The story follows the newly married inter-caste couple, Sreeja and Prasad, from Cherthala who move up north to Kasaragod. On a bus journey, Sreeja's gold chain is stolen by a thief also called Prasad. He swallows the chain, but not before Sreeja notices it. He gets caught by the passengers, who take him to the nearby police station. On police inquiry, Prasad denies the act. Police accompany him to the toilet the next morning but didn't find any chain. Eventually, after a medical examination, the chain is found stuck inside his stomach. How to extract the chain, then, becomes the question. Next morning, he was again accompanied by the police to the toilet where he tries to run away. He was caught by the Prasad near a canal in the same city and was brought back to the police station. In the police station, he claims that one police officer who caught him from the bus had told him to run away when he gets the chain. Prasad was again scanned for the chain and this time, there was no chain in his stomach. Finding the job in danger, the claimed police officer gives Sreeja a gold chain of him to settle the matter in a way Prasad being guilty. Next day Sreeja confesses that the chain found by police belongs to her and sign the document which claims that Prasad is guilty. In a momentary absence of police, Prasad convinces Sreeja and her husband that she should not lie and tells his story. Prasad tells Sreeja that she may lie here but she should tell the truth in the court that the chain does not belong to her and also tells her husband where he actually threw her gold chain. Sreeja's husband finds the chain and starts his dream of house in the city he wanted to. In the next scene, Prasad is found writing a thanks letter to Sreeja maybe for her truth statement in the court which frees Prasad and also might have helped him to get the gold chain given by the police to Sreeja to change her statement to make Prasad guilty.
Senior Civil Police Officer Sadhanandan as Police Constable
P. Sivadas as Police Writer
K. T. Sudhakaran as Sudhakaran
K. T. Balachandran as Babu Sir
Unniraj Chervathur as Rajesh Ambalathara
Aravindan as Faizal
Sarath Kovilakam as Sarath
Shince Mathew
Surabhi Mundath Payaneer
Production
Initially Pazhoor thought of directing the film himself, before Pothan came on-board. About the genre of the film, Pothen said that he is not sure which genre the film falls in, but it surely has the elements of a "family drama". For some of the police roles, the film features real-life police officers in the cast. Newcomer Nimisha Sajayan was selected from general auditions. Principal photography commenced from 7 December 2016 in Kasaragod. Other locations include Vaikom and Cherthala.
Music
The music and background score for the film is composed by Bijibal, who has previously worked with Dileesh Pothan in Maheshinte Prathikaaram.
Release
Thondimuthalum Driksakshiyum was released in India on 30 June 2017.
Critical reception
Critic Veeyen termed the movie has sardonic wisecracks and the continual cackles, which fundamentally holds the charm of an otherwise unexciting film. He closes of by signifying the exceptional intelligence and grace the film has in terms of flow. Bharadwaj, in the review of the film, stated that "Fahadh Faasil's equal parts lazy and wily trickster acting and Alencier Ley Lopez's character acting as luminously exceptional." He praises on the beauty of police office politics that Dileesh & Sajeev was able to portray as the drive that calibrates the film. Manorama praises real-life police officer Sibi Thomas for his comedic and yet balanced performance. Baradwaj Rangan of Film Companion South wrote "Simply put, Pothan’s films aren’t about the incidents suggested by the titles, but around them. Instead of zooming in, narratively speaking, he goes for the wide shot. This is a generous approach to filmmaking. It says that the main characters are a part of the world around them, and this world needs to be acknowledged as well." Director Shekhar Kapur, jury chairman of 65th National Film Awards commented: "Brilliant film, impressive performance. First you will think it is a simple film with usual romance and elopement. But how subtle are the things introduced in the film? The movie takes a serious turn by the end, leaving you appalled. I have never seen such an excellent performance by actors,".
Box office
Thondimuthalum Driksakshiyum has collected 50 million gross in the first weekend, in 50-days movie collected 173 million gross from Kerala box office. The film was a commercial success. It grossed 175 million from Kerala box office in its lifetime.
