Discription
This narrative centers on Raghava, a man with a severe fear of ghosts, and his family’s terrifying encounter with vengeful spirits. The story unfolds across two timelines, revealing a present-day possession and the tragic backstory that fuels it.
The story begins with a brief prologue. A businessman, seeking a solution to his daughter’s disturbing behavior, consults a friend. The friend advises a visit to a nearby Lord Narasimha temple. During the visit, the daughter’s erratic behavior escalates; she damages the car and flees home. Frightened, the family seeks the help of Russian exorcists, who successfully expel a violent spirit, symbolically trapping it within a tree using two metal nail crosses.
The narrative then shifts to Raghava and his family: his mother, brother, sister-in-law, and niece. They embark on a trip to Coimbatore to celebrate their grandparents’ 60th wedding anniversary. During a roadside picnic, a sudden gust of wind dislodges the metal nail crosses from the ground where they were placed to contain the spirit. Unbeknownst to Raghava, the crosses end up in their picnic basket.
At their grandparents’ house, the family experiences a series of strange and frightening incidents, both during the day and at night. Seeking answers, they visit a Muneeshwaran temple, where an aghori (a Hindu ascetic) provides them with a holy trishula (trident) to plant near their home for protection. That night, the spirit attempts to abduct Priya, one of Raghava’s female cousins, but the trishula intervenes.
The family returns to the aghori, who gives them three ominous dolls to conduct rituals and determine the nature of the haunting presence – whether it is a ghost, ghoul, or vengeful vampire. While the rituals are performed at the house, Raghava, his female cousins (Priya, Kavya, and Divya), and his grandparents are sent away to distribute posters, a diversion to keep them safe.
The rituals themselves are fraught with terrifying events. During the first ritual, a black horse crashes through the house, dragging Raghava’s brother. The second ritual is interrupted by a stampede of bulls. In the final ritual, the dolls’ heads are violently ripped off. As the family flees the house, the spirit consumes one of the doll heads, further intensifying their fear.
The aghori visits the family and falsely claims to have captured the spirit, accepting payment for his supposed success. Raghava, Priya, Kavya, and Divya return to the house. One night, Priya kisses Raghava, and after he inadvertently looks inside the picnic basket containing the crosses, he becomes possessed by the vengeful spirit.
The following night, the girls witness Raghava behaving in an unusually effeminate manner, wearing high heels, lipstick, and mascara. Later that same night, the possessed Raghava violently attacks Shankar’s assistant and then assaults Raghava’s brother and sister-in-law.
The spirit’s violent nature becomes fully apparent when Raghava’s female cousins playfully hug and flirt with him. The possessed Raghava lashes out, physically assaulting his cousins and other family members. Raghava’s grandparents return home, and his mother reveals the terrifying truth: Raghava is possessed by two spirits, one male and one female.
Raghava’s grandfather summons the aghori once again. The aghori admits to his earlier deception, explaining that he lied for a good reason. He then reveals the tragic backstory of Kaali, the male spirit possessing Raghava.
In the flashback, Kaali is depicted as a compassionate social worker, following in his late mother’s footsteps. He runs an ashram that provides shelter and food to the poor and supports the education of aspiring young people. One day, Bhavani, the unruly younger brother of a powerful minister named Shankar, enters Kaali’s ashram. Bhavani demands that Kaali store a large sum of illegally obtained money (₹100 crores) in the ashram, offering to let Kaali keep ₹20 crores as funding.
Kaali refuses to be complicit in Bhavani’s criminal activities, enraging him. Bhavani and his associates retaliate by killing one of the handicapped residents of Kaali’s ashram. Driven by righteous anger, Kaali takes matters into his own hands, killing Dheena, the man responsible for the murder, then “Royapuram” Murthy, Bhavani’s right-hand man, and finally, Bhavani himself. Kaali’s actions garner him widespread support among the people.
Shankar, seeking revenge for his brother’s death, plots Kaali’s demise with his assistant. They orchestrate a deadly attack, using two lorries to run down Kaali and his romantic interest, Rosie, during a motorcycle ride. Rosie dies instantly, and Kaali succumbs to his injuries after witnessing a devastating fire orchestrated by Shankar that destroys his ashram and kills many of its innocent residents.
Back in the present, the possessed Raghava (now embodying Kaali’s vengeful spirit) sets out to kill Shankar. However, Shankar has anticipated this and has hired Russian exorcists to subdue Kaali. In a climactic confrontation, Goddess Kali empowers Kaali, allowing him to overcome the exorcists and finally avenge his and Rosie’s deaths by killing Shankar. Kaali and Rosie’s spirits then depart, leaving Raghava unharmed and returning him to his family. The story concludes with the resolution of the immediate threat and the restoration of order, although the underlying themes of injustice and vengeance leave a lasting impact.
