Sangathalaivan

"Sangathalaivan" (2021) is a script and direction by Manimaran based on the novel Thariyudan by Bharathinathan. The movie, produced by Uday Productions and Grass Root Film Company, features Samuthirakani, Karunas, and Ramya Subramanian in significant roles, working on the issues of worker's rights, labor union battles, and individual sacrifices.

The film deals with Ranganathan, or Rangan (Karunas), who is an industrious laborer in Govindarajan's power loom factory. Adversity notwithstanding, Rangan is insistent on getting his sister educated and is a stickler against exploitation by the boss. Shivalingam (Samuthirakani), who happens to be both a Communist as well as a trade unionist, encounters Rangan and seeks to instill Rangan with leftist leanings, though Rangan is a doubting Thomas in the first place.

Trouble breaks out when an accident in the mill leaves Divya, a worker and a friend of Kalyani, armless because of defective machinery. Rangan and Govindarajan take her from the place, but Govindarajan tells Rangan to cover up the accident so that the company's reputation will not be harmed. In spite of warning, Rangan tells Shivalingam, who steps in and gets Divya's family accommodated, revealing Govindarajan's fraud. In the meantime Kalyani, impressed by Rangan's integrity, declares her love for him.

Conflict intensifies as an enraged young worker burns down the factory, resulting in Rangan's arrest and sadistic questioning at the police station. Following a trial showdown, Govindarajan is revealed and jailed. Rangan abandons his other duties, like arranging his sister's wedding, to become a full-time union activist and continues to push the workers' movement forward. With union victories piling up, betrayal looms, and Rangan is finally killed, breaking the workers' movement to its core.

The climax vividly brings out Kalyani and Shivalingam's revenge on Govindarajan. The unapologetic representation of institutional exploitation and the personal sacrifices of activism in Sangathalaivan distinguishes it. In spite of its realistic tone, the film sometimes goes overboard with melodrama. Still, Samuthirakani's powerful performance and the emotional dividend ensure a lasting impact.