''Kaappaan'' () is a 2019 Indian

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

-language

action thriller Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include lif ...

film directed by

K. V. Anand Karimanal Venkatesan Anand (30 October 1966 30 April 2021) was an Indian cinematographer, film director and photojournalist, worked mainly in the Tamil film industry. After a short period as a journalist, he became a cinematographer in the e ...

and written by

Pattukkottai Prabakar Pattukkottai Prabakar is an Indian Tamil writer. He is the ultimate King of Crime and Thriller novels, also a versatile writer. Apart from print media, He is also a screenwriter for movies as well as TV. Pattukkottai Prabakar was born to Shri. ...

. It was produced by

Lyca Productions Lyca Productions is an Indian entertainment company, which was established by Subaskaran Allirajah in 2014. A subgroup of Lycamobile, the production studio has been involved in the production and distribution of Tamil films made in India. It h ...

and stars

Suriya Saravanan Sivakumar (born 23 July 1975), known by his stage name Suriya, is an Indian actor, producer, television presenter and a philanthropist. He primarily works in Tamil cinema where he is one of the highest paid actors. He received numerou ...

Mohanlal Mohanlal Viswanathan (born 21 May 1960), known mononymously as Mohanlal, is an Indian actor, film producer, playback singer, film distributor, and director who predominantly works in Malayalam cinema besides also having sporadically appeare ...

and

Arya Aryan or Arya (, Indo-Iranian *''arya'') is a term originally used as an ethnocultural self-designation by Indo-Iranians in ancient times, in contrast to the nearby outsiders known as 'non-Aryan' (*''an-arya''). In Ancient India, the term ' ...

with

Sayyeshaa Sayyeshaa Saigal (born 12 August 1997), known mononymously as Sayyeshaa, is an Indian actress and dancer who primarily appears in Tamil-language films. After working in a Telugu film ''Akhil'' (2015), she made her Hindi debut in Ajay Devgn's '' ...

Samuthirakani Samuthirakani (born 26 April 1973) is an Indian actor and film director who predominantly works in Tamil films and Telugu films besides appearing in a number of Malayalam films. He worked as an assistant to director K Balachander. He won the N ...

, Poorna,

Boman Irani Boman Irani (born 2 December 1959) is an Indian actor, photographer and voice artist who works predominantly in Hindi cinema he has also worked in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam. He has acted in more than a 100 films in his career. Ear ...

and Chirag Jani in supporting roles. The narrative revolves around Kathiravan, a

Special Protection Group The Special Protection Group (SPG) is an agency of the Government of India whose sole responsibility is protecting the Prime Minister of India and in some cases, his or her family. It was formed in 1988 by an Act of the Parliament of India. The ...

(SPG) officer who struggles to protect the Prime Minister from a mysterious man who threatens to assassinate him. The film was released theatrically on 20 September 2019 and received mixed reviews from critics. Despite this, it was a commercial success, grossing 100 crore at the box office. It was the final directorial work of K. V. Anand, before his death on 30 April 2021.

Plot

The terrorists attempt to assassinate the PM, Chandrakanth Varma, in

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...

. The event security services learn about this, and the attack is started when the PM arrives. The PM is saved and sent to his office. The Government thwarts the attempt with NSG operations on Varma's direct orders. Unfortunately, the Union Minister for Communications, Vasudev is killed as

collateral damage Collateral damage is any death, injury, or other damage inflicted that is an incidental result of an activity. Originally coined by military operations, it is now also used in non-military contexts. Since the development of precision guided ...

, whose deceased's daughter is Anjali, the PM's junior

office secretary A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, Military assistant, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or persona ...

. In

Thanjavur Thanjavur (), also Tanjore, Pletcher 2010, p. 195 is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is the 11th biggest city in Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is an important center of South Indian religion, art, and architecture. Most of the Gr ...

, Kathiravan "Kathir", is an

organic farmer Organic farming, also known as ecological farming or biological farming,Labelling, article 30 o''Regulation (EU) 2018/848 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018 on organic production and labelling of organic products and re ...

who also moonlights as a special agent working for the country's

military intelligence Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist commanders in their decisions. This aim is achieved by providing an assessment of data from a ...

