[GROANS]
Master,
my husband served your household for thirty years.
He scrubbed your floors filth, cleaned your kids shit and urine.
You promised him two acres of land, Master.
For that promise, he gave his life's blood to this house, and died in its service.
I care nothing for the two acres you speak of.
I would give them gladly.
But land would make him the equal of a landlord.
A common laborer has no place on this throne.
Born to toil,
one must live in our shadow, and die in the dirt.
God damn it!
Master, I once thought you noble.
But you see us only as beasts.
My husband may be gone today.
But my son, Raacha, will take that land.
He will reap what is owed.
Deny these people even a patch in the cemetery for their dead.
Cast them out. Back to the filth where they belong.
[GRUNTS ANGRILY]
[FIRE CRACKLING]
This earth is our mother, our only goddess.
She is our very life.
You must till your own soil,
and feed me the grain you grow with your own hands.
Until that day, I shall not give you a single morsel.
Nor shall I utter another word to you.
[INTENSE DRAMATIC MUSIC]
[FIRE ROARING]
[MOVIE TITLE : LANDLORD]
[BIRDS CHIRPING, TWEETING]
I may have born to your concubine,
but the whole village honored you as my father.
Now that you're gone, who is left for me?
[SNIFFLES]
He still isn't here; to give us elder lord's clothes.
DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
[BIRDS CHIRPING, TWEETING]
Had you married my brother,
your eldest could have claimed this house as his own.
Where are they? I can't find the clothes.
Where could they have gone?
What happened?
The clothes are missing.
I've searched every nook and cranny.
They’re nowhere to be found.
Come, help me search. -Come, let's search.
If the great landlord cannot even guard his own garments,
it is a stain upon his legacy.
Why this fuss over a few rags?
There are others. Calm yourself, I'll bring them.
If we wear the clothes of the dead,
their karma binds to us, and they may find paradise.
You're too educated to understand.
This is the sacred custom of our ancestors.
What kind of men are you?
You've denied my father both heaven and hell,
leaving his soul adrift.
Shame on you.
Hold your tongue.
Ghati Reddy didn't just steal clothes.
He stole the crown of our lineage.
For this insult,
his head must roll.
Move out!
[EAGLES SCREECHING]
[INDISTINCT SHOUTS]
Ay!
Damn!
[INTENSE MUSIC PLAYING]
My regards, Ghati Reddy.
Hey! Look there.
Men carry weapons for their enemies,
but I hold only your father’s shroud.
Whoever tramples it into the mire,
I shall reward them handsomely.
Hey!
It was this arrogance that led your father to his grave.
Listen to me, brother.
Do not cling to the past.
While we called our father's garments mere cloth,
they hoisted them like a banner of war.
Our father had a habit:
at twilight, he would enter whichever house he chose.
If his cloth is to be treated as a noble flag,
then surely he visited your home on a dark, vulnerable night.
[SCOFFS]
You should get your blood tested,
[LAUGHS] We might just be brothers.
If so, then do not expect a share of the inheritance.
Ay!
Bury them in the muck!
[DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
This crown reeks of pride, Ghati.
Your father died trying to bury it.
Don't provoke me into digging your grave too.
The old lord of these villages may be dead,
but the glory of his heir will shine brighter than ever.
[INTENSE MUSIC PLAYING]
-[BIRDS CHIRPING, TWEETING] -[ENGINE HUMMING]
[CATTLE GRUNTS]
Heirs may change, but custom is eternal.
Time turns and walls crumble, but the law remains.
This is the law of the village. This is the dharma of the land.
Until now, one tiger ruled.
Now, the Great Tiger takes his throne.
[IN UNISON] Long live the young master!
Victory to the MLA--
Shut your mouth! -As you say, sir.
I am merely a politician.
He is the King.
-Follow in silence. -Right away, sir.
Even in power, the MLA did not forget our traditions.
Come, let us dine.
Am I truly worthy to sit and eat at your side, my Lord?
[COMMOTION] Out! Get out! -I'll dine with my people.
Stand aside! Move!
Hey!
I haven't had my fill.
One scoop for every laborer.
Scoop your fill.
Take one scoop of grains. -Ok, please wait, my lord.
Quickly now!
Take your share.
Huh! Why?
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING]
Mother, tell him we will not accept grain as wages.
And why not?
Money flows across the world.
Grain only fills the belly.
Money builds a life.
This pittance of grain wouldn't satisfy a single soul.
You toiled and raised this from the earth.
If you mined gold, would you expect pay in gold?
Huh.
The law demands wages in currency.
It is our right to receive it.
We ask for no charity. -Quiet down, son.
Pay us for our labor, not with grain.
[GROANS PAINFULLY]
Devi!
Alas!
-Don't hit him. -Leave him.
You're hurting my son.
Sir, stop!
"Rights," you say!
Money?! -Get out.
Who poisoned your mind with these ideas?
Lord! -Let him go.
Money! You crave money?!
I pay in grain, and grain alone.
If you want it, take it.
Otherwise, leave and work for nothing.
If you dare speak again...
Pick it up and get out. -I beg of you, spare him.
Spare him!
-[CRICKETS CHIRPING] -[INSECTS TRILLING]
Year after year, they create Daasis'
Choosing a good chick, and enjoy till old age.
Then they toss us two acres and wash their hands of us.
In my next life, I want to be born a landlord.
I want to know how it feels.
[DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
[SOMBRE MUSIC PLAYING]
[RETRO SONG PLAYING ON RADIO]
The young lord has sent clothes for everyone.
Take them.
Wearing these pricks my skin, sir.
Your words prick me, Swarthi (Selfish)
Saarthi!
The name is Paartha Saarthi, sir.
That's what I said-Swarthi.
[GOATS BLEATING]
Goats!
Put two goats in the lockup.
We’ll give them the death sentence and hold a feast.
File a complaint, find me the sheep.
Or Reddy sir will kill me. ಇಲ್ಲದಿದ್ದರೆ, ರೆಡ್ಡಿ ಸರ್ ನನ್ನನ್ನು ಕೊಲ್ಲುತ್ತಾರೆ.
If I file a complaint, ನಾನು ದೂರು ದಾಖಲಿಸಿದರೆ,
our young lord will kill us. ನಮ್ಮ ಸಣ್ಣ ಧಣಿ ನಮ್ಮನ್ನು ಕೊಲ್ಲುತ್ತಾರೆ.
Sir…
I beg you. –Ay! Get lost!
Find my sheep.
Show this burly old man the cell,
and explain the glorious history of this police station to him.
Go.
Come, come with me. –Go.
Complaints are not taken here.
Why, sir? ಯಾಕೆ ಸರ್?
Here justice is not done in court,
it is done in the panchayat.
Run, the cops are here!
Go, boys! Hide yourselves! Hide!
Run! Run!
Hide, man, you go there, you go this side.
Run! Run! Run! Run!
[OMINOUS SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING]
Alas!
Hey!
Sir, we didn’t do anything wrong.
Move, you idiots! -Quickly drag them here.
What did I do, sir? –Move, you rascals!
Let me go!
Tie them! Tie everyone up.
Sir! Sir!
Do you have a warrant, sir?
Till what class did you study?
SSLC.
Passed or failed?
Failed only in English.
The warrant will be in English, you won't be able to read it anyway.
Scoundrels!
Come! –No brains at all.
For everything they arrest me. –Why are you taking him?
Give it here. –What’s with you?
Are you Venktappa’s son?
Yes, I am.
You’re one of us,
yet for every crime in the village
you arrest only our people.
Does that feel right to you?
We must make others pay for what we suffered,
or the stain will stay on us.
Go, chew on some sticks.
[DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
[EAGLE SCREECHING]
Young lord is here.
Seems he's here.
Greetings, my lord.
Salutations.
Come, my lord.
Hey, move.
Move!
Move, I said!
[DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
What's your issue again?
Begin.
Lord,
we have not stolen any goats.
Hey!
You stole pumps from Murugappa Reddy’s fields.
You stopped lorries on the highway and looted the bricks.
You stole Kotappe Gowdru’s cattle and tried to sell them in the next town.
After doing all this,
if you still deny the theft, who will believe you?
If we are dragged here,
we won’t confess to sins we didn’t commit.
Who are you to deny it?
The power to judge lies with the one seated on that chair,
not with those who stand trembling before it.
Hey!
What difference is there between you and those goats?
Both keep bleating without end.
A man who has stolen ten times will steal for the eleventh too.
SI sir...
Lord?
Fine them two hundred rupees. -Okay.
If they don’t pay, throw them in. They’ll talk soon enough.
As you say, lord.
Our landlords pay us in grain, not in money.
Where will we find that kind of cash?
Isn’t that why we are here?
We’ll pay, but only if you work as maids in our homes.
Four goats went missing.
So they want four housemaids for their houses.
Now the accounts tally.
We saw everything.
[GOAT BLEATING]
Madam police, those goats are mine. ಪೊಲೀಸ್ ಮೇಡಂ, ಅವು ನನ್ನವು.
