Nooravathu Naal

Nooravathu Naal is a 1984 Indian Tamil-language mystery thriller film written and directed by Manivannan. The film stars Vijayakanth, Mohan and Nalini, with Thengai Srinivasan, Janagaraj and Sathyaraj in supporting roles. It is an unofficial adaptation of the 1977 Italian giallo film Sette note in nero. The film was remade in Malayalam as Aayiram Kannukal (1986) and in Hindi as 100 Days (1991).

Plot
Devi, a college student has a strange premonition one night of her sister being murdered. Her sister soon goes missing. After a few years, Devi meets and marries a rich businessman Ramkumar. Soon after, Devi has another vision of an unknown woman being murdered and seeks the help of her cousin Raju to help her save the possible victim. Raju is reluctant to believe her story but assists her anyway. Devi also finds a decomposed body in the bungalow where she lives with Ramkumar, which she believes is her sister's based on her previous vision. Devi and Raju's investigations lead them to the museum where Devi's sister worked and a strange man who tries to assassinate them. Whether Devi's strange premonitions are true and whether she and Raju are able to trap the mysterious killer forms the rest of the story.

Production
Nooravathu Naal was directed by Manivannan and produced by S. N. S. Thirumal under Thirupathisamy Pictures, with cinematography by A. Sabapathy. Manivannan selected Sathyaraj to portray a negative role. For the character look, he sported a clean-shaven pate, wore sunglasses and a red jerkin. He completed his portions within five days.

Soundtrack
The music was composed by Ilaiyaraaja. The song "Vizhiyile Mani Vizhiyil" was re-used from the song "Jotheyali Jothe Jotheyali" from the 1981 Kannada film Geetha. It is set in the Carnatic raga known as Kapi.

Release and reception
Nooravathu Naal was released on 23 February 1984, and ran for over 200 days in theatres. Jayamanmadhan of Kalki praised the acting of star cast and Ilaiyaraaja's music but felt the film lacked pep in certain places.

Legacy
Sathyaraj's performance as a psychopathic killer received acclaim and made him popular among audiences. Nooravathu Naal became a milestone in Tamil cinema, with regards to "scene construction". The serial killers Auto Shankar and Jayaprakash were inspired by the film to commit murders. Sangeetha Devi Dundoo of The Hindu in her review of the Telugu film Tripura (2015) said that the idea of hiding corpses inside a wall is inspired from Nooravathu Naal. Following Vijayakanth's death in 2023, Film Companion included the film in their list "7 Vijayakanth Films That Left an Indian Cinema Legacy".