Detective Ujjwalan
| Detective Ujjwalan | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical Release Poster | |
| Directed by | Indraneel Gopalakrishnan Rahul G |
| Written by | Indraneel Gopalakrishnan Rahul G |
| Produced by | Sophia Paul |
| Starring | Dhyan Sreenivasan Siju Wilson Rony David Raj |
| Cinematography | Premkrishna Akkattu Sraiyanti Harichandran |
| Edited by | Chaman Chakko |
| Music by | Songs: Rzee Sibi Mathew Alex Score: Sibi Mathew Alex |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Phars Film AP International |
Release date |
|
Running time | 124 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Malayalam |
| Box office | ₹5.56 crore[2] |
Detective Ujjwalan is a 2025 Indian Malayalam-language mystery comedy film written and directed by Indraneel Gopeekrishnan and Rahul G. The film stars Dhyan Sreenivasan, Siju Wilson and Rony David Raj in lead roles. It is produced by Sophia Paul under the Weekend Blockbusters banner and it is the second installment of the Weekend Cinematic Universe[3] after Minnal Murali.
The film was officially announced on 3 September 2024 with its title teaser.[4] Principal photography commenced on 17 November 2024 and was shot across various locations in Palakkad district, including Kollengode, Nenmara, Shoranur and Pattambi, and wrapped in December 2024. The film's songs and original score were composed by Rzee. Detective Ujjwalan was released in theatres on 23 May 2025.
Plot
[edit] | This article's plot summary may be too long or excessively detailed. (July 2025) |
Ujjwalan, a young librarian lives with his father Narayanankutty and mother Leela in Plachikkavu. The village is very peaceful and nearly crime-free rather than few thefts and object-missing cases. Ujjwalan assists the local police led by SI Sachin on such issues. Despite being a crime fiction fan and a local sleuth himself, Ujjwalan suffers from nyctophobia, the fear of darkness. Meanwhile, a documentary is shot throughout the village to portray its peacefulness by the local TV channel.
Ashokan, the local school principal, encounters a masked man at night who kills him with a hammer. At the scene Ujjwalan obtains his lost slipper and a beedi and deduces Anthikkurudan, a local thief as the suspect. The thief accepts that he stole the slipper and the beedi was his, but claims innocence. However, he is arrested for further questioning as prime suspect since he had a history of grudge with the victim. A few days later, Anthikkurudan escapes jail.
At night, a local man named Divakaran is murdered by the masked man during a festival. Ujjwalan investigates the scene but fails to link the murders with Anthikkurudan. People are displeased by Ujjwalan and contact local Panchayat member Varkey about their concerns. Under Varkey’s influence, a Special Investigation Team led by CI Shambhu Mahadev arrives in Plachikkavu to investigate the murders. Upon arrival, Shambhu communicates with the villagers and earns their trust. He also names the suspect as Kokkachi or Boogeyman, a nod to an American serial killer popular by the name. As Shambhu’s popularity grows in the village, Ujjwalan starts being jealous.
Another local man named Aravindan is killed by the Boogeyman and hanged. Ujjwalan, blinded by his spite on Shambhu, attempts to openly accuse him for the crimes trying to connect the evidence. However, Shambhu effortlessly tears those apart and shifts the situational evidence to accuse Naryanankutty as a suspect. This humiliates Ujjwalan, and he declares he will solve the case himself. However, his father is concerned about people being afraid of his presence. He visits Ujjwalan to seek some help and finds Anthikkurudan with him. He confesses witnessing Aravindan’s murder and explains in detail which matches the forensic report confirming the testimony.
Ujjwalan makes a small team involving him, Anthikkurdan, Sachin, Narayanankutty, and his friend Kurian to investigate the crimes with Shambhu as prime suspect. During an investigation at night, Ujjwalan gets stranded from Kurian and encounters Boogeyman. However, Kurian came back before he could kill Ujjwalan so the killer fled the scene. At the exact same time, Shambhu is confirmed by Anthikkurudan to be inside his residing home which removes him as suspect. After a few days, constable Ajayan is killed by Boogeyman during the night patrol. Both Shambhu and Ujjwalan regret their biased and misdirected investigations and start working together. Ujjwalan makes a plan to fake a murder to lure the hiding Boogeyman. It works, and the Boogeyman is trapped and revealed to be Jomon, the local TV news reporter who made the documentary on the village’s history of peacefulness.