. The captured terrorist reveals another plot to assassinate the PM during his visit to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. The SPG seek Kathir's help to protect the PM in London, and Kathir is able to identify and shoot the suspect. Anjali mistakes Kathir for the assassin and tails him, but he tricks her into getting drunk and shakes her off. Varma then leaves for India, only to find that the Indian soldiers in

Kashmir Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompas ...

were killed by the Pakistani army. Rajan Mahadev is a

business tycoon A business magnate, also known as a tycoon, is a person who has achieved immense wealth through the ownership of multiple lines of enterprise. The term characteristically refers to a powerful entrepreneur or investor who controls, through perso ...

and public figure, who meets with Varma and secretly discusses about methods of retaliation. While celebrating Kathir's coworker and friend, Joseph and his wife Priya's wedding anniversary, Joseph gets a murder threat, and his pet cat is fatally shot. Kathir and Joseph track the mysterious caller, but he diverts them with a mini

bomb blast An explosion is a rapid expansion in volume associated with an extreme outward release of energy, usually with the generation of high temperatures and release of high-pressure gases. Supersonic explosions created by high explosives are known ...

and escapes. Meanwhile, Varma leaves for Kashmir to address the public. A mysterious caller tampers with the SPG's communication system and points to a bomb on the stage where Varma is present. Kathir locates the explosive and throws it away without any casualties. Varma is moved to his convoy, but the caller uses this scuffle to detonate yet another bomb planted in Varma's car, killing him instantly. Aftermath of Varma's untimely demise, there is a power struggle for the successor to the PM's position. Varma's advisor chooses Varma's son, Abhishek "Abhi" Chandrakanth Varma, to be the next PM to avoid a political split. Now suspended for being unable to protect the PM, Kathir returns to the crime scene and finds an abandoned house in the vicinity, which is revealed to be the place where the killer had been. Joseph and the forensic team find evidence and match it to their friend Ranjith, a disgraced double agent in the SPG. Ranjith is now out for vengeance on Varma and the SPG because of his prior arrest resulting in his family's suicide. Meanwhile, the farmers are rioting against the construction of mines in Thanjavur, since it is destroying their agriculture. Abhishek plans to shut down the mines but is resisted by Mahadev, who owns them, and the two get into a political

cold war The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

. Abhishek takes Anjali out on her birthday, despite security warnings and a murder attempt is made on him, where Anjali injures her arm. Kathir and Joseph save Abhishek, but while escaping, Joseph is mortally wounded and dies. During the

post-mortem An autopsy (post-mortem examination, obduction, necropsy, or autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse by dissection to determine the cause, mode, and manner of death or to evaluate any dis ...

, Kathir finds that one of his officers, Prem, has tried to tamper with the evidence. Prem reveals himself as a double agent, who is in cahoots with Ranjith, and was the one who killed Joseph while he was rescuing Abhishek. Meanwhile, the fields in Thanjavur have suddenly infested with male

caelifera The Caelifera are a suborder of orthopteran insects. They include the grasshoppers and grasshopper-like insects, as well as other superfamilies classified with them: the ground-hoppers (Tetrigoidea) and pygmy mole crickets (Tridactyloidea). ...

locusts. It was orchestrated by Mahadev, since the farmers didn't give up their land for his mining company. Mahadev also happens to be the brain behind Varma's assassination, and Ranjith and Prem are merely his puppets. Abhishek and Mahadev discuss about this ongoing feud and make a deal that in the immediate

press conference A press conference or news conference is a media event in which notable individuals or organizations invite journalists to hear them speak and ask questions. Press conferences are often held by politicians, corporations, non-governmental organ ...

, Mahadev will agree to shutting down his mines in Thanjavur. Mahadev seemingly agrees, but secretly plans to release both male and female caelifera, which will ensure the destruction of the crops without any chances of revival, and his mining company can be established without further problems. Kathir figures this out and destroys the train in which the locusts are being transported. At the press conference, Ranjith gains entry to the

control room A control room or operations room is a central space where a large physical facility or physically dispersed service can be monitored and controlled. It is often part of a larger command center. Overview A control room's purpose is produc ...

and plans to kill Abhishek on Mahadev's orders. Kathir beats up Ranjith, who reveals that the bomb is with Anjali. She is called to the control room, and they find that the cast on her broken arm contains the bomb. Anjali's cast is removed, and the bomb is disposed. Furthermore, Ranjith also says that Kathir's jacket has a bomb and removing it will cause it to detonate. With Kathir frozen on the spot, Ranjith and Mahadev escape and enter the latter's car and detonates the bomb, but the bomb explodes in the car, thus killing Mahadev and Ranjith on the spot, where it is revealed that Kathir had found the bomb in the jacket earlier and had disposed the jacket in Mahadev's car.

