Aadupuliyattam 2016

In a land where legends breathe into the night, the tale opens with a prince who falls for a woman named Chempakam. After a devastating war defeats him, he escapes to a palace where Chempakam resides, a place known as Chempakakotai. Chempakam reveals a terrifying power: as long she remains there, no one can capture him, and then she cuts her own throat. From that moment, anyone who enters the Chempakakotai area is haunted by a supernatural force. The king spends his nights alone in the palace with Chempakam’s spirit, until his death, a haunting prelude to what follows.

The narrative then shifts to the present, following Jayaram as Sathyajith, a wealthy businessman who shares his life with his wife Amala and their daughter Aami. Visions plague him, pushing him to seek help from a psychiatrist. On the psychiatrist’s advice, he meets the yogi Yogendra Muni, Om Puri, who explains that the cursed Chempakakotai property is behind his torment. The yogi reveals a ritual: soil from four corners of the old fort must be brought to him, and he compartments the soil in three bags—two must be delivered to a priest and a musalyar, while the third remains with him. He warns that the spirit strengthens as the next full moon approaches, thirteen days away, and instructs Sathyajith to stay in the house during that critical period. A raksha (protective charm) is buried in front of the house, and the family is urged to prepare for the coming night. Sathyajith and his allies head toward Chempakakotai, but the ominous power that haunts the place does not yield easily.

In a vivid flashback, we see Sathyajith and his friends as fraudsters who, after amassing money, take up residence in Chempakakotai. Sathyajith falls for Matangi, played by Ramya Krishnan, who has a daughter named Malli. Sathyajith tries to protect Matangi and Malli from Aadhishwaran, a man who seeks to marry Matangi in a deal with Sathyajith to gain control of a fort. The lovers’ bond leads to a bitter twist: Aadhishwaran’s scheme unravels when he reveals the bargain made with Sathyajith. When Matangi escapes with Malli, Sathyajith and his friends lock Chempakakotai and set fire to Mathangi’s house. The ensuing tragedy leaves Mathangi heartbroken and Malli trapped inside the forsaken fortress; Malli perishes from hunger, while Mathangi is later found in a sorrowful, immobile state. Sathyajith returns, discovers Malli’s lifeless body, and digs a grave, only to be confronted by Aadhishwaran, who admits he loved Mathangi while accusing Sathyajith of cold indifference.

Back in the present, Sathyajith and his family move into Chempakakotai, haunted by Malli’s ghost who claims the life of his friend Appu, in a car crash and explosion. Aami begins to show signs of possession, and Amala begs Yogendra Muni for help. The seer confirms that only Mathangi can calm Malli’s restless spirit, and the search for a way to bring Mathangi back intensifies. The family travels to Aadhishwaran’s house to retrieve Mathangi, and a tense confrontation unfolds when Aadhishwaran resists the plan, insisting Mathangi is mad. Mathangi herself explains that she pretended to be insane to wait for Sathyajith and to learn why he cheated her and Malli; she agrees to return once Amala reveals that her unborn child is innocent and should not suffer for past wrongs.

At Chempakakotai, Malli’s vengeful ghost pushes the rituals into a trance-like crescendo. A full ritual of yaga and swamy begins as Mathangi retrieves the bone-pieces plate containing Malli’s remains and places it in the fire. In that moment, Mathangi sacrifices herself, and the danger over the family subsides as Aami returns to normal. The final image lingers on the reunion of Mathangi’s spirit with Malli, ascending together into the sky, a solemn end to a tale that binds love, betrayal, and vengeance across two generations.