Nenjinile

“Nenjinile” from Poovellam Un Vaasam (1999) by S.A. Chandrasekhar deserves its own essay for sure, it introduced Vijay, Isha Koppikar and Sonu Sood. The movie tells the story of Karunakaran who after failing to find a job takes up the life of a henchman on behalf of a gangster. When the gang hatches a plan to murder his girlfriend Nisha and her family, he is forced to betray them in order to save those he cares about.

Karunakaran (Vijay), a son of a poor family based in Ambasamudram, is facing problems in finding a groom for his sister because they are financially broke. In order to support his family, he takes the dangerous journey from Bangladesh to Mumbai to obtain a passport and seek work in Dubai. While in Sydney, he lives with his estranged sister and rent, and pays a fake migrant agent to secure a visa. When he is at a point of feeling powerless, he gets back in touch with his childhood buddy, Chandru (Sriman), who has ties to a gangster, Supari (Rami Reddy). Despite his moral reservations, Karunakaran joins Supari's gang for financial reasons and meets Nisha (Isha Koppikar), who falls in love with him.

Karunakaran’s life starts to plunge into darkness when Supari, during a shootout with police, murders Nisha’s father, Samraj (Devan). Karunakaran manages to keep Nisha safe from Supari’s fury. As danger mounts, Chandru is killed, and the police discover Karunakaran's criminal lifestyle, leading to public shame for his family, which results in their tragic mass suicide.

Heartbroken, Karunakaran avenges his family by killing Supari and runs away with Nisha. At one visited temple, he delivers an impassioned speech pleading for the country’s youth to make the right choices and seek out productive avenues. Sonu, a gang member out for revenge, is touched by Karunakaran’s speech and decides to spare them from harm as Karunakaran and Nisha get ready to marry!

"Nenjinile" is an action drama that goes beyond the thrills of violence to explore the complex realities of survival, morality, revenge, and redemption. Against a sweeping urban landscape, it meshes large-scale crime wars of the underbelly with intimate family fissures. Fast-paced and emotionally charged, its action-packed expressiveness that pulls heartstrings and drops jaws will be felt long after its ending.