Athiran

Athiran is a 2019 Indian Malayalam-language psychological horror film directed by debutant Vivek and scripted by P. F. Mathews from a story by Vivek. It was produced by Century Kochumon through the production company Century Investments. The film stars Fahadh Faasil and Sai Pallavi in lead roles. Filming was completed on 21 January 2019. The film was released on 12 April 2019 to positive reviews.

Plot
Back in 1967, Lakshmi (Shanthi Krishna) sees Nitya (Sai Pallavi) tangling with a thread while the rest of the family being killed. The story later shifts 5 years ahead of time where Dr. M. K. Nair (Fahadh Faasil), a psychiatrist from Trivandrum Medical College, journeys to check out the activities in a mental asylum situated at a high range bungalow. The story revolves around how Dr. Nair looks after the patients where he meets Dr. Benjamin (Atul Kulkarni) who owns the asylum. It later comes to notice that, although five patients were admitted; there seems to be a sixth patient, named Nitya, unknown in records. As Dr. Nair demands to see her, he is shown the patient. The plot revolves around her history and her current situation. It is later revealed that in reality, Dr. Nair is Vinayan - Nitya's cousin, who had been impersonating his own psychiatrist - Dr. Nair. Vinayan or so called Dr. Nair was being treated for schizophrenia, delusions, hallucinations and extreme paranoia. It was Vinayan and not Nitya who in fact murdered the family after their uncle's murder, which is Nitya's father. The film ends with real Dr. Nair swearing that he will always keep an eye on his patient Vinayan no matter what move he makes in the future.

Cast

 * Fahadh Faasil as 'Mooledatthu Kannan "M.K." Nair' / Nadakkal Kovilakatthu Vinayan
 * Sai Pallavi as Nadakkal Kovilakatthu Karthika Thirunaal Nithya Lakshmi
 * Prakash Raj as doctor Mooledatthu Kannan 'M.K.' Nair
 * Renji Panicker as Nadakkal Kovilakatthu Jayanarayana Varma, Nithya's father
 * Atul Kulkarni as Dr. Benjamin Diaz
 * Sudev Nair as Jeevan Thomas
 * Shanthi Krishna as Nadakkal Kovilakatthu Lakshmi, Nithya's aunt, Jayanarayana Varma's sister and Vinayan's mother
 * Lena as Renuka
 * Nandhu as Avarachan
 * Leona Lishoy as Anna Maria
 * Surabhi Lakshmi as Vadakkedath Kamala Lakshmi
 * Vijay Menon as Professor P. Subrahmanya Iyer

Production
Title of the film was announced on 17 February 2019 alongside the first official poster. Athiran marks the directorial debut of Vivek. According to Vivek, the story was formed based on a real-life account combined with inspiration from a short story written by Edgar Allan Poe. He said: "the story idea came up after I went to a Kalari school in Thrippunithura, Kerala, where autistic students were performing with the same prowess as the school's other students".

The film was extensively shot in Ooty, Tamil Nadu. Filming was completed on 21 January 2019. It took 55 days to complete the filming process.

Music
The film score is composed by Ghibran while the songs are composed by debutant P. S. Jayahari, who was supposed to debut with the same director's shelved feature Aanenkilum Allenkilum.

Release
A 40 second long teaser of the movie was released on 3 April 2019. The official trailer was released on 8 April 2019. The film was released on 12 April 2019.

Critical reception
Sajin Srijith of the Cinema Express called the movie an Impressive, emotionally rewarding psychological thriller and rated it 4/5 stars. Filmibeat.com rated it 3.5 and written, "Athiran isn't a routine entertainer but it remarkably keeps us hooked with the intelligence in the narrative. It definitely offers a unique experience for Malayalam movie audiences."

Sify has reviewed that the film is an engaging psycho thriller and rated 3/5. Deccan Chronicle rated the movie 3/5 Stars and stated, "It is a onetime watch for those who like psychological thrillers with some mind-bending and adrenaline rush moments."

The Times of India reviewer Anna Mathews rated it 2.5/5 and stated "While the film has thrills and is a venture with a difference, it lacks in some heft. There is a ‘thrills for the sake of thrills’ feel to the movie. But if you are in the mood for a adrenalin rush, ‘Athiran’ won’t disappoint." S. R. Praveen of The Hindu reviewed the film as an enticing movie that falls short of expectations.