Cast

as Kathiravan (Kathir), an Organic Farmer, SPG Commando, later PM's Principal Security Advisor & Anjali's love interest *

as Chandrakanth Varma, Prime Minister of India *

as Abhishek (Abhi) Varma, Son of Chandrakanth, later Prime Minister of India *

as Anjali Vasudev, PM's Press Secretary (Kathir's love interest) *

as Joseph Selvaraj, SPG Director * Poorna as Priya Joseph Selvaraj, Joseph's wife *

as Rajan Mahadev, industrialist. * Chirag Jani as Ranjith Kumar, former intelligence agent. * Prem as Prem, SPG Commando * Kiran as Vivek, SPG Commando *

Uma Parvati ( sa, पार्वती, ), Uma ( sa, उमा, ) or Gauri ( sa, गौरी, ) is the Hindu goddess of power, energy, nourishment, harmony, love, beauty, devotion, and motherhood. She is a physical representation of Mahadevi in ...

as Mrs. Varma, Chandrakanth's wife *

Thalaivasal Vijay Thalaivasal Vijay is an Indian actor and dubbing artist. He was born on 4 August 1962 in Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu, India. He has acted predominantly in numerous Tamil and Malayalam films. Career Vijay's debut film was '' Thalaivaasal'' (1992), ...

as Santhosh, Cabinet Secretary * Paruthiveeran Sujatha as Kathiravan's mother * Shankar Krishnamurthy as Sundhar * Nagineedu as Sikander, Defense Minister * Swaminathan as Ramanujam *

Mayilswamy Mayilsamy (born October 2, 1965) is an Indian actor and comedian who prominently plays supporting roles. Appearing in many Tamil films, he is also a regular guest judge on '' Asathapovathu Yaaru'' on Sun TV in Chennai. Career He is a popular ...

as Delhi police inspector Abhishek Nagar * Ravi Prakash as Shiva, Mahadev's assistant *Manoj Lulla as Manoj *

R. N. R. Manohar R. N. R. Manohar (died 17 November 2021) was an Indian actor and director. He directed films like ''Maasilamani'' (2009) and ''Vellore Maavattam'' (2011). Career RNR Manohar started his career as a child artist, having played roles in films suc ...

as Member of Parliament * Anitha Sampath as Newsreader Kavitha *

in a special appearance as a journalist * M. S. Prabhu in a special appearance as Kashmir collector *

Anthony Anthony or Antony is a masculine given name, derived from the '' Antonii'', a ''gens'' ( Roman family name) to which Mark Antony (''Marcus Antonius'') belonged. According to Plutarch, the Antonii gens were Heracleidae, being descendants of Anton, ...

in a special appearance as Irfan, interrogation officer * Nikitha Harris Jayaraj in a special appearance in the song "Vinnil Vinmeen" *Danielle Haden as an item number in the song "Machan Inga Vandhira"

Production

Principal photography of the film commenced on 25 June 2018,in

replaced

Allu Sirish Allu Sirish (born 30 May 1987) is an Indian actor who works predominantly in Telugu films. He debuted as a lead actor with '' Gouravam'' (2013) and later went on to appear in films such as ''Kotha Janta'' (2014), ''Srirastu Subhamastu'' (2016), ...

who opted out of the film due to scheduling conflicts, making his first collaboration with Suriya. The film was shot on multiple locations at various places across the world including

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, Brazil,

and

Hyderabad Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...

. It was referred to, colloquially, by the media as ''Suriya 37'' as it is the thirty-seventh film to star Suriya. The film also marks Boman Irani's Tamil debut.

Amitabh Bachchan Amitabh Bachchan (; born as Amitabh Shrivastav; 11 October 1942) is an Indian actor, film producer, television host, occasional playback singer and former politician known for his work in Hindi cinema. He is regarded as one of the most succe ...

was approached for a role as the Prime Minister of India, but later

was roped in. Initially, Gavemic U. Ary of '' Jigarthanda'' fame was announced as the cinematographer of the film, but in a turn of events

Abhinandan Ramanujam ''Abinandhan Ramanujam'' is an Indian cinematographer who hails from Chennai, Tamil Nadu. He is working in Malayalam, Tamil and Hindi films. Early life Abinandhan Ramanujam was born in Chennai. He was graduated from L.V. Prasad Film and TV ...

