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Visaranai

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Visaranai
Theatrical release poster
Directed byVetrimaaran
Screenplay byVetrimaaran
Based onLock Up
by M. Chandrakumar
Produced byDhanush
StarringDinesh
Anandhi
Samuthirakani
Murugadoss
S Rathnasamy
Kishore
Pradheesh Raj
CinematographyS. Ramalingam
Edited byKishore Te.
Co-editor
G. B. Venkatesh
Music byG. V. Prakash Kumar
Production
companies
Distributed byLyca Productions
Release dates
  • 12 September 2015 (2015-09-12) (Venice)
  • 5 February 2016 (2016-02-05) (India)
Running time
118 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageTamil
Budget₹1 crore
Box office₹11 crore

Visaranai (transl. Interrogation) is a 2016 Indian Tamil-language crime drama film written and directed by Vetrimaaran. The film was produced by Dhanush under his banner Wunderbar Films.[1] It is based on the novel Lock Up by M. Chandrakumar. The film stars Dinesh, Anandhi, Samuthirakani, Aadukalam Murugadoss, Kishore, Pradheesh Raj, and Silambarasan Rathnasamy. The film deals with the lives of two men before and after being thrown into a kafkaesque[2] scenario in which they get tortured for confession. Vetrimaaran later told that, in the beating sequences in the film, the actors were really beaten (which was criticized by some of the foreign media and a member of Golden Globes during the film's Oscar campaign), and all of them had to undergo counselling sessions.[3][4]

The film premiered in the Orizzonti (Horizons) section of the 72nd Venice Film Festival,[5] where it won the Amnesty International Italia Award.[6] The film was released in India on 5 February 2016 and received critical acclaim from both critics and audience[7] but faced controversy regarding its portrayal of the Tamil Nadu police force.[8] At the 63rd National Film Awards, the film won three honours: Best Feature Film in Tamil, Best Supporting Actor for Samuthirakani and Best Editing for Kishore Te. It was selected as India's official entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 89th Academy Awards[9] but it was not nominated.[10][11][12] At the 64th Filmfare Awards South, the film was nominated for the Best Film, Best Director for Vetrimaaran and won the award for the Best Supporting Actor for Samuthirakani.[13]

Plot

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Pandi, Murugan, Afzal, and Kumar are Tamil labourers who are working in Guntur, Andhra Pradesh and living in a nearby park and working to make ends meet. A Tamil man named Muthuvel is shown to be undertaking some operation in Andhra Pradesh along with a group of men. The lives of the four labourers take a turn for worse when they are caught, beaten and tortured brutally in police lock-up for a theft that they did not commit, due to police's need to close a high-profile robbery case. The four resist the torture and refuse to confess but are forced to relent due to the police brutality. However, when produced in court, they speak out the true set of events to the judge. Muthuvel, who is shown to be a police inspector, helps them go free by translating for them in court and vouching for them. Before the men can leave, Muthuvel enlists their help to kidnap a high-profile auditor named K.K who has surrendered in the same court. It is shown that Muthuvel's police team had come there unofficially to nab KK before he surrendered. Since Muthuvel's team are closely watched by KK's lawyers inside the court, Muthuvel gives the 4 boys a task to bring KK out of the court. Muthuvel's seniors use their influence to make the court police aid them and KK is kidnapped by the 4 boys. The men are brought back to Tamil Nadu, and Kumar is dropped on the way to Chennai. The remaining three men are asked by Muthuvel to clean the police station before leaving. The nature of Muthuvel's case is then revealed.

The kidnapping was masterminded by the Deputy Commissioner (DCP), under directions from the top brass of the ruling political party of the state, to use K.K in court and take down the President of the opposition party, since general elections are merely 5 months away. Meanwhile, the Assistant Commissioner (ACP), who is on the payroll of the opposition party, convinces the DCP to play a double game and get three crores (30 million) rupees from the opposition for dropping the case. However, buying the DCP's bluff, the opposition party fears that K.K has given up their secrets and orders the ACP to interrogate him, during which he dies from the injuries sustained. Since the death happened in Muthuvel's station when Muthuvel was on charge, he and his men take KK's body to KK's beach house and set up his death as suicide by hanging. Later, a discussion ensues to figure out a way to get the bribe and to cover up the death as a suicide.

