Naan Sigappu Manithan (1985 film)

Plot

Vijay (Rajinikanth) is a Tamil professor living with his widowed mother and his sister. He is in love with Uma (Ambika), a lawyer. During a visit to his friend Ravi's (Nizhalgal Ravi) house, he is disgusted by goings-on in his neighborhood. Illicit liquor is being sold at a tea-stall while prostitution is flourishing in another house in the same colony. But his complaints to the police, yield nothing since the policeman is on the villains' payroll and manages to warn them before making a raid. When Ravi's sister is raped and killed and the perpetrator Mohanraj (Sathyaraj) gets off scot-free with help from a minister, Vijay and Ravi take matters into their own hands and clean up the tea-stall and brothel on their own. Wanting to teach Vijay a lesson, Mohanraj and his goondas rape his sister (who then commits suicide) and kill his mother. Vijay then turns into a vigilante, walking the streets at nights and dealing out his own brand of justice - shoot first and ask questions later - to the rowdies and goondas. He soon becomes known as Robinhood, helper of the poor and the police sends Singaaram (Bhagyaraj) to unmask Robinhood.

Cast

Themes

Naan Sigappu Manithan is based on the American film Death Wish (1974) and its sequel Death Wish II (1982). According to Jump Cut, one factor that differentiates Naan Sigappu Manithan from those films is the "unleashing of nationalist angst in a climactic courtroom drama scene".

Soundtrack

The music composed by Ilaiyaraaja.