Athanokkade

Story:

“Athanokkade” meaning “He’s the only one,” is a 2005 Indian Telugu-language action thriller directed and written by Surender Reddy. Produced by Nandamuri Janaki Ram, Kalyan Ram’s elder brother, under N. T. R. Arts, the film features Kalyan Ram, Sindhu Tolani, and Ashish Vidyarthi in lead roles, with the musical score composed by Mani Sharma.

The movie hit theaters on May 7, 2005, and due to its commercial success, it inspired remakes in Tamil as “Aathi” (2006) and in Kannada as “Lakshmana” (2016). Additionally, it was dubbed into Hindi as “International Don.” The story begins with Anjali sitting by the serene ocean, feeding a white pigeon. A retired DGP, Bhavani Shankar, joins her, and after exchanging pleasantries, she unexpectedly stabs him to death with the help of her maternal uncle Ramachandran.

Anjali reveals that she had been waiting for this moment for many years. The focus then shifts to Ram, living with his loving parents and sister in New Delhi. Against his parents’ wishes, he pursues a course in a Hyderabad college. Unwilling to be separated from Ram, his family relocates to Hyderabad with him. Anjali, harboring her own agenda for revenge against her family’s killers, is revealed to be studying in the same college, assisted by Ramachandran.

Anna a local gangster, enters the scene, engaging in a dispute with another gangster named Pattabhai. Ramachandran attempts to kill one of Anna’s aides, Abdullah, to seek revenge. However, the plan goes awry, leading to Ram killing Abdullah. To avoid repercussions, Ram threatens Anna, claiming responsibility for Abdullah’s death. The situation escalates as Ram kills Sada, Anna’s second main aide, revealing that he is their adopted son on a personal mission to avenge his biological parents’ murder.

Ram discloses his past to his foster parents, revealing that his biological father was an honest ACP in Hyderabad who arrested one of Anna’s henchmen. Anjali and Ram share the same family connection. The narrative unfolds with Anna seeking vengeance against Ram’s family, leading to a tragic massacre that claims everyone except Anjali, Ramachandran, and Ram.

As Ram learns about his past, his foster parents urge him to return, but he refuses. He escorts them to the railway station, narrowly escaping an ambush. Ram encounters Anna, demanding his brother’s return from Dubai. The confrontation intensifies, resulting in Ramachandran’s death, and Ram challenges Anna to meet him at his brother’s location. An intense face-off ensues, where Anna shoots Anjali, seemingly causing her death. Infuriated, Ram retaliates, killing Anna. To everyone’s surprise, Anjali survives the gunshot, and Ram leaves with her and his foster parents, the sole survivors of his family.