Come.
Sir, the goats are found,
but the thieves slipped away.
Come, come.
Lord,
our boys have done no wrong.
Let them go.
But this isn’t a courtroom...
This is the young lord’s panchayat.
Not just evidence,
even if the whole government comes, my verdict won’t change.
You pin someone else’s crime on us.
If this farce continues, we don’t want your panchayat justice.
There’s a police station beyond your panchayat.
We’ll file a complaint there, let the court decide.
We’ll go where the law still has a voice.
We are leaving.
[PEOPLE WAILING]
Sir! Sir! –Hurry, find that file.
Quickly, quickly, quickly!
–They’re here, sir. –The officers have already arrived.
No, sir.
The one who keeps pestering you about land...
He has returned. What do we do, sir?
For him, nothing can be done. Even if his father walks in.
Go, mind your work.
Sir, he hasn’t come with his father. He’s come with his grandfather.
Listen, until they promise to give us land,
this hunger strike will not be broken.
Hey, Raacha,
lend me two rupees,
I’ll fill my stomach and sit for protest.
You don’t understand what satyagraha means.
I do.
It’s when Rama took Sita to the forest.
Not that,
it’s what the Pandavas did.
No.
The mother who bore you is your real exile.
Sitting here on an empty stomach... this is fasting.
Oh! –Alright, man.
Raacha.
Why do laborers like you dream about owning land?
Not just him, he’s driven me mad too.
Really?
It’s not madness, fools.
It’s FIRE!
Raacha,
look, the Tahsildar is coming.
Look, Raachayya,
for the government to give you land,
first go to the landlords,
get details of the government land written down properly,
bring that certified letter to me.
I’ll file your application and secure the grant, free of cost.
Now drink this tender coconut water,
Give him, sir.
Hey! –Huh?
Sir.
We spent our whole lives...
thinking we’d at least cling to a tiny piece of land,
and in that chase, we squeezed life itself dry.
If everything is written down on a piece of paper,
will that land truly become ours, sir?
You will get it, surely.
Swear it on this tender coconut.
Long live! Long live!
Hey!
What are we supposed to shout to that? –Long live! Long live!
What are we supposed to say for that?
Gandhiji long live! Long live!
[IN UNISON] Gandhiji long live! Long live!
[SINGING]
Papa!
How many times should I ask? Give it.
Why so much fuss?
If I don’t polish my daughter’s shoes, who runs to help everyone...
who else will?
Oh-ho!
You look like an angel. Go, dear.
I’m leaving, papa.
Come out, dear.
She’s late to everything. What to do? –Give it, Mom. I’m late for duty.
I’m tired of shouting at her. –Bye, Papa.
Go, go.
Come back early.
[SHRIEKS]
What’s gotten into you now?
You bite like a street dog.
Look at these bite marks all over my back.
If people see them, what will they think?
He shows up every hour.
In this world,
show me one woman who doesn’t giggle, one man who doesn’t bite.
Why do you keep pestering me?
Phew! I can’t bear this cold. –People will talk. Leave me.
Come here, come. –Leave it! We have a grown daughter!
Don’t worry, come.
What’s wrong with you? You’ve lost all sense of time.
Come fast, fast.
Come, those rascals will be here.
Shut the door, shut it.
♪ My love, do you know one thing? ♪
♪ What is it, dear? Tell me softly. ♪
♪ How do I say it, when the gods have their eyes on us? ♪
♪ Is that so, my love? Is it true? ♪
♪ Wait, just once, listen with your heart. ♪
♪ I can’t hold back this love anymore. ♪
♪ I’ll give you another child, let our family grow. ♪
♪ Come, I’ll pin jasmine into your hair. ♪
♪ Sleep easy, my playful darling. ♪
♪ Come close, I must share the ache in my heart. ♪
♪ Why do you trouble me so early in the day? ♪
You take this land. –Raachappa,
the lord isn’t at home.
Go back to your house.
He appear with paper for land, bull shit!
-Let's go to watch the drama. -Shall I wait here and join you later?
He can't even farm in his two acres,
He carries this child drunk.
Do you even care for her well being?
♪ Our wedding still feels fresh as new rain. ♪
♪ Why do you blush with every little wink? ♪
♪ Doesn’t old tamarind have the sharpest tang? ♪
♪ You tug at my sari even on the street. ♪
♪ Isn’t a woman’s honour her only true jewel? ♪
♪ You’ve ripened like fruit, yet feel no shame at all. ♪
♪ I wish to dive and swim in the dimples on your cheeks. ♪
♪ A moment ago you were calm, now you’ve changed. ♪
♪ Can’t you hold yourself when you look at me? ♪
♪ Tell me, my love, why did you transform like this? ♪
♪ I’ll tell you everything, let’s hurry back home. ♪
♪ Go now, you mischief-maker. ♪
♪ If I’m your darling, don’t I deserve a kiss on the cheek? ♪
I asked him to bring money, here he arrive with the plow.
Hey, take them quickly.
When we grow old,
these children won’t be around our feet.
We should own a small piece of land.
Something that is ours. Think about it.
♪ With three sacred knots, I’ll live in your arms. ♪
♪ No matter what comes, I’ll bear a hundred children. ♪
♪ I’ll stay poor gladly, if I stay by your side. ♪
♪ I’ll toil for a few coins and bring rice to our home. ♪
♪ Come, I’ll offer you water with unwavering love. ♪
♪ O chariot of life. ♪
♪ I’m shivering, hold me close and chase away this cold. ♪
♪ Come, I’ll warm you, my mustached honey. ♪
♪ Aren’t you my sweet darling? ♪
♪ This world is just a pot of pumpkin porridge. ♪
♪ Isn’t our love our only true god? ♪
♪ Tell me, my dear, is our daughter awake? ♪
♪ Yes, my love. Sleep now, dear. ♪
Alright!
Tch!
Lord.
Don’t discard me like a dried petal.
I have taken you as my living god.
Give my life a pillar to stand on too.
Before you wipe off your bindi and strip off my shorts...
you should ask these things before you tear it all away.
I don’t sit in front of the plate that fed me, or the bed that held my sleep.
Remember that.
I'll ask for 2 acres.
Since you’re asking anyway,
why stop at two acres? Ask for four.
My daughter is pregnant.
She’s come home.
Instead of grain, give us money, lord.
Please, lord. –Hey!
Hey! Drag him away.
Please, lord! –Don’t lay a hand on me.
Damn!
He ruined my day just by touching me. -Greetings, lord.
Get up, he’s here.
Your bricks aren’t strong enough for the factory,
your contract is cancelled.
Next time we’ll go to another supplier.
I’ll take your leave, sir.
Wait.
What do you want, Raacha?
Tahsildar told me to bring the land details in writing,
and promised me a piece of land, sir.
Look there... right there.
Lord! –[SCREAMS IN PAIN]
It’s strong.
Do you want it even stronger?
No, sir,
it’s already too strong.
I made a mistake, forgive me, sir.
I’ll talk to them and handle it.
If the government gives you land, you’ll become a landlord, Raacha.
Two landlords, in one village.
What difference does it make to you? Just write it, lord.
–Yes, lord. –Hey!
In Hulidurga, a laborer should remain a laborer.
A landlord should mind only his business.
Who the hell are you to change that order?
–I’ll talk to the lord. –I didn’t even ask like that.
–I just asked for the land details. –You keep quiet, uncle.
–What’s your problem? –You shut up, uncle.
-Now what's with you? -My father was a cobbler.
-So should I also just stitch shoes? Shut your mouth.
Wait.
The government is giving that land.
–Look at his tone. –He’s not one of us, right?
Why? Can’t a laborer become a landlord?
He dares to talk back. He dares raise his voice at us.
Get out! You dare argue in front of us?
How dare he?
Ay!
Hey brother! –Leave him.
Leave it.
Listen, all of you.
The government rules the state and the country,
but in this village, we are the only “GOVERNMENT”.
Fine then.
That may be true.
Every grain of rice belongs to someone.
In the same way, every patch of earth
must have a name written on it as the owner.
So let it be.
Raacha!
God will give, for sure.
–Come, come. –All I asked was...
...if he has the land details, give them, else say no. –Come on now.
Why do you speak when you should stay quiet?
Lord! –Come.
Devi is crossing the line.
Shall I set our boys on him?
That boy is young sunlight, and that old man is true thunder.
If they come to our doorstep asking for land,
owning a village’s worth of land doesn’t make a landlord.
Even a strip as small as a log makes a man a landlord.
Shanbhogre, he should not get even a needlepoint of land.
See to that.
[OMNIOUS MUSIC PLAYING]
[SOMBRE MUSIC PLAYING]
Devi.
Hey Devi.
Hey! Hey!
Won’t you talk to me?
Hmm?
What kind of lives are these?
Ask for daily wages, they chase us away.
Ask the government for land, they chase us away.
And when we finally come to you for justice,
you turn your back.
Do we not have the right to live on this soil?
Don’t you know the difference between a constable and an SI?
Look here.
I came to this village, took charge less than a year ago.
