Shiva 1990

In a classroom at the VAS College of Arts & Sciences, the film opens with a brutal incident just outside the gates. A gang led by Ganesh, acting on the orders of J. D. Chakravarthi (JD), savages a group of students, leaving fear and confusion in its wake, and a student decides to drop out, underscoring JD’s unchallenged grip over campus life.

Shiva, a new student with a poised, confident presence, arrives and quickly crosses paths with JD’s circle. He joins a small band of friends, including Prakash and Asha, and his blunt stance soon provokes a direct confrontation with JD. A daylight brawl erupts as Shiva and his friends defeat JD’s gang inside the campus, sending a clear signal that the balance of power is shifting. Encouraged by this victory, the friends set their sights on the campus elections. Shiva even suggests his nerdy friend Naresh to run for the presidency, and when Ganesh tries to threaten him, Shiva answers with force. The clash draws the attention of a more dangerous player, Bhavani, whose criminal network is linked to a local politician, Tilak Dhari, and who begins to see Shiva as a potential replacement for JD.

As Bhavani tests the waters, he pressures the college through back channels and refuses to side with the worker’s union leader, Krishna Rao. Krishna Rao reaches out to Shiva, and Shiva agrees to help in exchange for muscle, which he gains by calling on the workers. Amid all this, Asha and Shiva’s growing bond becomes a steady, private alliance, culminating in their marriage as the campus drama intensifies and the threats grow closer to home.

Bhavani escalates with a series of sniper attacks aimed at those close to Shiva. In response, Shiva methodically targets Bhavani’s lieutenants, tightening his own grip on the escalating conflict. The pressure mounts when Tilak Dhari notices Shiva’s determination and decides to pull his support, seeing that Shiva is no longer a puppet but a rising force. The tide turns cruel when Bhavani reaches Shiva’s home, discovers Asha, and—learning that Ganesh has already been dragged to court with an arrest warrant looming—kills Asha and Tilak Dhari, severing two major pillars of support and betrayal in one ruthless move.

The climactic showdown arrives as Shiva and Bhavani collide in a brutal final fight. Shiva emerges victorious, delivering a hard-won justice that clears the city of one of its most fearsome anti-social elements, but the victory is bittersweet. In winning the battle, Shiva loses almost everything he held dear, forced to reckon with the heavy price of violence and the personal sacrifices demanded by a life spent challenging corruption and fear.

The city’s streets gradually quiet after Bhavani’s downfall, but the emotional toll lingers. The story closes on a note of wary resilience, suggesting that justice can be achieved, yet at a cost that alters the lives of those who choose to challenge entrenched power.