Varalaru Full Story Explained (2006)
Varalaru is a 2006 Tamil action-drama that packs a serious punch. Ajith Kumar plays not one, not two, but three different roles in this film. He is a father and his two twin sons. The movie released on Diwali 2006 and became the highest-grossing Tamil film that year. Directed by K. S. Ravikumar, with music by A. R. Rahman, this film is a wild ride of love, betrayal, revenge, and family secrets. If you love stories where nothing is what it seems, this one will hook you from start to finish.
A father's dark secret
Shivashankar is a rich, wheelchair-bound man. His son Vishnu is spoiled and careless. To teach him a lesson, Shivashankar sends Vishnu to a village called Thottapuram. But this trip changes everything. Vishnu falls in love with a college girl named Divya. And then, a twin brother nobody knew about shows up.
Full Plot
Shivashankar is a wealthy, wheelchair-bound man who lives with his spoiled son Vishnu. To teach Vishnu responsibility, he sends him to a village called Thottapuram to help the poor. Vishnu does not want to go, but a local pizza shop owner tricks him and his friends. He tells them the village is a big brothel. Vishnu and his friends go there expecting fun.
In Thottapuram, Vishnu meets Divya, a college student on a social work trip. He thinks she is a prostitute and tries to woo her. Divya and her friends discover his plan and decide to teach him a lesson. They pretend to be interested, then inject Vishnu and his friends with a serum that makes them itch all over. Vishnu is humiliated but still wants to marry Divya. He even brings a mangala sutra to the village temple. Divya feels guilty when she sees him waiting for her.
Vishnu returns home, depressed. Shivashankar discovers his son is in love and arranges for Vishnu and Divya to get engaged. Everything goes well until one night. Vishnu gets drunk at a party and goes to Divya's house. Her family stops him from talking to her. A fight breaks out. Then Vishnu goes to Divya's cousin's house to apologize, but he tries to rape her. Divya is horrified. Vishnu then tries to kill his own father. He stabs the family servant Ko Thandam. Shivashankar sends Vishnu to a psychiatrist.
But it is revealed that it was not Vishnu who did those things. It was his younger twin brother Jeeva. Jeeva hates Shivashankar for abandoning him and his mentally ill mother Gayathri. Jeeva took over Vishnu's identity to get revenge. He got drunk, went to Divya's house, and tried to rape her cousin. He also tried to kill Shivashankar.
The film then goes into a flashback. Shivashankar was a Bharatanatyam dancer who behaved effeminately. His mother arranged for him to marry Gayathri. But Gayathri rejected him at the wedding because he was too feminine. She insulted him in front of everyone. Shivashankar's mother died of shock. In rage, Shivashankar raped Gayathri. She became pregnant and gave birth to Vishnu. Shivashankar took Vishnu away, not knowing that Gayathri had given birth to a twin, Jeeva.
In the present, Jeeva tries to kill Shivashankar at Vishnu and Divya's wedding. Shivashankar gets out of his wheelchair and fights back. Jeeva reveals he is also Shivashankar's son. Jeeva's grandmother confirms this. Jeeva realizes his mistake and wants Shivashankar to shoot him. But a police officer shoots at Jeeva, and Shivashankar takes the bullet. Shivashankar dies. Jeeva is sent to jail.
Weeks later, Gayathri refuses to eat. Vishnu dresses up as Jeeva and feeds her. She accepts the food. Vishnu tells her that Shivashankar is the godfather of the family. The film ends with a message about forgiveness and family.
Characters
Shivashankar
Shivashankar is a wealthy, wheelchair-bound man who was once a Bharatanatyam dancer. He was effeminate and was rejected by his bride Gayathri. In rage, he raped her. He took his son Vishnu away, not knowing about the twin Jeeva. He dies protecting Jeeva from a police bullet.
Vishnu
Vishnu is Shivashankar's eldest twin son. He is spoiled and careless at first but falls in love with Divya. He is framed by his twin brother Jeeva for crimes he did not commit. In the end, he dresses up as Jeeva to feed his mother Gayathri.
Jeeva
Jeeva is Shivashankar's younger twin son. He was abandoned by his father and grew up with his mentally ill mother Gayathri. He hates Shivashankar and wants revenge. He takes over Vishnu's identity to cause chaos. He realizes his mistake and is jailed.
Divya
Divya is a college student who falls in love with Vishnu. She initially tricks him but later feels guilty. She believes Vishnu is innocent when he is framed by Jeeva. She marries Vishnu in the end.
Gayathri
Gayathri is Shivashankar's wife and the mother of Vishnu and Jeeva. She rejected Shivashankar at their wedding because he was too feminine. She was raped by him and became pregnant. She became mentally ill after Jeeva was almost hit by a lorry. She refuses to eat until Vishnu dresses as Jeeva and feeds her.
Ko Thandam
Ko Thandam is Shivashankar's loyal servant. He is stabbed by Jeeva when Jeeva tries to kill Shivashankar. He survives and continues to serve the family.
Themes
Family and Forgiveness
The film shows how family bonds can be broken by hatred and betrayal. Shivashankar abandons Jeeva, which leads to years of revenge. But in the end, Jeeva forgives his father after realizing the truth. Vishnu also forgives his brother and takes care of their mother.
Revenge and Redemption
Jeeva's entire life is driven by revenge against his father. He wants to destroy Shivashankar's family. But when he sees his father take a bullet for him, he realizes his mistake. He asks for forgiveness and accepts his punishment.
Identity and Deception
The film is built on mistaken identity. Jeeva takes over Vishnu's identity to commit crimes. Shivashankar hides his past as a dancer. The truth is revealed only at the end. The film shows how hiding the truth can destroy lives.
Love and Trust
Vishnu and Divya's love is tested by Jeeva's deception. Divya believes Vishnu is innocent even when everyone else thinks he is guilty. Their trust in each other helps them survive the chaos.
Ending Explained
The film ends at Vishnu and Divya's wedding. Jeeva arrives with a gun to kill Shivashankar. Shivashankar, who has been pretending to be crippled, gets out of his wheelchair and fights Jeeva. Jeeva reveals he is also Shivashankar's son. Jeeva's grandmother confirms this. Jeeva realizes his mistake and wants Shivashankar to shoot him. But a police officer shoots at Jeeva, and Shivashankar takes the bullet. Shivashankar dies in front of his sons. Jeeva is arrested and sent to jail. Weeks later, Gayathri refuses to eat. Vishnu dresses up as Jeeva and feeds her. She accepts the food. Vishnu tells her that Shivashankar is the godfather of the family. The film ends with a message about forgiveness and family. The credits show what really happened in the first half, revealing all the lies.
Frequently Asked Questions
Ajith Kumar plays three roles in Varalaru. He plays Shivashankar, the father. He also plays Vishnu and Jeeva, the twin sons. This is one of the few Tamil films where an actor plays a triple role.
No, Varalaru is an original story written by R. Sundarrajan. It was first offered to Kamal Haasan, but he declined. Later, K. S. Ravikumar directed it with Ajith Kumar. The film has been remade in Kannada, Burmese, and Odia.
Varalaru means 'History' in Tamil. The film was originally titled 'Godfather'. But the Tamil Nadu government gave tax exemption only to films with Tamil titles. So the title was changed to Varalaru.
The music for Varalaru was composed by A. R. Rahman. He also composed the background score. The soundtrack has nine songs. The lyrics were written by Vairamuthu. The song 'Ilamai' became very popular.
Yes, Varalaru won several awards. Ajith Kumar won the Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil for his triple role performance. The film was also the highest-grossing Tamil film of 2006.