(theme music)
(indistinct chatter)
(lights matchstick)
We've got ₹1,210 here.
₹1,210, plus ₹100 each from the six of us.
We're unable to reach even ₹2,000.
-How much more do we need? -₹2,500 is the promised amount.
We still have more people to collect from.
But Chandran, that ration store guy...
He told me on my face that he won't contribute.
Don't let him go anywhere near Thangam anymore!
If I had this much money, I could've married off my sister.
But our Thangam...
She will leave this village.
Your father is the one solely responsible for Thangam's misfortune.
Panchayat president, my foot!
As if he doesn't have anything better to do.
Panchayat members are flaring up this matter like never before.
Thangam started this business the day she hit puberty, I heard.
(scoffs)
And now
they want her to get married in a month and live a virtuous life
or else leave this village.
That's how it is.
Some oldies start moral policing
once their beards start greying.
Stop it!
I was the only one there
to clean up the mess my father created.
I'm the one who arranged the groom
and proposed the idea of collecting the dowry amount from the villagers.
It's already 11:00.
Didn't the letter say they'd come on the 12 o'clock boat?
Oh, no! Let's go there then!
Otherwise, Thangam's future will be doomed! Let's go!
Our future, too! Let's go.
(door closes)
(water gurgling)
-(man) Where are you headed to? -What?
-Where are you going? -To Kainakary.
I have friends there.
I am also going there.
Check once.
Will they be there in this boat at least?
(indistinct chatter)
I guess they are the ones, Shibu.
The letter said two guys would be coming.
-Nagappan... -Hmm.
Looks like they are the ones.
(Soman) They are looking at us.
Come.
Shall we ask them?
(mutters) They are approaching us.
Ease off.
I'll handle this.
Shall we go there?
S... Soman?
Yes!
Thank God!
When you didn't turn up, we got worried.
Well, we couldn't catch the boat at 11:30.
We had to wait for this boat.
That's why the delay.
Are you Thangam's...
Yes. He's the one. Sukumaran.
Nice.
All right. Shall we go to the toddy bar and have a peg or two?
Yeah. Why not, Sukumaran?
Sure. Do they serve frog meat?
Frog, duck, turtle, we'll get you all of them. Come on.
-Is it nearby? That way? Okay. -This way!
(chews noisily)
How's the turtle curry?
Sukumaran bro...
(chuckles) It's good.
I don't get to eat it often.
Here.
Have a sip of that toddy.
It'll help cut the heat of the curry.
Thangam's curry is better than this.
You can have it every day from now on.
Not just the curry.
Thangam, too, is...
just like her name, pure gold!
Pass me the frog fry.
(birds chirping)
(sucks meat noisily)
Boys, you must stick to your word!
You promised to conduct the wedding the day after tomorrow.
But we didn't expect this, did we?
Really?
Three to four days?
Where do we stay till then?
Who will bear our expenses?
We will take care of the stay.
Expenses, too.
And...
he must stay here with Thangam for at least a month after the wedding.
To convince the villagers.
After that, he may visit once in a while.
Got it. We'll think about it.
Come.
Come on!
Shibu...
Is this Thangam's groom?
He is the one. Sukumaran.
(Bhaskaran chuckles)
Bhaskaran is the owner of this bar.
Did you like our curry?
Yeah. The turtle curry was scrumptious.
(Bhaskaran laughs)
Listen... We didn't get your contribution.
Oh, yes!
When it's for Thangam,
how can I not support it? Here, take it.
And they will be staying at
Paul's coir factory for the next few days.
Got it?
You must send them food three times a day.
Done! (laughs)
And...
come here sometimes, okay?
We will be meeting each other a lot from here on! (laughs)
All right then. We need to collect some more money.
(water gurgles)
(Soman) Why is the temple located in such an area?
The thing is they won't let us have the wedding
in the temples around here.
But we won't face any trouble here.
Where's the priest?
Priest Unni!
(footsteps approach)
I had gone to take a dump.
-Come. -Okay.
Are these the ones?
Yes. He is the guy. Sukumaran.
Oh. Hello.
I am Unnikrishnan.
I am the priest here.
Priest Unni, today is Saturday.
Thangam's period will last for three more days.
