Viduthalai Part 1: watch the full film free, legally

Operation Ghost Hunt in 1987

Set in rural Tamil Nadu in 1987, Viduthalai Part 1 begins after a train derailment leaves many passengers dead or injured. The authorities hold Makkal Padai, or People’s Army, responsible. The armed extremist group opposes a government-backed mining project planned for its hilltop village. The state responds with Operation Ghost Hunt, an effort to capture the group’s elusive leader, “Vaathiyar” Perumal.

Kumaresan is a newly recruited constable assigned as driver to the E-Company police unit. His empathetic nature puts him at odds with the bureaucracy around him, the poor conditions of police work, and the harsh orders issued by his superior, Officer-in-Charge Ragavendar. He also falls for Tamilarasi, known as Pappa, the granddaughter of a woman he had previously taken to hospital after a bear attack.

After policeman Raghu is murdered, DSP Sunil Menon takes charge of the operation. He attempts to turn villagers against Perumal, and the interrogation of a Makkal Padai member leads to a facial composite of the leader. Kumaresan then realises that he had unknowingly helped Perumal and his men during routine patrols. His confidence in Head Constable Chandran brings further danger, because Chandran is secretly working for Makkal Padai.

Pappa and the villagers’ ordeal

Pappa tells Kumaresan that Perumal targets officers who commit police brutality. She says Perumal killed policemen directly responsible for her father’s death and for the gang rape of her mother. The conflict deepens when Makkal Padai attacks during the mining project’s inauguration. An accidental bomb blast kills four presiding officers.

Sunil orders the mass arrest of villagers suspected of having family ties to the group. Pappa’s grandmother dies under torture during custodial interrogation. Days later, E-Company detains Pappa and other villagers, believing that a close relative of a key Makkal Padai member is among them. Kumaresan, desperate to secure Pappa’s release, gives Sunil information about Perumal’s suspected hideout and joins a squad sent to raid it.

A two-part production

Vetrimaaran directed and co-produced Viduthalai Part 1 for Grass Root Film Company and RS Infotainment. The cast includes Soori, Vijay Sethupathi, Bhavani Sre, Gautham Vasudev Menon, Rajiv Menon, Ilavarasu, Balaji Sakthivel, Saravana Subbiah, Chetan, Munnar Ramesh and Pavel Navageethan. For Soori, the film was his first leading role. He had worked with Vetrimaaran from the project’s inception, and said Vijay Sethupathi had encouraged him to try a range of roles rather than remain limited to comic parts.

The project was first announced as a single film in April 2021, though principal photography had started in December 2020. It was later divided into two parts. The crew filmed in Sathyamangalam forest for three months, then moved to Chengalpattu, where a police-camp set was built and used for 20 days. An eight-minute opening train-accident sequence was filmed in one take on a set near Vandalur. Principal photography ended on 31 December 2022.

R. Velraj handled cinematography, R. Ramar edited, and Peter Hein choreographed the action. Ilaiyaraaja composed the music in his first collaboration with Vetrimaaran. Vetrimaaran cited B. Jeyamohan’s short story Thunaivan as an inspiration, while the opening credits attribute the “basic idea” to Thangam’s novel Vengaichami and state that the film is based on an undisclosed Jeyamohan short story. Released on 31 March 2023, the film was later screened at the 54th International Film Festival of India.

Film details from the Wikipedia article “Viduthalai Part 1”. Text adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0.