Kanthaswamy Full Story Explained (2009)
Imagine a CBI officer who dresses up like a rooster to fight bad guys. That is Kanthaswamy, a 2009 Tamil vigilante action film starring Vikram in the lead role. The movie follows V. Pugazhmarattu Kanthaswamy, a smart and honest officer who secretly helps poor people by stealing from corrupt rich men. He writes letters to Lord Muruga in a temple, then uses his rooster costume to grant those wishes. The film also stars Shriya Saran as Subbulakshmi, the daughter of the main villain. She tries to trap Kanthaswamy by pretending to love him, but things get complicated. The movie is full of comedy, action, and a unique superhero style. It was directed by Susi Ganesan and released on 21 August 2009. The music was composed by Devi Sri Prasad, and Vikram sang most of the songs himself.
A Rooster Superhero
Kanthaswamy is not your usual superhero. He wears a bright rooster costume with feathers and a beak. He fights corruption in a funny, over-the-top way. People in trouble write letters to Lord Muruga in a temple. Kanthaswamy secretly reads those letters and helps them. He does all this while working as a CBI officer.
Full Plot
Kanthaswamy is a CBI officer who works in the Economic Offences Wing. He is honest and hates corruption. Along with his friends, he secretly helps poor people by reading their letters to Lord Muruga in a temple. He disguises himself as a rooster vigilante to grant those wishes. His real name is V. Pugazhmarattu Kanthaswamy.
During a CBI raid, Kanthaswamy finds a huge stash of black money owned by Pallur Paramajothi Ponnusamy, also called PPP. PPP is a rich and arrogant businessman. He pretends to have a stroke to avoid being questioned by the police. His partner Rajmohan is also involved in the corruption. Kanthaswamy wants to take that money and give it to needy people.
PPP's daughter Subbulakshmi gets very angry when she hears about the raid. She decides to take revenge on Kanthaswamy by pretending to fall in love with him. She thinks she can trick him and destroy his career. But Kanthaswamy is smarter than she expects. He knows her real intentions and plays along. This creates a fun cat-and-mouse game between them.
Meanwhile, a local police inspector named Thengakadai Thenappan is trying to solve the mystery of the rooster vigilante. He suspects the CBI is involved but cannot prove it. Thenappan provides comic relief throughout the film. He keeps getting close to the truth but never fully confirms it.
Kanthaswamy uses his time with Subbulakshmi to get information about PPP's bank account. He cleverly tricks her into revealing the password. She answers security questions without realizing she is giving him the code. Kanthaswamy transfers all the black money to his own account. He plans to use it for helping poor and needy people.
When PPP finds out his money is gone, he suffers a real stroke. Subbulakshmi finally understands that her father is a corrupt man. She feels sorry for trying to hurt Kanthaswamy. In the end, Kanthaswamy confronts Rajmohan and reveals his true evil nature to the public. He arrests Rajmohan and brings him to justice.
Subbulakshmi proposes to Kanthaswamy and they get married. They move to Rajasthan to start a new life. But the film ends with Kanthaswamy finding more letters tied to a tree. He puts one letter in his pocket and smiles secretly. This shows that he will continue his vigilante work forever.
Characters
V. Pugazhmarattu Kanthaswamy
Kanthaswamy is the main hero of the film. He works as a CBI officer in the Economic Offences Wing. He secretly helps poor people by disguising as a rooster vigilante. In the end, he marries Subbulakshmi and continues his mission to help the needy.
Subbulakshmi
Subbulakshmi is the daughter of the villain PPP. She initially pretends to love Kanthaswamy to take revenge on him. But she eventually falls in love with him for real. She realizes her father is corrupt and marries Kanthaswamy in the end.
Pallur Paramajothi Ponnusamy
Played by PPP
PPP is a rich and arrogant business tycoon. He hides black money in secret bank accounts. He pretends to have a stroke to avoid police questioning. He suffers a real stroke when he discovers his money is gone.
