Movie review

Anniyan (transl. Stranger)

Anniyan is a psychological thriller Tamil movie released in 2005. The plot revolves around
Ramanujan Iyenger alias Ambi. Ambi, as portrayed in the movie is a strict law-abiding
citizen, who follows all the public protocols, be them civil, regarding money, so much so,
even the rules of the traffic, strictly. Ambi does not like protocols being broken, neither the
civil codes broken. The starting of the movie has scenes depicting him persecuting people for
breaking traffic rules. Another scene shows him being angry and dissatisfied with the society
when no one comes forward to help a bleeding person on the road. He does not allow or
involve in corruption, either. He follows the rules so strictly that he is teased with the name
“rules Ramanujan”. His efforts to raise civic awareness go in vain due to pervasive corruption
and a general lack of seriousness. Meanwhile, the movie portrays Anniyan, a grim reaper-
themed vigilante who murders corrupt and indifferent people. Anniyan creates a website,
compiles a list of wrongdoers in it and kills them using punishments described in the Garuda
Puranam, one of the ancient Hindu scriptures. There are scenes of Anniyan, murdering all the
wrongdoers where people upload the wrongdoings of others, anonymously. Even Ambi
himself uploads the name of a few who have committed civil violations. Ambi is secretly in
love with his neighbour Nandini, a medical student and an aspiring Carnatic singer, but never
expresses his feelings due to fear of rejection. When he does get the courage to do so during
the annual festival with the help of his friend, Sub-inspector Chari, she rejects him as she
cannot bear his overbearing nature and constant complaining and nitpicking. Distraught,
Ambi attempts suicide, almost drowning himself before having second thoughts.
Ambi, seeing the civil violations and breakage of rules in public is so distressed that he
develops an alter ego, the aforementioned Anniyan, but he is unaware of it. He also upon
rejection from Nandini develops another alter ego, Remo, a metrosexual model who is totally
opposite Ambi and makes Nandini like him. Nandini commits a corruption fraud and
Anniyan takes over Ambi and chases her with an intent to kill. When Nandini somehow
makes him snap out of it, he is taken to the National Institute of Mental Health and
Neurosciences (NIMHANS) where he meet Dr. Vijaykumar, the chief psychiatrist. Through
recovered-memory therapy, Dr. Vijaykumar uncovers Ambi’s past with an attempt of finding
out what condition is Ambi dealing with.Recovered-memory therapy is a form of treatment
specifically designed to elicit from the client forgotten or repressed memories of traumatic
childhood events, such as sexual abuse. Therapeutic techniques include hypnosis and guided
imagery. The therapy is controversial, provoking accusations and even legal disputes about
the veracity of the memories retrieved and about the clinical validity and efficacy of the
methods used. After this therapy, Ambi is diagnosed with Multiple Personality Disorder.
Research indicates that the cause of DID is likely a psychological response to interpersonal and
environmental stresses, particularly during early childhood years when emotional neglect or
abuse may interfere with personality development. As many as 99% of individuals who develop
dissociative disorders have recognized personal histories of recurring, overpowering, and often
life-threatening disturbances or traumas at a sensitive developmental stage of childhood (usually
before age 6). Through the recovered-memory therapy Dr. Vijaykumar finds out about a
traumatic incident that Ambi witnessed. Ambi’s little sister dies due to electrocution. A live wire
touches a puddle of water as it had not been fixed

Meanwhile, the police are trying to investigate the murders committed by Anniyan and the
DCP of police is hell bent on punishing Anniyan as one of the person Anniyan killed is his
brother. He somehow