Nirakkoottu 1985

Sasikala Varghese begins a new chapter as a news reporter for the Malayalam daily Keralarema, a paper owned by M. K. Abraham. She shares a living space with her friend and confidante, Dr. Suma, and her first major assignment is to interview Ravi Varma, a wealthy business figure who stands condemned to death for the murder of his wife, Mercy—Mercy is also Sasikala’s sister. The legal path seems clear: the Supreme Court has upheld the death sentence and the President has rejected Ravi’s appeal. Sasikala’s article hits the press and earns her praise from her boss in a formal meeting, yet the newsroom ambience shifts when a cryptic feedback letter arrives at the Keralarema office, hinting that the published account may not tell the whole truth.

The film then redirects the lens to a detailed flashback that unpacks the life of Ravi Varma, a prosperous advertising agency owner. Mercy, who works as a clerk and is also a classical dancer, meets Ravi during a club dance event. He proposes that she join his agency as a model, but Mercy initially resists. Eventually, due to financial pressures and family responsibilities—the ill father and younger siblings relying on her—Mercy agrees to work with his firm. The agency begins to flourish, largely thanks to Mercy’s modeling presence. As their relationship deepens, Ravi, a man who values ambition, and Mercy, who seeks security, enter into a registry marriage across their differing religious backgrounds. After a brief, honeymoon period, Ravi urges Mercy to pose in more revealing outfits, despite her protests, and this creates tension in their home life. When Mercy discovers she is pregnant, questions about paternity reignite conflict, and Ravi asks her to leave. Mercy finds temporary shelter with Dr. Suma, while Ravi files for divorce. A court decrees that Ravi must financially support Mercy and their child until the child grows older.

In a drunken moment, Ravi visits Mercy and offers to settle the matter with a lump-sum payment rather than monthly installments. The night takes a dark turn when a knife comes into play, and Mercy is murdered. The narrative then shifts again to the day just before Ravi’s scheduled execution: he escapes from prison, and fatefully crosses paths with Sasikala, learning that Mercy and Sasikala are sisters, and revealing the truth about the events that led to Mercy’s death.

As the truth begins to surface, a web of deception is exposed. Ajith, a part-time photographer at Ravi’s firm and a former colleague, had harbored a blackmail scheme against Mercy, threatening to expose nude images taken while she was changing for modeling sessions. He uses those photos to sow distrust, and Ravi’s initial misgivings about Mercy deepen when those images reach him. He later learns, from Mercy’s diary, what truly happened, but the discovery comes too late to save Mercy from the consequences of the accusation. Ajith’s treachery escalates when he attempts to assault Mercy, and she is fatally stabbed just as Ravi arrives. Because Ravi was at the scene, both the police and the public mistake him for the killer. The diary and other crucial evidence are burned in the ensuing chaos when Mercy’s diary is destroyed with the burning car.

Driven by a need for justice and vengeance, Ravi escapes from custody and goes after Ajith, whom he defeats, then ultimately surrenders to the authorities, choosing to face the consequences of the tangled, wrongful circumstances that culminated in Mercy’s death. The story that began with a newsroom scoop unfolds into a complex meditation on truth, memory, and the ways in which love, ambition, and betrayal can collide with lethal consequences.