Rajmohan
Rajmohan is PPP's business partner. He pretends to be a humble and good man. But he is actually just as corrupt as PPP. Kanthaswamy reveals his true nature and arrests him at the end.
Thengakadai Thenappan
Thenappan is a local police inspector who provides comic relief. He tries to solve the mystery of the rooster vigilante. He suspects the CBI is involved but cannot prove it. His character was played by Vadivelu in Tamil and Brahmanandam in Telugu.
Parandhaman
Parandhaman is a DIG of CB-CID and a friend of Kanthaswamy. He supports Kanthaswamy in his mission. He helps cover up the vigilante activities. He is played by actor Prabhu.
Themes
Robin Hood Justice
Kanthaswamy steals from corrupt rich people and gives to the poor. This is the main theme of the film. He uses his CBI position to find black money and then transfers it to help needy people. The film shows that sometimes the law is not enough to help the poor.
Love and Deception
Subbulakshmi pretends to love Kanthaswamy to take revenge. But her fake love turns into real love over time. Kanthaswamy also pretends to believe her lies. This theme shows how love can change people's hearts and intentions.
Corruption and Greed
PPP and Rajmohan represent the worst of corruption. They cheat poor people and hide black money. Their greed leads to their downfall. The film criticizes how rich people exploit the system to get richer.
Disguise and Identity
Kanthaswamy hides his true identity behind a rooster costume. Subbulakshmi hides her revenge plan behind a fake love. The film explores how people wear masks to hide their real selves. In the end, the truth always comes out.
Ending Explained
The ending of Kanthaswamy is both happy and hopeful. After Kanthaswamy transfers all of PPP's black money to his own account, PPP suffers a real stroke from the shock. Subbulakshmi finally understands that her father is a corrupt man. She feels guilty for trying to hurt Kanthaswamy and realizes he was right all along. Kanthaswamy then confronts Rajmohan in front of the public. He reveals Rajmohan's true evil nature, showing everyone that Rajmohan is not the humble man he pretended to be. The people turn against Rajmohan, and Kanthaswamy arrests him. Justice is served for the poor people who were cheated. Subbulakshmi proposes to Kanthaswamy, and they get married. They move to Rajasthan to start a new life together. But the film does not end there. Kanthaswamy finds more letters tied to a tree, just like the ones at the Lord Muruga temple. He reads one letter and puts it in his pocket with a secret smile. This tells the audience that he will never stop being a vigilante. He will keep helping poor people wherever he goes. The emotional impact is that love can change people, but the mission to help others never ends. The director leaves the message that true heroes do not retire. They keep fighting for justice forever.
Frequently Asked Questions
No, Kanthaswamy is an original story written by director Susi Ganesan. Some people thought it was inspired by The Breakfast Club, but Susi Ganesan said it has a Robin Hood feel. The film is not a remake of any other movie.
Kanthaswamy dresses like a rooster to hide his identity as a CBI officer. The rooster costume makes him look funny and memorable. It also connects to Lord Muruga, who is associated with a rooster in Hindu mythology. The costume helps him scare corrupt people in a unique way.
The Telugu version of Kanthaswamy is called Mallanna. It was released at the same time as the Tamil version. In the Telugu version, Vadivelu's comedy scenes were partially reshot with actor Brahmanandam. The rest of the film was dubbed from Tamil.
The music for Kanthaswamy was composed by Devi Sri Prasad, also known as DSP. Vikram, the lead actor, sang most of the songs in the film. The soundtrack includes popular songs like 'Excuse Me', 'Meow Meow', and 'En Peru Meenakumari'. The audio was launched in Chennai on 17 May 2009.
Yes, Kanthaswamy was a commercial success at the box office. It collected about ₹72.8 million in Chennai alone in seven weeks. The film also performed well in overseas markets like the UK and Malaysia. It received positive reviews from critics and audiences.