replaces him. Later, cinematographer Ramanujam left the project after the first schedule, apparently due to scheduling conflicts with cinematography commitments for Malayalam film '' 9''. Subsequently, M. S. Prabhu who previously collaborate with Suriya and director Anand for the film Ayan was assigned as cinematographer. Also, it was revealed that

Harris Jayaraj Harris Jayaraj (born 8 January 1975) is an Indian composer from Chennai, Tamil Nadu. He composes soundtracks predominantly for Tamil films, while also having composed for a few films in Telugu and two films in Hindi. He has been honoured with K ...

and D. R. K. Kiran was assigned as music director, film editor and art director, respectively, continuing their association with the director from his previous films. The makers had registered three titles: ''Kaappaan'', ''Meetpaan'' and ''Uyirkaa'', and asked fans to choose what title to name the film through a poll. Although the majority of fans voted for ''Uyirkaa'', on 31 December 2018, Lyca Productions announced the film's title as ''Kaappaan''. The movie shot a song sequence on Indonesia's

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...

island. Director K.V Anand shared the news via Twitter. It was also reported that Mohanlal would play the Indian Prime Minister, and Suriya is said to play a high-ranking security officer.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack album is scored by

in his fifth collaboration with director K. V. Anand. On July 21, the audio launch event of Kaappaan was held in Chennai in a grand manner. It was a star-studded affair that saw the likes of

Rajinikanth Shivaji Rao Gaikwad (born 12 December 1950), known professionally as Rajinikanth, is an Indian actor, producer and screenwriter. In a career spanning over five decades, he has done 160 films that includes films in Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Kannad ...

, director

Shankar Shankar may refer to: People * Shankar (name), including a list of people with the name * Sankar (writer) (Mani Shankar Mukherjee), Bengali writer * L. Shankar, Indian violinist *S. Shankar, Indian film director commonly credited as Shankar * San ...

, and lyricist

Vairamuthu Vairamuthu Ramasamy (born 13 July 1953) is an Indian lyricist, poet, and novelist working in the Tamil film industry. He is a prominent figure in the Tamil literary world. A master's graduate from the Pachaiyappa's College in Chennai, he first ...

attend the event. Harris' daughter Karen Nikita Harris has made her debut as a singer with this film, lending her voice to the song 'Vinnil Vinmeen'. Upon release, the album received a positive review from Firstpost, commenting that "Harris Jayraj composes yet another album loaded with chartbusters for Suriya's film. Dipped in quintessential Harris signature, the album offers different styles of music, ending up with different results." Suriya and Harris Jayaraj have collaborated for the 9th time through this film.

Release

On 31 December 2018,

announced the film's title as ''Kaappaan'', following by two first look posters released on the

New Year's Day New Year's Day is a festival observed in most of the world on 1 January, the first day of the year in the modern Gregorian calendar. 1 January is also New Year's Day on the Julian calendar, but this is not the same day as the Gregorian one. Wh ...

, 1 January 2019. The teaser for the film was released, coinciding with the

Tamil New Year Puthandu (), also known as Puthuvarudam, and the Tamil New Year, is the first day of year on the Tamil calendar, traditionally celebrated as a festival by Tamil Hindus. The festival date is set with the solar cycle of the lunisolar Hindu cal ...

on 14 April 2019. Initially, the makers announced that the film is scheduled to release on 30 August 2019, but considering the release of ''

Saaho ''Saaho'' () is a 2019 Indian action thriller film written and directed by Sujeeth and produced by UV Creations. It stars Prabhas in the title role with an ensemble cast including Shraddha Kapoor, Chunky Pandey, Jackie Shroff, Arun Vijay, Nei ...

'', which is scheduled on the same date, the release was pushed to 20 September 2019. The first trailer of the film was released on the

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

channel of the production company on 4 September 2019, followed by the second trailer, which was released on 14 September 2019. A Telugu dubbed version titled ''Bandobast'' was released simultaneously with the Tamil version. ''Kaappaan'' earned 88.75 crore as pre-release business.

Reception

Critical reception

The film received positive reviews from audience, and mixed reviews from critics. ''Behindwoods'' rated 2.5 out of 5 stars and stated, "Kaappaan is a watchable commercial drama and action treat to Suriya fans, that has some good engaging moments". ''

The Times of India ''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the third-largest newspaper in India by circulation and largest ...