So... Sunday, Monday, Tuesday...
Wednesday. Shall we conduct the wedding on that date?
Sure.
Reach here at around 10:30 a.m.
I shall facilitate it.
-See you then. -See you.
Let's go. Come.
Hey, Sudhi.
Hold on a second.
Okay.
Here.
Take this.
It's my contribution. Let Thangam know about it, okay?
Of course! Shall we leave then? See you.
(ducks quacking)
(slow orchestral)
You can savour plenty of duck meat.
Come. You need a hand?
Come on, Sukumaran.
Don't worry. Come.
Hold my hand.
Listen, we're a bit short on the money we promised.
(spits) No can do!
Won't accept a paisa less than ₹2,500!
Give us just one more day!
What one day? Not possible!
No way! I will leave with the groom!
You can't reduce the sum you promised earlier!
(indistinct argument)
(bangles clink)
(whistles)
(romantic music)
I haven't seen you around here before.
Psst!
If you wanna pay a visit...
come in.
You are welcome inside.
Get lost, woman.
Gosh!
Come on.
Don't get upset.
I've seen such antics many times.
Come.
Come!
Come on!
Stop it! No!
-(shouts) Soman! -Tell him, man!
Soman!
Huh? Oh, no! My groom!
What's going on?
Let go of him!
Who is that?
Hey! He's the guy.
Sukumaran.
Oh, no!
When I saw him loitering in front of the gate, I thought...
Sukumaran...
This is our Thangam.
(Soman) That's great!
So, the bride-seeing ceremony is successfully completed.
Look at her blushing!
(water gurgles)
(devotional music)
(water gurgles)
Thangam!
You guys carry on.
Get down to the Panchayat office and take a stroll around.
Let the villagers see!
-(Soman) Is that really necessary? -Of course!
Everybody should know about this!
Let people know!
-Soman, my trunk box! -It's safe with me.
(man) Thangam! (hoots)
Look, I got married.
What's the groom's name?
He is my husband.
(people cheer)
Come to this side, dear.
Are you shy?
KAINAKARY
(Thangam) Carefully...
Come.
Look at that.
Who is this guy?
KAINAKARY
Come, dear. Come.
Come on!
(spits out hard)
Come.
She made it happen, president.
Sure! Let's see how far she goes.
(kids chattering indistinctly)
-Can you give us the garland? -Let go of the garland!
Scram, you chipmunks! -Run! Run!
Come, dear.
(currency notes rustling)
Here's the whole amount we promised.
Ah-ah.
Give it to me. Let me keep it.
What the hell!
Give it to him!
From now on, we are not two souls, but one.
Right, dear?
Things have changed now.
Don't we have to revamp this house?
We need to buy new utensils,
a new bed...
-(spits loudly) -We have expenses piled up.
You boys carry on, then.
Let us have lunch.
All right. Carry on.
(Thangam) Come back later.
-Let's go then. -All right then. See you.
See you.
Here, keep this.
All right then.
-Hey, Soman... -(yells) What is it?
I'll be back in a few days.
We'll book tickets to Madras.
And a ticket from there to Bombay for you.
We'll discuss the rest with Paulose and figure it out.
What do you think?
I'm still struggling to arrange the entire amount, Soman.
You should have around 8,000 bucks left
from the money you had and the jewellery you sold, right?
Yes, approximately.
Try to get the money those boys gave you from that hooker!
We'll need to arrange only the rest then.
She's locked the money in the cupboard.
Take your time.
You should get it by the time I return.
Okay?
Let me get going, then.
I've got to catch the 6:30 p.m. boat from Alappuzha.
See you.
(melancholic music)
(anklets chiming)
Did you like the curry I prepared for dinner?
Yeah.
Who do you have at home?
Mom and...
Well, Mom is there.
Nobody else?
Are you her only child?
Yes.
(water gurgles)
Let me make the bed, then.
You come then.
Let's go to bed.
(anklets chime and fade)
(footsteps approaching)
(man humming in excitement)
Aren't you Sukumaran?
The boys told me.
I am Mathews.
Are you from Persia?
Dubai.
Is it near Kuwait?
Thangam!
What is this, Mathews?
How can I do it tonight?