Once I took charge as SI,
justice will no longer be served in the young lord’s panchayat.
It will come from this police station, from the government.
Will this village accept the court and the law?
Leave now. –Hey! Wait.
This country rose because it accepted the Constitution.
Will our little village not rise too?
Woah.
If that becomes real,
that day will be our Republic Day, our Independence Day.
The whole village will gather, raise a pole and hoist a flag.
[GROANS IN PAIN]
That scoundrel slapped me hard.
[SOFT EMOTIONAL MUSIC]
Stay here now.
I’ll go to the village, collect a few more slaps,
then one kiss on this cheek and one on the other. What say?
Ay, go.
Now you slap me here, one kiss for that.
For this slap, give me a kiss, Bhagya.
Leave! –Bhagya!
Alas, I fell into the water.
Come back only after catching some fish.
[CHUCKLES]
[MELANCHOLY MOOD MUSIC]
However hard you try, your daughter will not get her sight back.
A big hospital might help.
Wherever you go, your daughter’s fate is the same.
Why are you crying, Dad?
It’s nothing, dear.
Pain stops only when the body stops.
Tears stop only when the eyes dry up.
[SNIFFLES]
Everyone else has just two eyes.
But for me, you, Goggayya, Lingakka, Bhagyakka...
this entire village will be my eyes.
That is enough for me, Dad.
Young lord isn’t signing.
Let all of us put our thumbprints and give it.
Honey!
These old troublemakers will only bring you ruin.
Why is he coming like that?
What’s that paper in his hand?
My land documents.
I came to give them to you.
Look,
a laborer should become a farmer.
Since birth, I’ve carried the dream of owning a piece of land.
Tell me something I haven’t heard before.
The land my father got is in shambles.
I don’t have the strength to farm it anymore.
Only when strong hands plough it does the land earn respect.
Farming must be done for self‑respect,
if it’s done as charity, it becomes just a job.
Who said this is charity?
When you harvest, pay me a little, and go your way.
Apart from you folks, my daughter has no one.
She is my daughter.
I will raise her.
Why are you talking about her?
Tell him. –Lingamma, my health isn’t good.
What if something happens to me?
As I ruined Sheshamma’s life, and freckled my daughter’s too.
The tongues of this village will start wagging.
My time is almost over.
That’s why I ask you.
Come on, tell them.
We cried for land all these years,
yet couldn’t own even half an inch of land.
In this village,
even if we’re ready to pay, who will sell land to people like us?
Soften your heart, Raacha. Say yes.
I spent my whole life desiring for two acres,
If only everything comes true...
Though late, God has not abandoned me.
Hey, why are you crying like a child?
Enough.
Look, Sheshanna,
we’ll take this land,
but you must agree to one thing.
Say it, Lingakka.
The cash will not come into your hands.
We’ll put it in a post office account in Putti’s name.
Done.
Why are you trembling?
With a waist like that, you should be shaking me, not shaking yourself.
You shouldn’t.
My life was filled with darkness—
and darkness lives for a hundred years.
Now beauty has finally blossomed.
I will serve you till my last breath.
Give my life one pillar to rest on.
The woman I marry need not be beautiful.
But the woman by my side must not be a fool.
What must I do for that?
I mean,
those two acres given to Rajamma by the Senior Lord,
that land became a pillar for Sheshanna.
If I get a little land too,
I’ll light a lamp in your name.
Light too lives for a hundred years.
That day, my father donated that land
I’ll snatch that land back and give it to you.
Men who conquered the world have fallen to beauty.
How can I fight that fate?
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING]
Tomorrow, bring Shesha near the factory.
Alright, boss.
[DRAAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
No, no, no.
Drink that and it’ll make you sober.
You should be able to take your brothers’ blows.
Ay!
However loud you shout that you’re the son of the senior lord,
you’re still a half‑breed.
I don’t wear this bond like a shirt on my back,
it runs deep in my blood.
When my father gave that land to your mother feeling pity,
you handed it away to a lowlife.
You dare raise your hand at me?
Beat me all you want.
I’ve got a beedi too.
Didn’t you do the same thing?
Out of the thousand acres you own, you could not spare two for me.
[GRUNTS]
So what if one beedi is crushed? I still have the whole pack.
[DRAMATIC SCORE RISING]
[LAUGHS]
Because of my land, my daughter is safe now.
You won’t snatch a single thing from me.
Huh.
I’ll snatch it.
I have nothing left but this life.
Then I’ll rip that life out of you.
Let me go. –Grab them.
Hey!
Hold him tight.
Where are you taking me?
Hey! Let me go!
Let me go!
–Shove him in.
Throw him inside.
Pile up the wood. Today he burns to ash.
Boss, he escaped from the brick furnace.
Go, go. Move!
Go, hurry!
Drive faster! Faster! –Run him over.
Come quickly -Don’t let him get away.
[SCREAMS SHARPLY] -What's that?!
[GRUNTS]
Come hide!
Let’s go! Move!
The crossbreed son of the noble blood is dead.
[LAUGHS] –Put it out.
[GASPS]
[INSECTS TRILLING]
Mom!
Sheshanna.
Daughter!
Sheshanna, get up.
Gauri!
Go, call the villagers for help.
My daughter!
Sheshanna!
[INSECTS TRILLING]
Doctor! Doctor!
Doctor! –Come, doctor!
Doctor!
–Look, Sheshappa is badly hurt.
Call the doctor quickly.
Doctor! –Sheshappa!
Who are you?
We were walking when the lord’s jeep— –Hey! I’ll slap you.
Sir, he’s drunk.
He was drunk and fell near the rocks.
I am a doctor.
I know the difference between an “incident” and an “accident”.
Please sir! -No, no, no. Please don’t do this.
Tell me his name.
Sheshanna. –Call the station.
The line is dead, sir.
This looks like a murder case.
Until the police are informed,
we cannot begin treatment.
Please leave.
But sir! –Inform the police first.
Mister! –Sir…
Didn’t you hear him? Leave. Move aside.
Sir, listen… –Come quickly.
Come quickly, brother.
Stay with him. I’ll be back.
I’ll come back. Move aside.
Give me way.
Let me through.
Sir!
Come to the hospital quickly.
Why, Dad? What happened? –Sheshappa fell and is hurt.
Come, sir.
The doctor refuses treatment without a complaint.
Come fast. –Why is your face covered in blood, Dad?
A life is slipping away there.
Doctor is refusing. –Come, let’s go.
Come.
Sheshanna.
Look at me.
I’ll get you something to eat.
Sit here.
Doctor, this is our first time too.
We couldn’t take the complaint.
Please treat him, we’ll stand by your side.
Without legal procedure, there can be no medical procedure.
Verbal requests won’t do.
If it’s given in writing, I’ll treat him. Otherwise…
If you fear all this, why choose a life‑saving job?
Huh?
Hey! Come, come, come.
But-- -[SHUSHES]
Doctor, just this once…
for the sake of plain humanity,
save my friend’s life.
It tears my heart to see him like this.
Look at that blind child…
it twists your insides to bits.
Sir!
Write the complaint.
[EMOTIONAL MUSIC PLAYING]
Sir!
We wore this uniform and swore to protect people’s lives, honour, and homes.
Let’s not betray that oath.
Take it.
Fine,
write it.
Taking complaint for the first time.
Though at first glance Sheshappa looks like an accident case,
this feels suspicious,
so it will be treated as a criminal act.
An attempt‑to‑murder case is being registered under Sections 302 and 307.
[SUSPENSEFUL DRAMATIC MUSIC]
Sister, prepare for treatment.
The doctor is ready to treat you. Get up.
Hey!
Hey, Shesha…
Shesha…
Hey!
Shesha…
[WEEPS]
[MELANCHOLY MUSIC PLAYING]
Shesha…
Goggayya.
Bhagyakka.
Lingakka.
Where are you all?
Is no one here?
Goggayya.
Bhagyakka.
Oh… Dad is here.
Looks like you fell into some ditch.
You’re soaked, Dad.
I told you not to drink, but you never listen.
Get up, Dad.
Lingamma is bringing something to eat.
[SNIFFLES]
Father, wake up and talk to me.
Father, get up and speak.
Puttamma. –Dad, say something.
Dear…
Dad is sleeping.
Let him sleep peacefully.
Oh… he’s sleeping?
Usually he wakes up the moment I call.
Seems he’s in a deep sleep now.
Alright. Sleep then.
[EMOTIONAL DISTRESSFUL MUSIC]
[BLEATING]
-[OMINOUS MUSIC PLAYING] -[GRASS CHOPPING SOUNDS]
Lord!
Last night, without my knowledge,
a complaint was filed here for the first time.
Even so, lord,
there are a thousand rules for when I fire my gun,
but none for how I move my pen.
I’ll write the charge sheet exactly as you wish.
Not a single black mark will touch your name.
The respect I held proudly for twenty years,
was dragged through the mud the moment she wrote that FIR.
We never washed stains off our name with water.
We scrubbed them off with blood.
