Veliyidai" is a stunningly photographed and emotionally textured film. Mani Ratnam is in the middle of an imperfect romance in which love is engaged in a tug of war with ego and trauma. Karthi performs very well, and Aditi Rao Hydari is lovely with grace and strength. With stunning images, haunting scores by A. R. Rahman, and incinerating scenes of emotions, this film is a lyrical voyage of love, agony, and redemption.