Jomon shares his past life as an only son to an abusive father. However, his depressed life was over when a mysterious teacher (home tutor) educated him. At some point, the teacher started to give him books on serial killers and their psychology. He gave Jomon a book on the American boogeyman case. After reading it, he started idolizing the killer. Upon the teacher’s return after a journey, he proudly showed him the corpse of a pig he killed exactly like Boogeyman. However, Jomon’s father beat him mercilessly and locked him in his room with no food. At night, a tired Jomon found his room open and his father severely injured by a masked man. The man approached with sympathy, and encouraged him to kill his father. A few years later, adult Jomon found his career failing as a news reporter in Plachikkavu. One night, he met Ashokan, and while they talked Ashokan kept slapping his son’s head for interrupting their conversation. This forced Jomon to embrace the identity of the man whom he met at his father’s death and killed Ashokan, starting the murder spree.
Someone writes a threat message to release Jomon before more murders. Ujjwalan finds it to be written by a right handed individual with very similar physical attributes to Jomon. Meanwhile, the person they arrested is left-handed. They conclude that they arrested his twin brother who shared the same life with the abusive father and was mentored by the mysterious teacher. They lure the real Jomon to an isolated house with elderly and children. Shambu arrests him after a fight and the reign of the Boogeyman is over. The village once again returns to peace and harmony but the people are suspicious of everything and more careful. Shambhu is credited in the news as an efficient police officer. Meanwhile, Ujjwalan finds himself cured of his nyctophobia.
The mid credit scene shows the mysterious teacher reading the news of twin brothers arrested for Plachikkavu serial murders and smiles. Also, a local kid rushes to Ujjwalan, who makes his library into a new detective consultancy.
Cast
[edit]- Dhyan Sreenivasan as Ujjwalan
- Siddhanshu as young Ujjwalan
- Siju Wilson as CI Shambhu Mahadev
- Rony David Raj as SI Sachin
- Kottayam Nazeer as Narayanankutty
- Seema G. Nair as Leela
- Claire C. John as Snehalatha
- Ameen as Korea Kurian
- Nihal Nizam as Anthikkurudan
- Nibraz Noushad as Kunchacko
- Shahubas as Boban
- Mathew Puthukadan in a dual role as:
- Jomon
- Jacob Jomon’s twin brother
- Ashwath and Adhav as young Jomon
- Jagadish as Teacher
- Kalabhavan Navas as Ashokan
- Nirmal Palazhi as Chandy
Production
[edit]Casting
[edit]Dhyan Sreenivasan was cast in the lead role. The film also stars Siju Wilson, Kottayam Nazeer, Seema G. Nair, Rony David Raj in the supporting roles.
Filming
[edit]Principal photography for Detective Ujjwalan commenced on 17 November 2024, in Kerala.[5] The production began with a traditional pooja ceremony, marking the official start of filming.[6]
The shooting took place across various locations in Palakkad district, including Kollengode, Nenmara, Shoranur, and Pattambi . These settings provided the backdrop for the film's fictional village of Plaachikkaavu, where the story unfolds.[citation needed] Filming concluded in December 2024.[7]
Soundtrack
[edit]| Detective Ujjwalan | |
|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by Rzee and Sibi Mathew Alex | |
| Released | 2025 |
| Genre | Filmi |
| Length | 13m 44s |
| Label | Saregama |
The original background score and songs were composed by Rzee. The team announced that the music rights were bagged by Saregama. The song "Batman Avatharam" is composed by Sibi Mathew Alex.