She filed that FIR to save one man’s life.
Go.
Bring one person from every house from Tegginakere.
Let them remember that defying the nobility will cost them blood.
The government may have handed you power.
But it’s still me who decides if you get to breathe in this village.
Go.
Do something to earn yourself a little more time to breathe.
Alright.
[GROANS AND GRUNTS PAINFULLY]
For the first time, an FIR was filed,
and the ones who killed someone we loved…
even that felt like justice.
Sir!
Get up.
You arrested an innocent boy and pinned a murder on him.
When they send him to jail tomorrow, what am I supposed to do?
Raacha, are our children just bait for your land?
Shut up!
If Sheshanna were in your place, Rachayya would do the same.
Is it not a virtue to save a life?
Saving one tree is good,
but cutting ten for that one… tell me, is that justice?
[WEEPS]
Why are they beating him like that, sir?
Labourers build your temples, yet you don’t let them in.
They sweat in your fields and make your crops grow,
yet you never pay them their due.
About temples, even the gods stay silent.
About money, even Mother Earth is silent.
So why do you and this Swarthi poke your noses in between?
You two filed the FIR, didn’t you?
I’m the station inspector here, and I’m running this inquiry.
Till now, for petty theft, they’d lock people for two days and let them go.
This is murder.
If we’re to survive this, either the gods must come,
or he must send someone.
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING]
Namaskara. Landlord, Raachayya.
Lord,
to save Shesha’s life, we made a grave mistake.
That’s how the first complaint was born.
Forgive us.
Before anyone sets foot on these station steps,
they should know to seek the young lord’s permission.
Whatever punishment there is, give it to me.
Spare those boys and let them go, Swami.
I beg you.
All fingers want to look equal, but they are never the same length.
Now if your thumb wants to stand equal to us…
then that thumb is what I want.
In Hulidurga, apart from the nobles, no one should own even a speck of land.
That is the law.
The mistake began with land.
Set it right… with land.
Swami, on paper that land is ours,
but our fate says otherwise.
We are labourers, right?
Whatever God wrote for us, this sweat has wiped it clean.
Alright, Swami.
Fine.
Shanbhogre…
Don’t, Raacha.
Don’t give the land.
We can’t crave Mother Earth while making our mothers weep.
Don’t do it. I fall at your feet.
[DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
[SOFT EMOTIONAL MUSIC]
Raacha, stop.
Swami?
The country may have one law,
but in Hulidurga, the law is mine.
My bloodline carries a history.
A certain honour.
What price will you pay for spitting on that honour?
Whatever the punishment, give it to me, Swami.
Then do one thing.
String these slippers into a garland and lift that cart.
If your arms give in before sunset,
I’ll drown all of Tegginakere.
I want to see the ones who ride on your shoulders,
will load your yoke with their strength.
Alright, Swami.
[GOATS BLEATING]
[SOMBRE MUSIC PLAYING]
-[GOATS BLEATING] -[ENGINE HUMMING]
[DRAMATIC MELANCHOLY MUSIC PLAYING]
You must till your own land,
grow crops and feed me from that harvest.
Until then, I won’t feed you even a single morsel.
Nor will I speak to you.
[EPIC MUSIC PLAYING]
[MELANCHOLY MUSIC PLAYING]
They run our station, that I can stomach.
They brand us thieves, that I can stomach.
If they snatch away the land granted to us, I can bear that too.
But when they make my father wear their slippers and humiliate him,
how am I supposed to swallow that?
What good is the education he gave me if I can’t stand up to this?
I don’t need this job.
First, become an SI, grow your reach of power.
Your time will come to challenge their injustice.
For Sheshanna and my father to see justice, your mother must testify.
With an eyewitness, this case becomes a weapon.
Bhagya,
I’ll stand with you.
For you, I’ll put even my life on the line.
No one who stood against them has ever returned.
Just once, look at this from my family’s eyes.
[INTENSE MUSIC PLAYING]
Take this... and marry me.
I’ll become your wife and one of your people.
I’ll protect my own.
Bhagya!
Why this stubbornness?
You don’t know them, Bhagya.
You don’t know what Raachayya really is.
This fire of stubborness comes from him.
You’ve seen Raachayya laugh and joke with everyone while begging for land.
But when he grips an axe, he can bring down any tree in ten blows.
You haven’t seen “Axe” Raachayya yet, Devi.
He brought any tree down with just ten strikes.
Do you know why he chose only ten axe strikes?
Due to his stubbornness and determination not to wane
So, everyone called him Kodali Raachayya of ten strikes.
I don't know who planted the desire to educate me in his cold heart?
♪ Countless gods blessed me with a gift. ♪
♪ My mother’s very form born as my daughter. ♪
♪ The turning chariot is my father, ♪
♪ Dear daughter, goddess of the home. ♪
♪ Born to me as my breath, my life’s Ganga. ♪
♪ [VOCALIZING] ♪
♪ Who created this earth, this beautiful life, this new story? ♪
♪ The pure love that shines across the world is father and daughter’s bond. ♪
♪ In my lap, to the doll of breath, I sing a lullaby, a blessing given by gods. ♪
This time in Ramadurga, she has passed her matric exams.
♪ My goddess ♪
♪ The sky and earth are all you, what more could I need? ♪
Listen!
A labourer’s daughter stood up educated.
In this entire village, my girl is the only one who graduated.
She proved that education belongs to no single caste or house.
The Gowda was waiting for us to err.
[DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
The day before the chariot festival,
when the god’s clothes fell from the chariot,
I picked them up without even thinking.
Hey!
She’s got a degree and now she’s getting cocky.
Tie her to the sinner’s pillar.
Hey, come here.
Leave her.
Let her go.
We can’t pretend blind when god is being insulted.
What’s wrong if a woman lifts the goddess’ cloth?
If another blow lands on my girl,
I’ll chop off the hand that hits her.
[INTENSE DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
Why, Racha?!
Will you not honour the punishment decided by the village elders?
If you see filth where even god sees none...
it isn’t the god’s failing.
It’s yours.
Will you live the rest of your life challenging this entire village?
For twenty years I never lived challenging anyone.
I lived answering my own challenge.
Today, that ends.
No matter how blunt my axe is,
with ten strokes I’ll shatter your sinner’s pillar.
Ten strokes, you say?
Fine,
that’s the wager.
If you win,
I’ll give you the two acres my father owed your father.
If you lose,
you’ll stop your daughter’s studies.
Son...
To put out the fire burning for twenty years...
a bowl of blood must be poured on it.
You must peel off the arrogance stuck to their skulls.
Say it now...
say you accept the challenge.
Papa!
Five strokes remain.
Whether you show him trees or men... that choice is yours.
Come on, daughter.
[UPLIFTING MUSIC PLAYING]
Swami!
The flag of challenge fell to the dust.
A laborer has won today.
The strength of the labourers rose up instead.
Ay!
Beat the drums!
[IN UNISON] Hail Raachayya!
When I climbed that chariot, my people saw it as victory,
the landlords saw only insult.
so they burned the chariot itself.
He’s a man who once chopped heads for his mother.
Do I really need to teach him how to protect children?
Along with making arrests,
it’s also the police’s duty to protect the witnesses.
Take the whole village under control. ಇಡೀ ಗ್ರಾಮವನ್ನು ನಿಯಂತ್ರಣಕ್ಕೆ ತೆಗೆದುಕೊಳ್ಳಿ.
Keep the force here till things truly calm down.
I give you grain for the grain you grew.
Did you grow money for me to pay you in cash?
Please don't beat me, lord! -Hey!
When I ask you to work, do you give excuses?
–[GRUNTS PAINFULLY] –Excuses!
[INTENSE MUSIC PLAYING]
Shift them all to the district jail.
The British who ruled this land for four hundred years
once stood with bowed heads before my ancestors.
It’s not even fifty years since they left,
and already you show your true colours.
I’ll set it right, lord.
♪ [VOCALIZING] ♪
♪ I’d need not one but a hundred eyes just to drink you in. ♪
♪ Not one but a hundred hands to hold you close and kiss you. ♪
♪ A hundred seas would still fall short to hold all the love you gave. ♪
♪ A hundred moons could never match the light you carry. ♪
♪ Wild and breathless, our little world of love. ♪
♪ Wild and breathless, what more proof do we need than this heart? ♪
♪ I can wait a hundred lifetimes just to see you once. ♪
♪ I can be born a hundred times just to hold you once. ♪
♪ When we are one, who are you and who am I? ♪
♪ Those who say heaven is elsewhere are fools. ♪
♪ All this must build its nest here, in this very life. ♪
♪ Wild and breathless, our little world of love. ♪
♪ Wild and breathless, what more proof do we need than this heart? ♪
Raachayya,
she stopped the nobles' smoky games by just wearing a constable cap.
Once the inspector’s cap sits on her head,
she’ll shake the very pillars of their mansion.
That is the power of this uniform.
Hey witch!
Your hair has turned grey, and still your eyes cling to my husband.
Stop this drama,
or I’ll throw red chilli powder into your eyes.