After the meeting, the DCP sees Pandi and Afzal cleaning in an adjoining bathroom and suspects that they might have overheard the plan. To cover up, they decide to frame Pandi and his friends as convicts in a pending ATM robbery case, and eliminate them under the cover of an encounter. Muthuvel, who feels responsible for the three men, is fed up with the corruption and immorality of the events that have transpired and initially refuses to cooperate, but he is coerced because of his deep involvement. During the staged encounter, Afzal is killed, causing Pandi and Murugan to run away. In the ensuing pursuit, Murugan is shot and killed. Muthuvel chases Pandi and negotiates with him, assuring no harm and promising a spot in front of the media to expose the corruption. Meanwhile, orders arrive from the DCP to tie up loose ends and eliminate Muthuvel as well. As the film cuts to black, gunshots are heard, followed by a conversation that reveals the deaths of both Muthuvel and Pandi. A plan is made for the press coverage of Muthuvel's death 'in the line of duty', alongside photographs of his family to hold the attention and sympathy of the public.

In the epilogue it is shown that this film is based on the novel written by real-life Kumar, who has been felicitated by multiple human rights organisations.

Cast

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Production

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The film was adapted from the novel titled Lock up, written by M. Chandrakumar, an auto rickshaw driver in Coimbatore.[5] Vetrimaaran chose to begin the film before the schedule for his other venture Vada Chennai (2018) and signed up actors Attakathi Dinesh and Aadukalam Murugadoss to play convicts in the film. The film earlier had a working title Kutravaali.[citation needed] The director later announced that the film would be an experimental film lasting only 60 minutes.[14] Anandhi joined the cast in October 2014, being selected after Vetrimaran was impressed with her performance in his production venture, Poriyaalan (2014) and Prabhu Solomon's Kayal (2014).[15] Telugu film actor Ajay Ghosh stated that he played the role of an inspector in the film and would appear throughout the first half.[16]

Release

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The film had its television premiere on 10 October 2016 on Star Vijay.[17]

Critical reception

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On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 100% of 7 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8.5/10.

This film received the best movie award from Tamil magazine Ananda Vikatan in Ananda Vikatan Cinema Awards 2016.[18] Twitch Film viewed Visarnai as a top class film about reality comparable to 2012 Cannes favourite Gangs of Wasseypur.[19]

The Hindu wrote "Visaranai is beautifully filmed, though there isn't much room for beauty. The frames appear to have been snatched from the back alleys of life. The verité illusion is aided by the utterly lifelike performances—even if the word "performance" seems wrong.".[20] Rediff wrote "Director Vetrimaaran deserves credit for having extracted the best from all his actors. They are so remarkable you sense their terror as they stutter and stumble with their broken and bruised bodies. The hard-hitting screenplay is relentless, making no effort to shield you from the harsh realities of the ruthless world we live in today."[21]

Overseas, The Hollywood Reporter wrote "Vetri Maaran’s tense socio-political thriller lands a well-aimed punch at rampant police brutality and corruption, to which the only response from the viewer is towering indignation. It may not break new ground in its subject or style of narration, but it covers the old ground extremely well, and its premise is so convincing and realistic that it seems like non-fiction. The first part, at least, is non-fiction, while the film’s second half turns into a fast-paced thriller...Maaran and Kumar extend the horror to include the upper echelons in the police and government, who also need scapegoats to cover their crimes. This mirror plot becomes an ever more threatening nocturnal thriller, and takes the film much wider in terms of potential audience."[22]

Awards and nominations

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Award Category Nominee Result Ref.
72nd Venice International Film Festival Orizzonti Prize (Horizons Award for Best Film) Vetrimaaran Nominated [23]
Amnesty International Italia Award Won
63rd National Film Awards Best Feature Film in Tamil Vetrimaaran
Dhanush 		Won [24]
Best Supporting Actor Samuthirakani Won
Best Editing Kishore Te Won
Ananda Vikatan Cinema Awards Best Film Vetrimaaran
Dhanush 		Won [25]
Best Direction Vetrimaaran
 Won
Best Screenplay Vetrimaaran Won
Best Editing Kishore Te Won
Best Supporting Actor Samuthirakani Won
64th Filmfare Awards South Best Film - Tamil Vetrimaaran
Dhanush 		Nominated [13]
Best Director - Tamil Vetrimaaran Nominated
Best Supporting Actor - Tamil Samuthirakani Won