| No. | Title | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Neptune" | Fejo | 2:47 |
| 2. | "Skilladi" | Anthony Daasan, Rzee | 3:07 |
| 3. | "Aaravano" | Anand Sreeraj, Manu Manjit | 3:04 |
| 4. | "Thoppi Vecha Vallabha" | Vinayak Sasikumar | 2:52 |
| 5. | "Batman Avatharam" | Ann Lilly Jose | 1:54 |
| Total length: | 13:44 | ||
Controversy
[edit]In September 2024, the Ernakulam District Court addressed a case that Detective Ujjwalan is citing copyrights. This action was based on a complaint filed by Arun Anirudhan and Justin Mathew, writers of Minnal Murali. Although the film is based on Minnal Murali Universe (Weekend Cinematic Universe - WCU), the complaint was based on the teaser, which was released on 3 September 2024 which had references to characters and places from Minnal Murali.[8] The film was later cleared.[citation needed]
Release
[edit]Detective Ujjwalan was released theatrically on 23 May 2025. Earlier it was scheduled to release on 16 May 2025 but was postponed by a week.
The home media streaming rights were acquired by Netflix with streaming beginning from 11 July 2025.[9]
Reception
[edit]Critical response
[edit]Detective Ujjwalan received mixed reviews from critics.
Anna Mathews of The Times of India rated the film 2.5 out of 5, noting that while Dhyan Sreenivasan's comic charm was evident, the thriller elements were insufficient to sustain the narrative.[10] Anandu Suresh of The Indian Express criticized the film for its lack of originality and predictability, stating that the writing faltered despite some effective atmospheric elements.[11] Conversely, Gayathri Krishna of OTTplay offered a more positive perspective, awarding the film 4 out of 5 stars and describing it as an entertaining investigative thriller with a humorous spin.[12]
Box office
[edit]On its first day, Detective Ujjwalan earned approximately ₹69 lakhs net in India.[13] On the third day, early estimates indicated earnings of ₹1 crore, bringing the opening weekend total to approximately ₹2.47 crore.[14]
Footnotes
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Dhyan Sreenivasan Starrer Detective Ujjwalan Release Date Pushed". Filmfare. 6 May 2025.
- ^ "'Detective Ujjwalan' box office collections day 10: Dhyan Sreenivasan's murder mystery crosses Rs 5.56cr worldwide". The Times of India. 2 June 2025. Retrieved 2 June 2025.
- ^ "After Minnal Murali and Detective Ujjwalan, zombie movie Jambi joins the Weekend Cinematic Universe". Mathrubhumi. 26 December 2024. Retrieved 21 May 2025.
- ^ Detective Ujjwalan - Title Teaser. Weekend Blockbusters. 3 September 2024. Retrieved 21 May 2025 – via YouTube.
- ^ "Dhyan Sreenivasan's Detective Ujjwalan begins filming in Kerala". News Minimalist.
- ^ "Dhyan Sreenivasan's 'Detective Ujjwalan' goes on floors". The New Indian Express. 19 November 2024. Retrieved 21 May 2025.
- ^ Santhosh, Vivek (23 December 2024). "It's a wrap for Dhyan Sreenivasan's Detective Ujjwalan". Cinema Express. Retrieved 21 May 2025.
- ^ "Court restricts Minnal Murali Universe: Major setback for Dhyan's 'Detective Ujjwalan'". english.mathrubhumi.com. Retrieved 21 May 2025.
- ^ "Detective Ujjwalan OTT release: When and where to watch the Dhyan Sreenivasan starrer online". 11 July 2025 – via The Economic Times - The Times of India.
- ^ "Detective Ujjwalan Movie Review: A thriller that cannot sustain on Dhyan's charm". The Times of India. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
- ^ "Detective Ujjwalan movie review: A Scooby-Doo-esque tale weighed down by mediocre writing". The Indian Express. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
- ^ "Detective Ujjwalan review: This Dhyan Sreenivasan film is the perfect addition to the intricately crafted cinematic universe". OTTplay. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
- ^ "Detective Ujjwalan Box Office Collections Day 1: Dhyan Sreenivasan's crime-comedy opens with Rs 69 lakhs in India". The Times of India. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
- ^ "Detective Ujjwalan Box Office Collection Day 3 Worldwide Total". Box Office Index. Retrieved 25 May 2025.