Mind it.
Is your husband some young stud to be leaping over fences?
–I’m leaving, Mom. –Okay, dear.
Dear? –Huh!
Darling, look here. –Huh!
Hmm?
Heat up that cold curry,
and have him tie the bedposts.
I’ll be back in a jiffy.
Pain I can manage.
At night, nothing much is possible.
My daughter’s off to write an exam, I’ll go with her.
Rascal! Go, go! –Alas, you two never spare me.
Brother.
I’m off for my exam, look after the village.
Alright, go, I’ll handle it.
Okay, brother. –Okay.
Women should avoid avare beans, and men should steer clear of peanuts.
They cause nothing but trouble.
Raju, did you write well? -I did.
Papa,
I wrote the exam well.
You must become an SI, –Hmm.
and show this entire village what the law really is.
How was your exam, son?
Weren’t you on duty in the village?
How are you back already?
They said security isn’t needed, so they called us off.
So we returned.
How can they pull the force out without informing anyone?
You know your station better than I do,
what can I say?
Come.
Bhagyamma,
the young lord’s brothers got bail.
They’re being released today. Be careful in the village.
Papa,
go to the village and warn everyone to stay alert.
I’ll go meet the SP. –Hmm.
[SOMBRE MUSIC PLAYING]
Only after nobility agreed did this village get a station.
But she got us arrested.
A wind of courage has begun to blow in a forest ruled by fear.
Don’t just cut down the trees. Burn the whole forest.
Come.
[FIRE CRACKLES]
Alas, why? What happened? Why everyone running scared?!
Go! Go! Go inside.
Go and hide in the corner.
Get inside.
Get in, quick.
Take the children and hide at the back.
Go.
Go quickly.
Where does that boy live?
Outside the village.
Go there.
You search this street.
Search there.
[INTENSE SOMBRE MUSIC]
Come out.
Lord, I’ve done nothing.
Who are you people?
Hey! Let me go!
Leave me!
[GROANS PAINFULLY]
Beat! Beat him!
Go! Go inside!
Come.
Brother!
O god!
[SCREAMS]
Let me go!
Leave!
Please don't hurt my brother!
Leave him!
You dare to hurt my son?
Mom!
Leave!
Leave my mother!
Don't spare her.
Beat her!
[LAUGHS]
Puttamma.
Lingakka, Goggayya!
Where are you, Goggayya?
Bhagyakka, where are you?
Goggayya!
Who’s there?
You want Goggayya?
Hmm.
You all joined hands to give justice to the dead.
Now, right before your eyes,
I’ll take her life.
Come on.
Those who once testified are quiet today.
Speak.
Hey!
Even Yama should think twice before throwing a noose at nobility.
Lord!
Someone chopped off Doddanna’s arm!
Who?
Face wrapped in cloth, he looked like Yama himself.
He’s pounding our men to a bloody pulp.
The villagers are looking at him like a god.
[LAUGHS]
You ruled us for years on the strength of our innocence, right?
Now he’s coming to grind you into dust.
Was he hiding in the woods all this time?
Who the hell is he?
Why has he come here?
Call him Adaviraaya,
[INTENSE MUSIC PLAYING]
or call him the god who came down to save us.
If a god has a weapon in each hand,
then whatever he holds turns into a weapon.
[THUNDER RUMBLING]
Hey!
Why would a man like that hide his face?
Your Adaviraaya.
[LAUGHS]
Even knowing I’m going to die,
I’m still laughing. Understand what that means.
He doesn’t smear his forehead before a battle.
He comes only to burn you to ash.
[LAUGHS]
Run. Save yourselves.
Let’s see which Adaviraaya comes to rescue you now.
Burn everything.
Burn it down.
Burn!
Burn there! Burn there
Burn it.
Run! Cops are coming.
[ENGINE HUMMING]
[WEEPING]
Devi!
Let go of me.
[WEEPS]
[INDISTINCT COMMOTION, SHOUTS]
[BIRDS CHIRPING]
[MELANCHOLY MUSIC PLAYING]
Who is he?
He came in the dark, face wrapped and hidden.
He vanished before we could see who he was.
[GOATS BLEATING]
Mom! –Huh?
Mom! –What is it, dear?
Won’t you perform widow’s rites for me?
Huh?!
Who tied this wedding thread?
Devi tied it, Mom.
[WEEPS]
My dear…
Come here.
Look at the way she has come.
Why did you do this?!
Why?!
Why, dear?
Did you never feel like asking your father?
Are you afraid to ask him?
Not fear, Papa.
Faith.
Because I said my father and I would stand between you and danger,
Devi tied this wedding thread and agreed to testify.
Before I could even feel the weight of this chain, this sindoor, these bangles,
I lost everything.
Hey! Get up!
Get up, I said!
Get up!
Sit!
O God, you crushed my girl’s life before it had even begun.
Let no mother anywhere on this earth ever have to do this with her own hands.
Lingamma!
My dear… Let me perform the rituals required.
These are not customs, they are cursed rites.
From birth no woman is neither widow nor bride.
Her bangles and sindoor should remain till the day she turns to dust.
We are her parents, her only father and mother.
We have no right to take anything away.
We only have the duty to give.
We must keep giving.
Does God ever hand the suffering meant for the poor to the rich?
Live well, my child.
You must live well, my child.
Let it go now. Let it go.
Sit.
No, lord.
I never sat down in front of your father.
Can I sit now?
Sit.
Tomorrow my verdict has to be the last word.
If anyone challenges it…
On our way back from jail, Adaviraaya pounced on us.
So we stormed into Tegginakere.
If anyone cooks up false witnesses against us, we won’t spare them.
Who is he, this Adaviraaya?
With an axe in his hand, he tore through the village and lit the fires.
Raachayya,
ask your daughter.
Law and order must be laid on the ground, not staged on a dais.
Sir!
My daughter walked on the side of the law.
How can you say this is her doing?
First find where this spark was actually born.
If you keep blaming one another, the fire will only spread.
Let us come to a decision here in the panchayat.
They beat the people in the slum.
They burned alive those who came forward to testify.
If we bury these deaths under the name of panchayat,
what justice is left?
If this is what you call justice, then I’ll go to the court.
Hey!
[INTENSE MUSIC PLAYING]
You’ll go to court?
For one FIR you filed, all of Tegginakere burned.
There was rioting, chaos.
Do you know what happens if they file a counter‑case?
On whom will you file it?
On the Tegginakere labourers, or the Myaginakere landlords?
On my brother who lost his hand,
or on the Adaviraaya who chopped it off?
On whom?
Your department has crossed the lines of my family’s customs.
Only because of my father’s word am I still patient,
or I would’ve burned this place down.
Lord, calm down.
She’s a labourer’s daughter…
she doesn’t understand. I’ll talk to her.
Look, instead of dragging this through courts and law,
let’s all sit together and settle it here.
After that, the panchayat can declare the verdict,
and we’ll accept it.
Lord, say it.
[DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
People of Tegginakere died.
Myaginakere escaped death.
What happened is tragic, and I’ll ensure it is not repeated.
Those who suffered loss must receive compensation from the government.
MLA, see to it. -Okay, lord.
For the sake of peace in this village,
let us treat this as a small riot and end it.
That’s my decision.
But as for the one, Adaviraaya, who stirred all this up,
we must know who he is. The police must bring him in.
Alright, lord.
And Parthasaarthi and Bhagya, who lit this spark with a single FIR…
they must withdraw that FIR,
pay a fine of five hundred rupees. That is my verdict.
No court will give a judgment this quick or this sharp.
You all agree, don’t you?
We agree, we agree, sir. What more justice do we need?
Raachayya, take the girl and go home.
Go.
[CRICKETS CHIRPING]
Why come at this hour, Raachayya?
Why should I come to these big men at all?
All those great men sat together and dumped the blame on my Bhagya.
Is that what you call justice?
Raachayya,
you came to this village seeking your daughter’s police posting.
But do you even know how this village got a police station?
[MATCHSTICK SIZZLES]
In these parts, the senior lord’s word was the law, and that was the end of it.
Shiva Reddy of the next village,
no matter how hard he fought for the Hulidurga panchayat chair,
couldn’t crack the fortress the senior lord had built.
At that time,
he realised sandalwood thieves from Andhra were hacking our forests bare
and using our village as their shortcut.
Shiva Reddy understood that muscle wasn’t enough anymore,
so he bent the law itself to bring the senior lord down.
To become the local strongman,
to rise above you,
he sent a recommendation to Delhi.
He secured a sanction for a police station here.
[DARK BROODING MUSIC]
That day, the station in our village was inaugurated.
[CROWD APPLAUDING]
In Hulidurga,
rain, sun, sin, virtue, birth and death all moved by my word.
Now you bring something new.
“ACCORDING TO THE LAW.”
Panchayat justice is my family property.
Now because you’ve come, do I start saluting you?
Oh no, lord, not that.
This is about illegal activity on the Andhra–Karnataka border.
Mercy is not our work, officer.
This station stands on our land.
