Theevandi 2018

Damodaran Rajesh Sharma, a resident of the fictional village of Pullinad, faces a desperate night when a heavy rainstorm and the political tremors surrounding the Rajiv Gandhi assassination prevent him from ferrying his pregnant wife to the hospital. His wife’s brother, Ammavan Shammi Thilakan, an influential yet blunt figure, arranges for a midwife to help—a plan Damodaran initially resists but finally agrees to. In a heartbreaking turn, the child is stillborn, and Damodaran’s world collapses as he places the lifeless baby on a table and hurries to his wife, whose condition worsens. Ammavan, a chain-smoker, blows smoke toward the seemingly dead infant, and to everyone’s astonishment, the child draws a breath and begins to live.

The child, named Bineesh Tovino Thomas, grows up with a precocious curiosity about cigarettes, buying smokes for his uncle with his allowance. As a teenager, he is pushed toward smoking by a friend, Safar Aneesh Gopal, and soon becomes known as “Theevandi”—the local term for a chain-smoker. A foolish remark from Safar lands Bineesh in trouble at school, forced to bring his parents before the principal. He chooses to bring Ammavan instead, and that night, as he lingers over a cigarette, two police constables mistake him for a thief and detain him, bringing his habit into the open for everyone to see.

As years pass, Bineesh’s addiction deepens. He falls in love with Devi Samyuktha, the daughter of Madhu Suraj Venjaramoodu, an active member of the BSCL. Madhu’s initial disapproval gives way to a conditional compromise: if Bineesh can curb his smoking, Madhu will consider backing Devi’s alliance with him. Devi belongs to a different caste, and their relationship hinges on the traditions surrounding the thaali, a sacred thread that signals marriage. Bineesh buys the thaali and tries to present it to Devi’s father, but after repeatedly forgetting, he slips the thaali into a cigarette packet, hoping to avoid heartbreak. Devi’s heartbreak is immediate, and the couple’s romance sours.

Meanwhile, Ammavan and Safar are often seen drifting to Edison Thuruthu, or Edison Island, a haven that hints at a life far removed from political pressures—a place for drifters and dreamers. Bineesh’s frustration peaks, and he attempts to smoke sixteen packs in a single sitting, a stunt funded by Vijith Saiju Kurup, Madhu’s ally, whose own ambitions complicate the village politics. A startling incident unfolds when Sanju, the MLA’s Nepali driver, becomes entangled in the money flow for cigarettes and is found to be grappling with the Blue Whale Challenge, a dangerous online game that pushes him toward a final act of harm. The driver’s woes culminate in a car crash that leaves the MLA in a coma, while Bineesh’s world teeters on the edge of chaos.

The by-election looms, and a rift opens over who should be the party’s nominee. With the coma delaying Madhu’s influence, Vijith seeks the nomination, while Bineesh resents the idea of Madhu controlling the decision. To swing the balance, Madhu deploys a network of spies to shadow Bineesh, testing him to see if he can resist smoking. Some spies move into his home, trying to push him toward a relapse. Bineesh’s resolve buckles at times, but his body begins to resist the urge, and Libash V. T. Vijilesh, one of Madhu’s spies, logs each moment with a plan to capture Bineesh mid-craving.

On the island’s edge, a plan to smuggle cigarettes becomes a grand scheme: Vijith brings Bineesh by boat to Edison Island, where Rasputin and Bob Marley—two free-spirited musicians who embody the island’s counterculture—live away from the village’s politics. Bineesh discovers that Edison Island is devoid of the vices that haunt Pullinad; it is a sanctuary rather than a marketplace. Safar hires a cohort to guard the island and stave off Madhu’s attempts to smuggle cigarettes to the place, while Madhu’s men plot escape routes and covert deliveries.

As the final day of the human-chain protest arrives, Libash leads a bold strike against the guards along the banks and reaches the island by boat. He nudges Bineesh toward one last temptation—an imported cigarette—but by then Bineesh has learned to value a life beyond smoke. He refuses the cigarette and passes the test, winning the challenge in spirit. Vijith, relieved, smiles at the win, only to see the MLA return from his hospital bed in a wheelchair to inaugurate the event, shattering Vijith’s hopes. The moment prompts Vijith to slip back into smoking, becoming a new companion for Ammavan, while Bineesh and Devi find a way to reconcile, choosing a future together grounded in change rather than old habits.

In the end, the story traces a village’s struggle with addiction, power, and tradition, showing how one family’s tragedy becomes the catalyst for a broader, if imperfect, transformation. The characters—Damodaran, Ammavan, Devi, Bineesh, Madhu, Vijith, Libash, and Safar—each contribute to a tapestry of choices, consequences, and the stubborn hope that people can change when confronted with the costs of their choices.