Kaalidas

Kaalidas is a 2019 Indian Tamil-language action thriller film written and directed by Sri Senthil. The film stars Bharath and Ann Sheetal, while Suresh Menon and Aadhav Kannadasan portray other pivotal roles. The film began production during October 2017 and completed its shoot by March 2018. The film was released on 13 December 2019 and received generally positive reviews from the audience and critics and became a box office success. It is one of the best films of Bharath's career.

Plot
The film begins with Inspector Kaalidas investigating the death of a woman, which he initially believes to be a suicide. Meanwhile, his relationship with his wife, Vidyaa (Ann Sheetal), is strained due to his work pressure. A mysterious tenant (Aadhav Kannadasan), resembling Vidyaa's college love, moves into their house. As more women die under similar circumstances, the police suspect connections to the Blue Whale Challenge and extramarital affairs.

Investigations lead them to a woman named Shanti, a procurer who escapes but is later killed. The police discover that Vidyaa, along with the victims, visited a parlor regularly. Fearing Vidyaa may be the next target, Kaalidas rushes home, only to find that Vidyaa is the actual murderer and the tenant is imaginary. Vidyaa suffered from schizophrenia after the death of their daughter and created an imaginary version of Kaalidas. The face of her imaginary character is revealed to be George's son, who visits the same parlor.

The blood sample on the last victim matches Vidyaa's, proving her guilt. In the final scene, Vidyaa's imaginary character attempts to kill her, symbolizing her desire to be only with her husband. Kaalidas quits his job and becomes "Pappu" to be the man Vidyaa loves. The film ends with Kaalidas singing Vidyaa's favorite song, and the imaginary character disappears.

Cast

 * Bharath as Inspector Kaalidas / Pappu
 * Ann Sheetal as Vidyaa Kaalidas (Voice dubbed by Deepa Venkat)
 * Suresh Menon as ACP George
 * Aadhav Kannadasan as Vidyaa's tenant
 * R. T. Jayavel as Singadurai
 * Priyadarshini as Vidyaa's friend/psychologist
 * Ammu Ramachandran
 * Yugendran as Aarav
 * Velraj as DCP Velraj
 * Tiger Garden Thangadurai

Production
The film was launched in October 2017, with production studios Leaping Horse Entertainment, Incredible Productions and Dina Studios announcing that they will jointly produce the directorial debut of Sri Senthil, who had earlier won the reality talent show "Naalaiya Iyakkunar". Titled Kaalidas, the team selected Bharath and Suresh Chandra Menon to portray pivotal roles in the film. Bharath was revealed to be portraying a police officer, with the film set in a span of three days.

The film completed its shoot across Chennai and Hyderabad, and was revealed to be in post-production by March 2018. Bharath began dubbing for his portions in the film after a month-long industry-wide strike on working on film was called off during April 2018.

Soundtrack
Soundtrack was composed by Vishal Chandrasekhar.
 * "Mazhai" - Sudha Raghunathan
 * "Santiago" - Andrea Jeremiah
 * "Meraki Nenjam" - Sharanya Gopinath
 * "Maalai Pozhudhin" - Abhay Jodhpurkar
 * "Kaakai Siraginile" - Abhay Jodhpurkar

Reception
Sify wrote, "Overall, Kaalidas is a smart investigation thriller that conveys an important message to this fast-moving society without being preachy." The Hindu wrote, "Kaalidas gets engaging by stitching these individual plots together, even though the proceedings leading up to the final showdown leave you confused — partly because none of these deaths or characters register." Times of India wrote "The movie has the required elements of a suspense thriller and the performance of lead artistes, too, elevate the decent script". Behindwoods wrote, "Kaalidas is a taut thriller with neat performances and an engrossing second half." Hindustan Times wrote "With some impressive writing and by avoiding stereotypes, the film stands out." Indian Express wrote "The rock-solid story gets diluted because of this convoluted part of the screenplay, and when the ultimate reveal is shown screen, you have either already guessed it or you are not invested enough to relish it."

Sequel
A sequel, Kaalidas 2, was announced in 2024. Sri Senthil, who directed this film, and had Bharath reprising his role as Kaalidas and Ajay Karthi in lead roles.