You’ll do as we say. No FIR, no complaint.
I’m not asking as a favour.
I’m giving an order.
Does a government servant need a lesson in following orders?
Come on, salute.
Alright, lord.
Our village police station…
became the beating heart of the senior lord’s power.
When Malanna came asking why there was no FIR for his father’s death,
I need to know who killed my father.
If this station won’t take a complaint,
I’ll go to the taluk station.
I’ll throw the killers in jail.
[ENGINE REVVING AND HUMMING]
When we ask for cash, you pay us with grains.
I had enough of you folks.
I won't live in this village.
I will leave this village and work elsewhere.
[DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
[GUNSHOT BOOMS]
Chandappa and Giriyappa died for the crime of talking back.
We saw all this and still somehow learned to live as if nothing happened.
Question their rule, and they come and cut you down.
Amidst that...
if you file a case on the young lord, do you think they’ll spare you?
Raachappa!
Forget about justice for now.
First think how we’ll keep our daughter alive.
Papa!
[GASPS SHARPLY]
My dear.
At this hour?!
Here, hold this.
Wait, I’ll carry her.
Why, what’s wrong?
[SHUSHES] Come, come with me.
Why, Dad?
Any moment now, your lives could be in danger.
These demons won’t spare us. –Why is he so restless at this hour?
Come, come.
Let’s leave this village. –I don’t understand anything.
What happened, Papa? –Poking them again and again isn’t wise.
Come, dear, I’ll explain later.
You both should steer clear of the fate that Devi experienced.
Apart from you and your mother,
who do I have?
Devi isn’t the one who died, this village’s humanity did.
Did you educate me so I could run from injustice?
I gave Devi my word that as an SI I’d bring justice to this village.
I’m not leaving this place.
The last time I stumbled like this,
you and your mother paid the price.
This child must not suffer that.
You’re the one who challenged and won against the law.
You must end this custom of sacrificing thousands to save one.
Bring a system where everyone is equal, where the Constitution shields all.
If the law truly comes to this village, this village will find its balance.
Then not just the living,
but Devi, Ajji, Sheshanna, all the dead will see justice.
This is not a wound this village can heal with compromise.
It seeks destruction.
Raachayya, who kept begging for two acres of land,
must become Kodli Raachayya again.
Now the axe will thirst for blood. Your mother won’t allow that.
At least you tell her.
Where is your mother?
Mom!
Lingamma.
-[DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING] -[AXE WHETTING SOUNDS]
Where can we go?
How far can we run?
How many times can we run?
Wherever we go, this is a labourer’s fate.
Protecting god weilds up arms.
If we don’t hold them tight, how will we fight?
If a tiger turns saint, it still doesn’t forget how to hunt.
[LAUGHS SOFTLY]
If they stand to kill, we’ll stand to defend.
Come, let’s face them.
Who's that Adavi Raaya?
Speak, spit it out!
Speak! -Spit it out.
Bark it out. -Who's that Adavi Raaya?
-Speak I say! -Who's that Adavi Raaya?
[GROANS PAINFULLY] Spare me, lord! -I don't know lord!
[GROANS AND GRUNTS] I don't know! -Speak.
Tell me.
I swear on my mother, I know nothing, lord!
–Damn you! –[GROANS PAINFULLY]
If a riot will bring him out,
then let’s call for a riot.
Tomorrow, at the Tagaru (Ram) fight, kill that constable.
She started filing the case,
we’ll be the one to end it.
From Devapura’s Ghati Reddy,
to Hulidurga’s self‑proclaimed “tiger”,
and our Tagaru Kaali in between…
all of you are invited to witness these two rams collide.
It’s our duty to ensure there’s no chaos.
Ok, sir.
Kiddo! -Hmm?
Be careful. -Hm.
Crush him in a single charge. Release him!
Release!
[INTENSE MUSIC PLAYING]
[CROWD APPLAUDS]
Begin!
Smash him!
Hey!
What are you doing?
Give it here.
Move.
Hey! Hey! Move back, move back.
Hey! Hey!
[AXE CLANKING ON EACH OTHER]
Hey, big man!
You spent so many sleepless nights searching every corner of the village.
Now don’t blink and watch.
He is Adaviraaya.
This is the Raachayya who fells sky‑high trees in ten strokes,
who can cut down sixty men if they stand before him.
This is Kodali Raacha too.
For my daughter’s life,
I chained this war elephant myself.
If her life is threatened, do you think he’ll stay calm?
Hey!
Everyone has a history.
He has legends.
If you’ve got courage,
stand in the middle of Ramdurga and ask about Kodali Raachayya.
They won’t answer you.
They’ll only warn you.
Come, my dear.
[INTENSE DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
–[CRICKETS CHIRPING] –[ENGINE HUMMING]
[THUNDER RUMBLING] Truth is our parents,
[FIRE CRACKLES]
Truth is our kith and kin. [BRAKE CREAKS TO A STOP]
I don’t know who you are.
Who are you?
Who is he to you?
What has he done for you?
[THUNDER RUMBLING]
[INSECTS TRILLING]
You ask what he has done?
Look around you once.
We used to fold our hands and bow our heads.
He is the one who gave us the courage to stand up to people like you.
He taught us the strength of letters.
He made us understand what dignity of heart is.
He made ordinary people stand as equals.
That is our Raachayya.
[THUNDER CRACKING]
For touching the chariot, they burned the chariot itself.
That was the day those who ate gruel in coconut shell stood up to those who ate off copper plates.
Drinking thin gruel,
my Raachayya pulled the god to our side for the first time.
[BIRDS CHIRPING]
From generation to generation,
Choma, Kariya, Kaati, Gutti... none of them ever owned a field.
Mother Earth graced for Bhanamma’s stubbornness and Raachayya’s strength.
To keep his word, Gowda had to give two acres of land.
That day he proved that anyone who wished could become a farmer.
He toiled day and night.
From the fire inside his chest,
he raised crops as high as his chest.
Lingamma,
I feel joy like a blind man getting his sight back.
In that happiness, I have no words at all.
Alas, alas...
For twenty years this life waited to hear this one line.
Just once, call him “son.”
[BIRDS CHIRPING, TWEETING]
I will.
I will call him so loudly until my throat tear open.
Before that, all of you go to Madappa’s hill,
offer one share of this crop to the deity.
My dear,
Come, let’s go to the hill.
Those tall crops felt like an insult to the landlord.
A stone hen’s crow brings no disaster, nor a dumb calf’s bellow.
The day the hungry hand that begs for rice becomes the hand that owns it,
that is disaster.
[CRICKETS CHIRPING]
Hey!
Who are you?! What are you doing in the field?
[CATTLE GRUNTS]
Go! Go! Go!
[SCREAMS IN PAIN]
[FIRE CRACKLES]
Gowda!
Come out.
You people only know hatred and revenge on us.
Seeing that my son wasn’t at home, you drove cattle into our field.
Thoo!
Are you even a man?
You grow arrogant the moment you get a piece of land?
You’re a corpse rotting on the street,
how dare you rise up and talk back to us?
Kill that old hag.
Hey!
Hey, beat her!
Beat her!
You dare challenge the lord?
Men don’t dare speak in front of us.
You dare open your mouth?
Hey!
[DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
Hey!
Leave a breath in her till her son comes back.
We’ll finish him along with her.
[MELANCHOLY MUSIC PLAYING]
MOTHER!
♪ Don't abandon me, O mother ♪
MOTHER!
♪ Don't abandon your child, O mother ♪
[BIRDS CHIRPING, TWEETING] ♪ I lived my life for your word ♪
♪ In the moment a child meeting his mother. ♪
♪ I lived with challenging myself for the love of my mother. ♪
♪ O lord please purge me out of this deceit. ♪
♪ There's darkness without the lamp illuminating the life. ♪ MOTHER!
♪ O lord, I beg of you. Protect her. ♪
♪ Don't abandon me, O mother ♪ -[WEEPS] Mother!
Please speak.
I back from the temple, say something, Mother.
I visited the temple, please speak, mother! ♪ Don't abandon your child, O mother ♪
Mother!
Mother! Mother!
Mother! Please speak.
Raa— –Mother!
Mother!
Mother! Please speak.
[WEEPS]
MOTHER!
Hey!
Don’t! Don’t! Don't!
Don’t!
Don’t, Raacha!
Grandma! –Mother!
Mother!
What we suffered for so many years,
I could not change.
So nothing will change until it is challenged.
For that, education is essential.
The educated stand higher than those with just money and status.
[SABRE CLATTERS]
Pick up the pen,
not the blade.
Because of the fear he created,
the old landlord rule never returned to that village.
Because he bore life imprisonment like an innocent child,
they released him in just seven years.
That is the respect he has for the law.
A life that once fought such battles,
if it’s silent now even after so many atrocities,
it is only because of the promise he made to me and my daughter.
Not because he fears some stray dog.
For this saintly man who did all this,
the villagers don’t call him Raachayya.
They call him Kodali Raachayya.
[IN UNISON] Hail Kodali Raachayya!
