When Rajeev Ravi’s Crime and Punishment is released this Friday, the film is best compared to the 2017 Tamil film Theeran Adhigaaram Ondru. But in a completely different perspective, violence and extremism are avoided, and the guilt and punishment of the ‘stolen villages’ of northern India are told in the light of reality.
The film tells the story of a police team who investigated the October 4, 2016 robbery at Sumangali Jewelery in Kundamkuzhi, Kasaragod. Siby Thomas, the police inspector and actor who led the investigation team, has turned their experiences into a movie story. Philip Thomas, Narayanan Nair, Lakshmi Narayanan and Sreejith K, members of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) in Kasaragod district, led by Inspector Sibi Thomas, chased the robbers into northern India.
The dialogues told by Asif Ali, Sharafuddin, Sunny Wayne, Alanzier and Senthilkrishna are also based on their own experiences. Crime and Punishment are the adventure of the Kerala Police’s journey through unfamiliar lands with the limited facilities and budget of the Kerala Police.
The theme of dealing with crime and punishment is very different from the horrors, encounters and death games handled by Theeran Adhigaaram Ondru. The film depicts the investigative style of the Kerala Police, its friendships and dedication. When a case ends like that, it is their selfless journey to the next case, leaving it entirely to the law and telling the guilt and punishment.