'' rated 2 out of 5 stars stating "KV Anand's Kaappaan feels like one of those patriotic films that Vijayakanth and Arjun frequently made in the 90s, but is not as entertaining as those". ''

Sify Sify Technologies Limited (formerly Satyam Infoway) is an Indian information and communications technology company providing end-to-end ICT solutions including telecom services, data center services, cloud & managed services, transformation in ...

'' rated 2 out of 5 stars stating "Ambitious but exhausting!". ''

News18 Network18 Media & Investments Limited, (formerly SGA Finance and Management Service and Network18 Fincap Limited) commonly referred to as the Network18 Group and sometimes as the Network18–Eenadu Group, is an Indian media conglomerate owned b ...

'' rated 1 out of 5 stars and stated "Despite Stellar Star Cast, Suriya-Mohanlal Starrer Loses Focus". ''

Firstpost ''Firstpost'' is an Indian online news and media website. The site is a part of the Network 18 media conglomerate owned by Reliance Industries, which also runs CNN-News18 and CNBC-TV18. The ''Network 18'' group was originally owned by Raghav ...

'' rated 2.25 out of 5 stars stating "Suriya, Mohanlal are charismatic in this formulaic action drama". ''

The Hindu ''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It began as a weekly in 1878 and became a daily in 1889. It is one of the Indian newspapers of record and the secon ...

'' stated, "KV Anand's latest collaboration with his favourite leading man is a painstakingly long thriller, that neither has soul nor brain". ''IndiaGlitz'' rated 2.5 out of 5 stars stating "Interesting premise, let down by a predictable, dull screenplay." ''

The New Indian Express ''The New Indian Express'' is an Indian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper published by the Chennai-based Express Publications. It was founded in 1932 as ''The Indian Express'', under the ownership of Chennai-based P. Varadarajulu Naid ...

'' rated 1.5 out of 5 stars stating "Never do you truly believe that this film has a real understanding of the world and its politics." ''

The Indian Express ''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932. It is published in Mumbai by the Indian Express Group. In 1999, eight years after the group's founder Ramnath Goenka's death in 1991, the group was split betw ...

'' rated 1 out of 5 stars stating "KV Anand fills Kaappaaan with props, in his never-ending endeavour to create that elusive surreal ambience. But the film has artificiality written all over." ''

Deccan Chronicle ''Deccan Chronicle'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper founded by Rajagopal Mudaliar in the 1930s & currently owned by Samagrah Commercial Pvt Limited. It is published in Hyderabad, Telangana, by Deccan Chronicle Holdings Limited ( ...

'' rated 2.5 out of 5 stars stating "Kaappaan plays a big game and is very commercial in nature." ''Nettv4u'' rated 3 out of 5 stars stating "The racy thriller with power-packed performances and the high-octane action sequences is sure to win the hearts. Suriya is definitely back on his track, after a few average films. Kaappaan... is really a Kaappaan for LYCA, Suriya and KV Anand." ''

The News Minute ''The News Minute'' is an Indian digital news platform based in Bangalore, Karnataka. It was founded by Dhanya Rajendran, Chitra Subramaniam and Vignesh Vellore in 2014. Apart from Karnataka, it also has bureaus in the states of Telangana, And ...

'' rated 2 out of 5 stars stating "Other than Suriya, nobody in the SPG looks like they've even slow jogged on the treadmill, let alone performed miraculous high security ops." ''The Week'' rated 2 out of 5 stars stating "The predictable screenplay, which reminds you of some old Vijayakanth or Arjun films, is disappointing as it comes from Anand who has had some decent outings with Suriya earlier, like Maattraan and Ayan." ''MovieCrow'' rated 3.25 stars out of 5 stating "Suriya delivers his charismatic Best as SPG agent."

Box office

In its opening weekend, the film collected in Tamil Nadu, which at the time made it one of the highest-grossing opening weekends in Tamil film history. The film collected approximately worldwide in its first weekend. According to the film's producers, ''Kaappaan'' earned around worldwide. The film was a commercial success and emerged profitable for its makers.

Legacy

An internet meme began trending on social media platforms in late May 2020, in which Suriya's films were coincided with real life incidents, that happened around the world. Here, locust attack, was predicted in the film.

References

External links

* {{K. V. Anand 2019 films 2010s Tamil-language films 2019 action thriller films Indian action thriller films Films scored by Harris Jayaraj Cultural depictions of prime ministers of India Films shot in Indonesia Films shot in New York (state) Films shot in Delhi Films shot in Hyderabad, India Films directed by K. V. Anand