My dear Thangam...
I've got to go to Bombay the day after tomorrow. That's why.
But that's not fair.
He's here, so...
I've got you the saree you asked for. Have a look!
Gosh.
With all his pleading,
how can I turn him down?
Right, dear?
-You got cigarettes, right? -Yeah!
(whispers) Come inside.
I won't take long.
Smoke a puff or two and relax. Okay?
(whispers) I'll finish it quickly and come.
-But I don't smoke. -(whispers) It's all right.
(dog whines)
(slow orchestral)
(water gurgles)
(tense music)
(slow orchestral resumes)
(water gurgles)
(Nagendran) Oh, no! Please don't kill me!
(dog whines)
What?
I was in a rush and didn't see you.
Get up.
-Nothing happened to you, right? -No.
(Unni) All right.
Please give it to Thangam.
See you.
(birds chirping)
No.
I haven't heard any news of someone coming here
and causing this kind of trouble.
But I don't know if there are any unreported cases.
Still, how did you end up in such a trap?
You got your sister married to him without enquiring about him?
Better not to mention that, sir.
It just happened.
I made a mistake.
Hmm.
What was his name?
Nagendran.
He introduced himself as Joseph to me.
In Kasaragod, he was Ali Hussain.
He seems to be quite something!
What about his accomplice?
He is Soman.
That's his original name.
A marriage broker whom I know introduced him to me.
He was also tricked.
They both are from Vellayani.
I sent a guy there to investigate.
(scoffs) That's a story for another time, sir.
(dings)
Sir.
Some lodge owner made a complaint last week, right?
About some guys staying there
and then absconding without paying dues?
Yes, sir.
-Call him here. -Sure, sir.
-Make it fast. -Sir.
I'm not sure.
But from what you told me, I suspect something.
Let's see.
(epic music)
He was one of the two guys who came first, sir.
Also, another woman and a man.
These guys fled that same night after that man and woman left.
Without paying you, right?
I lost around ₹450.
Two bedsheets, too.
(paper rustles)
Sir! Have a look!
(intense music)
FROM: SHIBU TR, KAINAKARY, ALAPPUZHA
(Thangam) Oh!
You didn't eat it yet?
See if the taste matches your mom's dish.
Dear...
Why don't you go and meet your mother once?
(melancholic music)
(bangles clink)
Meet her as much as you can when she's around.
As for me, I don't even have a photo of my mother.
(anklets chime)
(crickets chirping)
(water gurgles)
Look who's here!
Master!
You visited only a couple of days ago.
I need to go to Thiruvananthapuram tomorrow.
I have to submit a few bills for clearance.
It will take at least a week for me to return.
So, I thought I'd pay you a visit before leaving.
Yeah, I thought so.
You always have this habit of...
paying a "visit" to Thangam before submitting your bills.
Totally!
I've been on an upswing ever since I started visiting you.
All my pending bills get cleared,
and I secure hard-to-obtain contracts! (laughs)
Look at you!
(blows)
(anklets chime)
What's up, Sukumaran?
Let me hang this to dry, and I'll be right back.
Go and get a few bottles of soda.
Oh... I...
Get some food from the toddy bar for you as well.
All right.
(footsteps fade)
(water gurgles)
Nagappan.
Where are you off to?
To buy soda.
For whom?
For Thangam's "visitor."
You said you'd be back in three days.
It's been a week already. Where were you?
Forgive me, Nagappan.
I've been rushing around to get your things done.
Listen, we have to reach Madras within a week.
If you pay,
your visa will be ready in 15 days.
Really?
Of course!
What about the money from Thangam?
I have snatched it.
Awesome!
I've made the arrangements for the rest of the money.
We must leave this place today itself, Soman.
We need to leave before she realises that I have her money.
-Let's leave then. -Okay.
-Why are you going that way? -Shouldn't we leave?
-I have to get my trunk box! -Oh, yeah. Go get it.
Put out the torch.
(door creaks)
(suspenseful music)
(Thangam murmuring)
(Thangam) Stop it!
(intense music)
(moaning)
(dog whining)
So?
What took you so long?
That's nice! Let's go!
Come on!
Where is he?
Come on!
(bangles clink)