Rathnam

<p>: Three men orchestrated a deadly bus accident, killing all passengers before looting their money and jewellery. They also attack a police van, and push it to fall off a cliff. A woman escapes, takes a bus and works in a village for her son. The boy kills a pimp when she tries to kill a man. He then takes the boy under his protection. : Rathnam is a henchman who works for Panneer Selvam in . Paneer informs him that a rogue ward councillor attempted to sexually assault a girl, so she jumps out, injuring herself. Rathnam beats up the councillor’s men and hacks him to death with a chainsaw. One day, he protects Malliga, a medical student who is a lookalike of his late mother, Loganayagi, from the relentless pursuit of Beema Rayudu and his brothers Subba Rayudu and Raghava Rayudu. The three brothers wanted Malliga’s family to sell their land to them, but Malliga’s family refused, which led them to attack Malliga. Rathnam protects Malliga with the help of Panneer Selvam and also reveals her resemblance to Loganayagi. Malliga, on Rathnam’s advice, sells the land to build a medical college. Rathnam kills Subba Rayudu and warns Beema Rayudu that he will finish him and Raghava Rayudu. When confronted by Panneer Selvam, Rathnam reveals that he met his real family and learns about his mother’s past and that Beema Rayudu, Subba Rayudu and Raghava Rayudu are Loganayagi’s brothers, Dharmalingam, Punniyakodi, and Keshavan. Rathnam reveals what happened. : The trio had committed robberies (which were the three men at the start), and Loganayagi had learnt about this, where she tried to stop them, but they escaped.<br /> Rathnam’s father was a cop assigned to investigating the case, who learnt about this and decided to take action. The trio, to escape punishment, killed Rathnam’s father, but Loganayagi survived and escaped. Loganayagi gave birth to Rathnam, but she committed suicide after she was later blamed as a prostitute by a pimp. Rathnam had killed the pimp when she tried to attack Panneer Selvam earlier. : Rathnam introduces Malliga to his family. Beema Rayudu learns about this and attacks Rathnam’s family, where some of Rathnam’s family members are killed. Rathnam tracks Beema Rayudu and brutally kills Raghava Rayudu. He later Beema Rayudu and surrenders to the police. Before leaving for prison, Rathnam requests that Malliga marry someone and also name her child after him, but Malliga cries and hugs Rathnam. On 23 April 2023, announced that its founder, , was to join hands with director for an upcoming project, tentatively titled . The project marks as Vishal’s third film with Hari after (2007) and (2014). The shooting was reported to commence after Vishal finishes his commitments to (2023) A puja was held on 23 April. In mid June, was reported to play the lead female role, playing so under Hari’s direction for the second time after (2022) In July, she was confirmed doing the role. Reportedly, the team was in talks with and to play the lead female role before finalising Priya. In early July, was chosen to compose the soundtrack and background scores for the film. commenced on 16 July 2023, with the first schedule in . In August, the location was changed to . The schedule reportedly featured an action sequence. On 29 August, Vishal, via X (formerly Twitter), revealed that the schedule had concluded. The second schedule commenced in early October in a village in called Kimarasakkanapuram. Vishal had helped the villagers there to get a drinking water facility during the schedule. Principal photography by 23 January 2024. The music and background score is composed by , in his sixth collaboration with Hari after (2005), (2010), (2011), (2013) and (2018); maiden with Vishal. The first look song “Vaarai Rathnam” was released on 1 January 2024. The first single “Don’t Worry Da Machi” was released on 9 March 2024. The second single “Ethanaala” was released on 29 March 2024. The third single “Uyire En Uyire” was released on 19 April 2024. The last single “Yeduvaraiyo” was released on 24 April 2024. The entire soundtrack album was released on 26 April 2024 after the film’s release. Later, the production house announced that the audio rights for the film were acquired by . All lyrics are written by . released on 26 April 2024. The satellite and digital rights of the film were acquired by and . The film had its digital premiere on the streaming platform from 23 May 2024. On the website , 20% of 5 critics’ reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6/10. Abhinav Subramanian of gave 3/5 stars and wrote “It‘s your typical Hari formula – action-packed, fast-paced, and unrelenting – but even by his standards, it feels sluggish at times.” Manigandan KR of gave 3/5 stars and wrote ” is not a perfect commercial action entertainer. It has its share of faults and limitations but it is truly what we described it as — an entertainer.” K. Janani of gave 2/5 stars and wrote “‘Rathnam’ is a clichéd mass masala entertainer that is neither massy nor has masala.” Akchayaa Rajkumar of gave 2/5 stars and wrote “Neither stellar performances from Priya Bhavani Shankar and Samuthirakani nor the plot twists towards the end would save the audience from the headache and potential ear damage that Rathnam might cause.” Kirubhakar Purushothaman of gave 1.5/5 stars and wrote “Vishal and Hari come together for an action-drama again, which is as dated as their old collaborations.” Anusha Sundar of gave 1.5/5 stars and wrote “Even as Vishal stands tall and brings some action blocks to life, the caricature made out of his and other characters makes Rathnam a childish film. It is obsolete and loaded with unintentional quips.” Latha Srinivasan of wrote “With old tropes and old action, Vishal and Hari are unable to capture the audience’s attention with this one. Rathnam is a template masala Hari film and just old wine in an old bottle.” Bhuvanesh Chander of wrote “In his latest outing with Vishal, Hari attempts to adapt some of his tropes to the sensibilities of the modern-day audience, but the ideas he plays around with and the story he wishes to tell still belong in the 2000s.” Ram Venkat Srikar of wrote “With all the thoughts it wanted to blend, Rathnam could have been a lot more than what it ended up being.”</p>