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Nayakan

“Are you a good man or a bad man?”

1987 · 2 h 25 min
Directed by Mani Ratnam
CrimeDrama

Cast

Kamal Haasan

Credits

Written by: Balakumaran

Plot

Velu Naicker, a boy from Tamil Nadu, grows up in the slums of Bombay, where after killing a corrupt policeman, he becomes a smuggler and eventually a powerful don, loved and feared. The film follows his rise and the costs of his power, in a story loosely based on the life of Varadarajan Mudaliar and inspired by The Godfather. Mani Ratnam's 1987 film, with Kamal Haasan, was India's Oscar entry.

Sinekatalog’s take

Mani Ratnam's Tamil crime drama follows a Bombay don across decades. Kamal Haasan anchors it, and Ilaiyaraaja's score and the muted cinematography give it gravity. A landmark of Indian cinema.Sinekatalog’s own editorial review – not a user or critic quote.

Ratings

IMDb: 8.6 / 10 (28,310 votes)
IMDb rating and vote count from the IMDb ratings dataset (October 2026). Scores change over time.

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