Another Malayalam Film. Another investigation thriller. Another police procedural. Another one where Biju Menon and Asif Ali play the role of cops. Another ‘engaging in most parts” film. It is confirmed that Malayalam film-makers have a flair for this genre and it is quite interesting to see how they keep churning out new stories in the same format.
Biju Menon is the SI of a local police station. He is a straightforward, honest cop with a short fuse. In the same police station, Asif Ali who is a similar character joins as a junior. The first few minutes are spent on establishing the ego tussle between two hot-headed characters. They also look similar, making us wonder if there were literally brothers in arms! In a fleeting glance, the director also lets us know that though they are not atheists, they are not core believers as well.
In his career, thanks to his uncompromising approach, Menon has earned quite a few rivals within his profession and outside. Soon enough he is foisted in a murder case that happens in his house. From here on, the film is about two parallel investigations being carried out. One by Ali, who is given the responsibility of investigating the case and the other by Menon himself who is out on bail briefly. Of course, both tracks converge towards the end.
The biggest strength of the film is its screenplay and at the same time, it is its weakness too. The very breezy screenplay keeps us engaged and guessing till the last minute as to who the actual culprit is. On the other hand, the overarching objective of maintaining the suspense about the killer takes us through many side tracks, a plethora of characters that we can’t remember till the end and needless decoys. The result is, at the end when it is all over, you feel a sense of anti-climax!
The story made in an olden day play-like format, ends with a hook to a possible sequel. Deliberately, Director Jis Joy and his writers have kept many ends untied which I guess will be attended to in the sequel. The picture is technically well made with the happenings in the police station etc being shown very realistically. The Director could have done away with a long jail stunt sequence which doesn’t add much value to the proceedings. The same is the case with a writer’s character.
Both Biju Menon and Asif Ali, now having been a part of so many cop films, play their roles competently. The entire supporting cast too chips in nicely. The film could have been shortened by 10-15 minutes and a tight cut would have elevated the narrative of the thriller.
The relevance of the title – Thalavan (Leader) to this film is a mystery to me. Else, Thalavan is a competently made cop film that keeps you hooked throughout, the contrived end notwithstanding. It is now streaming on Sony Liv.
AnandKumarRSonFilms 
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