Swami...
An axe that can bring down trees won’t struggle to kill men.
Change, or he will change you.
–[THUNDER RUMBLING] –[SPARKS SIZZLING]
–[CRICKETS CHIRPING] –[ENGINE HUMMING]
[CATTLE BLEATING]
People who once lived quietly as labourers,
after we filled them with the madness that land means life and freedom,
if we now put the plough back in the attic,
it makes no sense.
Raachu, won’t you fulfil your father’s dream?
Hey, Guddela. –Hmm?
Look at this peacock feather.
If you ever talk again of dreams and fulfilment,
I’ll smash your face with this same broom.
Owning land is not written in my fate.
I have bigger battles than land to fight.
What is it, dear?
The landlords’ daughter is coming to our street.
Rathnakka, why's she in our streets?
-[GOATS BLEATING] -Look over there
From the day I was born, I’ve seen it.
The only name my uncle feared was Raachayya.
To protect my love, I had only two options,
one was the temple, the other was your house.
When I prayed to that god,
he pointed me to your door.
Protect my love somehow, Raachayya.
I fold my hands before you.
If she has done no wrong,
no woman should have to use her saree pallu as a begging bowl.
[CATTLE GRUNT]
She must kick the chest and snatch her right.
Learn a few letters and you start eyeing our daughters?
Bloody beggars!
Sir!
Shobha, how long will you keep trusting these people?
Come back with honour.
Forget him tying you a wedding chain,
I’ll hang him like a scarecrow.
Hey!
You go, dear.
This is a landlord family’s matter,
we’ll sort it among ourselves.
What is needed here is not compromise,
but the Constitution.
Daughter,
what does the law say?
If two people wish to marry, they have the right to do so.
Then get them married.
If witnesses fall short,
use the police as witnesses.
If that’s not enough, let all these so‑called big men stand witness.
Let me see who dares stand against it.
May you live happily for a hundred years,
I pray to god.
[CAR DOOR OPENS]
[CAR DOOR CLOSES]
[ENGINE REVVING]
He's wearing the lion etched Kada.
Why's he scared of those dogs?!
Papa, they may have killed Devi,
but we shouldn't let his dream die.
You protected your daughter enough,
henceforth, you should spark the fire of revolution.
Since many years we toiled for generations,
we presented our own skin at their feet.
Everyone should join Raachayya's protest. -Come on.
Come, come.
No one should work.
Come, let's go.
[INTENSE DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
They must learn the worth of those who toil.
Until their fields rot,
no one should harvest the grain.
What do you say? –[IN UNISON] Yes! Yes!
Raachayya, sparking the revolution among all.
Raachayya’s revolution has surrounded us.
Make your move before it knocks on your door.
This isn't the time to fight with laborers,
first plan the grain harvest.
They are expendendables,
once we don't need them, discarding them isn't an issue.
[INTENSE DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
Greetings, lord.
Only when these lords give work will your bellies be filled.
You all live because of us.
Without labourers, grain would never pile up,
mud would never become a house,
ore would never turn to gold,
cotton would never become khadi,
stone would never become an idol.
If god made this earth,
it is the labourer who creates life on it.
We are not living off you.
You exist because of us.
If that’s so,
will none of you come to work for us?
If we get wages worthy of our work
and the respect our hearts need,
we will work anywhere.
So tell me, what are your demands?
What does the law say?
Everyone must get equal wages.
Pay according to the work.
And give a stomach‑full meal.
If you want, cut a little more money,
but we will not serve food.
Then everyone will be back at work tomorrow.
[IN UNISON] Hail Kodali Raachayya!
One more thing.
Today, as labourers, we are taking our rights.
One day, we will take the land that is ours.
If anyone stands in the way of the land meant for Putamma...
this axe will answer.
[IN UNISON] Hail Kodali Raachayya!
[SCREAMS IN FRUSTRATION]
–[GOATS BLEATING] –[BIRDS CHIRPING]
Even if I bear a son to this nobleman,
you are the godmother.
Bless me.
This damned culture has ruined our family values,
Let’s forget that the mango grove by the tank isn’t ours.
But...
like Shesha,
I still wonder how many more will come claiming our bloodline.
Lords need stronger underwear than courage.
If you sow seed in every eye‑spot,
won’t crops sprout everywhere?
That is not called a yield.
It's prestige.
It’s good, isn’t it?
It seems you're joyfully celebrating your pregnancy.
We are the ones who were below your feet,
begging for a little support in life, and you planted your bloodline in my womb.
This debt to you can never be repaid, lord.
He’s kicking his father.
Watch, a son will be born.
He’ll become a leader like you.
Lord!
What happened? Did I say something wrong?
[DARK BROODING MUSIC]
Forgive me!
[GROANS]
Our lineage stands in this town like a sacred kalasha (Urn)
You are filth on me.
I must wash this filth off.
If we worship our god, people will worship us like gods.
If my heir comes from your womb,
I will just be mere human.
Not human.
I will not like to become human, Padma.
I will be god.
I will stay as god.
[WAILING] My daughter!
Raachayya killed my daughter in their chaos for land.
Raachayya killed her! [WAILS]
Alas!
Uncle. –Huh?
Come inside. –Okay.
Papa. –Huh?
You come too.
[DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
Tell me, what is it?
He killed Basavi,
and now he wants to use the maid as a false witness
and send Father to jail, Uncle.
Hey!
Whoever comes, I will deal with them.
They’ll have to walk over my dead body to take my husband.
You keep quiet, Lingamma.
The MLA sahib is our man, one of us.
We voted and made him win.
Will he abandon us and support the landlords?
[LAUGHS]
To arrest me,
if he leaves panchayat justice and comes to court and law, that’s our first victory.
The one who taught us what the law really is…
we must prove that under that law, truth wins.
Come, dear.
Have you lost your mind?
Instead of someone else arresting me and parading me through the village,
let our daughter do it.
It will be her pride as someone who studied the law.
Fool, come, dear.
Rachayya, stop!
Damn!
[INTENSE DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
Oh‑ho!
Father is a murderer, daughter is a cop.
There’s a law for me too.
For those who think the law will protect them,
that law has a door and a lock.
Did you forget that people like me hold the key, Raachayya?
Huh?
Go and come back.
Raachayya! –Papa!
Here comes Raachayya’s army.
Lord, the people are angry. –Hey!
Sir.
The sacrifice of innocent heads must end today.
Until then we won’t move from here.
[IN UNISON] We want justice!
Why are we protesting? -[IN UNISON] For justice!
If you protest without reason in front of a station,
what happens to law and order, sir?
[IN UNISON] We want justice!
What does the law say?
It says to kick them and throw them out.
Go, charge. ಹೋಗಿ ಚಾರ್ಜ್ ಮಾಡಿ.
[COMMOTION ENSUES]
Lord, please don’t.
Tell the cops not to attack our people.
O god! Leave me!
Let me go.
Why, Officer?
Your lady constable writes an FIR very nicely,
but can’t she do a lathi charge?
Lord!
Don’t! I beg you. Please ask them to stop.
[COMMOTION CONTINUES]
For years, landlords’ words ruled here,
without crossing the village border.
We bowed our heads and worked like cattle.
Then you crossed Hulidurga’s border to earn money.
If you’d just erred, I would have forgiven you.
But what you did is a crime.
Your leader will go to jail,
he’ll be punished.
But your punishment remains.
No, Lord!
Revolution!
Struggle!
I’ve seen how you live.
Get as many laborers as needed from Punnur, Andhra.
They brought Andhra men to do the work.
Not just work, deny Tegginakere folks even food.
No landlord will hire us for fear of the young lord.
[INTENSE DRAMATIC MUSIC]
While we go for water,
they won't let us near the wells.
Children play in dust, no shop gives us food.
Even the shops refuse to sell us a matchbox.
Hotels refuse to let us in.
Pregnant women walk the streets looking for a morsel.
Here, eat.
No.
[SOBS, SNIFFLES]
Don’t cry, dear.
Look here.
Alas!
Don’t cry, dear.
I can’t bear it.
Don’t cry, dear.
Look at me— –Leave.
I don’t want food. Go.
[SOBS]
[MELANCHOLY MUSIC PLAYING]
[WEEPS]
Lord!
Hunger washes away words like equality and Constitution.
We won’t repeat this mistake, Lord.
I beg you.
Give my people work.
Release my father.
My family will leave this village.
If a falling betel‑leaf tree is held up by a vine…
that’s alright.
If that vine grows so strong that it fells an oak…
I admire it.
I admire your courage and your bravery.
We have a custom of giving gifts to women who visit our home.
Take it.
I could have given you a gold‑trimmed or silver‑trimmed sari.
But I gave you this khaki sari
because khaki is your system.
I want to enjoy watching your systen ****.
[SNIFFLES]
In the village fair, this year...
With those women you become Basavi too.
I will get your father out, and give work to your people too.
He’s asking me to sleep with him.
As women, what difference does it make if you go or I go?
If you lock yourself in and stay silent, how will this village survive?
[DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
Sister!
–This sari? –The lords gave it to wipe away “karma.”
I don’t even know what they meant.
This sari becomes either a cradle or a hanging noose.
Let’s show them the power of a sari.
Start the jeep. –Sir!
They didn’t go home after the wedding.
They went to the cemetery as corpses.
This sari that Shobha is wearing is witness to that.
They performed the ritual and gave it to “remove karma.”
Will you take the complaint now, sir?
Damn it, are you here to do duty or to protest?
Your one FIR sent your father to prison.
The village turned into a graveyard.
You keep quiet.
Start the jeep, I said. -Sir!
Hey! Hey!
What is this?
He says if I sleep with him wearing this khaki sari, he’ll “settle” it.
Will you send me to his bed in this sari,
or send me to arrest him?
Damn you!
He wants to strip this entire system naked.
Bhagyamma,
the SI is on leave.
I’ll file the complaint.
Let the men who pawned their wives stay here.
what the hell are you saying? -The rest of you, come with me.
Come.
Hey, Saarthi!
Do you really want to die listening to him?
Hey! Stop! Stop!
[SANSKRIT MANTRA CHANTING]
Go.
Hey!
You barge in like a street dog.
Just because you have authority,
you walk in even when you lack basic worth.
My father taught me culture so I don’t cross my limits,
and the government has given me the right to enter any place.
[INTENSE MUSIC PLAYING]
Khaki is just a piece of cloth,
but it carries the shine of the law.
You wanted to strip me in this khaki, right?
I came wearing the same sari to crush your arrogance.
For murdering your daughter Shobha and her husband,
the head of this family,
I am placing him under arrest.
Hey, man!
Will you come quietly…
or shall I drag you out?
[OMINOUS MUSIC PLAYING]
Let’s see how you take him past us.
Force!
[GUN COCKING]
No one in history has ever prospered by making women shed tears.
A man is one who protects his wife,
not one who makes any random woman pregnant.
Not everyone become Basavi,
some will become the disaster to remember.
If anyone blocks us,
shoot them.
[INTESNE DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
[SCOFFS ANGRILY]
She's arresting the young lord!
Hey!
Tell him I’ve gone to Bangarapet. -Okay, sir.
Hey! Release my brother.
Release him.
[RAACHAYYA SINGING] ♪ The fruit of this life’s karma ripened? ♪
♪ It has ripened. ♪
Swami.
Did they lock you in as well?
Swami.
Your body turns to ash after cremation,
ours turns to ash the same way.
The law must not be trampled underfoot.
It must be worn proudly like a crown.
Does this law belong to your father? No.
It belongs to no one’s father.
[LAUGHS]
Oh dear, the lord is angry.
[CHUCKLES]
Every bit of my daughter’s education was worth it.
[SINGING]
[LAUGHS]
Lord, you got bail! You got bail!
Lord, you got bail.
Don’t worry.
Go, open the gates.
Bones may be the same, Raachayya,
but you and we are not the same.
You can send your children to school to study,
but what they study there is about people like us.
This Constitution and these laws are 25, 30 years old.
Our family’s “greatness” has a history of a thousand years.
You may have the power to shut a door,
but we have the power to open it whenever we wish.
Lord!
Garland him! [GASPS]
[[INTESNE DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
[GROANS IN ANGER]
You did nothing when he questioned your manhood.
You did nothing when she questioned your manhood.
I’ll act.
She must not die.
She must suffer a fate worse than death.
You are a man.
You are the man of Hulidurga’s noble house.
[LAUGHS]
[LAUGHING CONTINUES]
[WATER SPLASHING]
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING]
[IRON GATE CREAKS OPEN]
Your mother’s prayers hadn’t even ended,
and god already blessed us, Papa.
I don’t know about the prayers made to god, daughter,
but your mother’s prayers are very strong.
Even rocks melt for her tears.
[LAUGHS]
[SNIFFLES]
Here, take this.
Wear these pants,
we have to go meet the MLA sir. –No, I don’t want them.
Wear them, Papa, just try. –They don’t suit me. Come.
It’s warm. [LAUGHS]
Those who used to mock you as Raacha,
now call you Raachayya with respect.
The MLA sir saw your worth and got you bail.
Come, let’s go, Raachayya.
MLA sir is waiting.
Come.
The MLA sir asked me to bring you safely.
He really likes the way we are conducting protests.
So much has changed between last year’s festival and this year’s.
The young lord’s men are planning to attack you,
so I’m taking you by a shortcut.
Your good time is about to begin.
[INTENSE MUSIC PLAYING]
Hey, Raachayya!
Hey!
[INTENSE DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
Hey! Raachayya!
Hey!
Stop it!
Hey! Hey! Hey!
Stop!
Hey, Raachayya!
[COUGHS]
Raachayya! Raachayya!
Are you alright?
Look at me, Raachayya!
Look here, are you alright?
Are you alright?
[DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
Chauda!
The festival hasn’t changed.
Your intentions have.
Hey!
Should a labourer remain a slave till the end?
Thoo!
You’ve proved what we really are.
Raachayya, this is how the world is.
If you rise, who will respect me in Tagginakere?
[INTENSE SCORE PLAYING]
If you bring law here, who will our lords rule over?
If you improve the village, who will vote for our MLA sir?
The MLA sir got you bail and ordered us to kill you here.
Raachayya's praises reach me like my time is done as MLA.
In this village, apart from us, no other leader should rise.
Stab him. Stab him harder.
The young lord has gone to force himself on our daughter,
and the SI sir is guarding it.
That is exactly what we wanted.
That's what we want! -[FIRE CRACKLES, INSECTS TRILL]
[HEAVY DRUMS BEATING SOUNDS]
[WATER SPLASHING]
[INSECTS TRILLING]
The young lord must come forward to tie the wedding chain for Basavi.
You questioned my manhood, remember?
Today I’ll strip your womanhood bare in front of the whole village.
Hey!
Tell everyone to come to the station.
If there’s a kept woman inside the station,
all the surrounding villages will learn what respect this station has.
Come.
[INTENSE DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
Hail Yellamma!
[ALL HAILS IN UNISON]
[WATER SPLASHING]
If you don’t stop these cursed rites and free my daughter,
my husband will hunt every one of you down.
We’ve already killed your husband.
What use is your warning now?
[SOMBRE MUSIC PLAYING]
I beg you, please let my daughter go.
Alas!
O god!
Do none of you have even a drop of mercy?
I’m begging you with my sari as a begging bowl.
Let my daughter live.
Let her go.
My love!
Finish him.
[COMMOTION ENSUES]
If you have guts,
stop the storm that’s arriving.
–[INDISTINCT SHOUTS] –[INDISTINCT COMMOTION]
[INTENSE MUSIC PLAYING]
My dear!
Look!
My dear!
Get up, my dear!
No one should ever wake again in this life.
My dear!
Wake up, dear!
My dear!
History has seen many thunderous storms like him,
and they all died out.
We are the rulers.
We will keep ruling.
You should keep on toiling below us.
They are ruining our daughter's prestige!
Rise, my dear!
My dear!
Goggayya!
Get up, Goggayya!
[INSECTS TRILLING]
[BIRDS CHIRPING]
[INTENSE DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
[WIND WHOOSHES]
–[WIND WHOOSHES] –[FIRE CRACKLES]
Hey!
[METAL CLATTERS]
Get lost!
[SCREAMS SHARPLY IN PAIN]
AY!
[CRICKETS CHIRPING]
Not these women, -[GROANS]
Men like you should be forced to wear wedding chains
and made to do social work.
Tie the wedding chains on them.
Among people holding axes, spades and sickles...
you got this job through your education.
We praised you.
We saluted you.
We thought you’d stand with the people.
Instead you became a watchdog for the landlord’s house.
Shame on you!
In elections you called the poor your own blood,
your family.
We all voted you as our leader.
As soon as the smell of sweat vanished and perfume took its place,
you kicked away the people who sweated for you.
How long will such atrocities last on this earth?
My father crowned me, and I’ll crown my son.
This is not a kingdom.
This is a democracy.
Those who rule must care, protect, and help in times of need.
The judiciary, legislature and executive have all turned towards the educated.
All three are from our community.
When we go seeking justice,
they shut us up.
In the end they lock our houses and burn them down.
Our women are turned into street concubines.
They even poison the holy offerings from the temple.
[MELANCHOLY MUSIC PLAYING]
Who’s crushing whom here?
We are being crushed
by our own people’s feet.
You’ve proved that algae is the enemy of water.
Shame on such a life.
Every person is born from a mother’s womb.
No one fell from the sky or sprouted from the soil.
As rain makes the earth beautiful,
the Constitution will make our lives shine.
The Constitution that preaches equality
must reach every single village.
It’s not a big thing for me to roll their heads.
But...
we must live with our heads held high in front of them.
Daughter,
what punishment does the law prescribe for all their crimes?
It says to arrest me, Goggayya.
[CHUCKLES SOFTLY]
[SOFT DRAMATIC MUSIC]