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Dhanush overjoyed at Visaranai becoming India's Oscar entry". The Indian Express. 22 September 2016. Archived from the original on 23 September 2016. Retrieved 9 July 2025.
  2. ^ TED-Ed (20 June 2016). What makes something "Kafkaesque"? - Noah Tavlin. Archived from the original on 3 March 2018. Retrieved 19 April 2019 – via YouTube.
  3. ^ "Visaaranai: Vetrimaaran reveals why the actors had to undergo counselling during the film". India Today. 2 November 2015. Archived from the original on 4 December 2024.
  4. ^ "Why Vetrimaaran is the most interesting director in Tamil films today". Hindustan Times. HT Media. 2 November 2016. Archived from the original on 4 December 2024.
  5. ^ a b "Meet The Auto Driver Who Wrote The Novel That Inspired Tamil Film 'Visaranai', Premiering At Venice". HuffPost. 8 September 2015. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024.
  6. ^ "Collateral Awards of the 72nd Venice Film Festival". Venice Biennale. 12 September 2015. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  7. ^ "'Soodhadi' with Dhanush, another with Dinesh: Vetrimaran". The Times of India. 8 August 2014. Archived from the original on 15 February 2016. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  8. ^ Sivan, Jayaraj (5 February 2016). "Sagayam take on police creates stir". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 6 August 2022. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  9. ^ Ramachandran, Naman (22 September 2016). "India Puts 'Interrogation' Into Foreign-Language Oscars Contention". Variety. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
  10. ^ "9 Foreign Language films advance in Oscar race". Oscars. 15 December 2016. Retrieved 16 December 2016.
  11. ^ Dave, McNary (15 December 2016). "Oscars: Nine Films Advance in Foreign-Language Race". Variety. Archived from the original on 17 December 2016. Retrieved 16 December 2016.
  12. ^ "'Visaranai' falls out of the Oscar race". The Times of India. 16 December 2016. Archived from the original on 31 January 2017. Retrieved 16 December 2016.
  13. ^ a b "Filmfare Awards South 2017 Tamil Nominations | Filmfare". filmfare.com. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
  14. ^ "60-minutes experimental film by Vetrimaran". LiveChennai. 30 September 2014. Archived from the original on 13 October 2014. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  15. ^ "Vetrimaran's next is Visaranai". Chennaivision.com. 16 October 2014. Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  16. ^ "Working with Vetrimaaran was inspiring: Ajay Ghosh". Business Standard. IANS. 7 April 2015. Archived from the original on 24 December 2015. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  17. ^ Vijay Television [@vijaytelevision] (4 October 2016). "#SuperProud! #Visaranai will be premiered on Ayudha Pooja. 10th Oct | 12 pm" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 9 July 2025. Retrieved 19 July 2025 – via Twitter.
  18. ^ "Ananda Vikatan Cinema Awards - 2016". www.vikatan.com (in Tamil). Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
  19. ^ "Truth will never set you free". twitchfilm.com. Archived from the original on 15 February 2016. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  20. ^ "Visranai, a powerful chilling drama". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 5 February 2016. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  21. ^ "Review: Visaranai is chilling". Rediff.com. Archived from the original on 25 January 2021. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
  22. ^ "'Interrogation': Mumbai Review". The Hollywood Reporter. 12 November 2015. Archived from the original on 6 May 2021. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
  23. ^ "Dhanush's Visaranai becomes the first Tamil movie to win an award to at Venice Film Festival". 13 September 2015. Retrieved 13 September 2015.
  24. ^ "Winners of 63rd National Film Awards 2015" (PDF). Directorate of Film Festivals. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 October 2016. Retrieved 28 March 2016.
  25. ^ "Vikatan Awards 2017 – Winners List". 14 January 2017. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
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