It has been eight years since the release of director Dominic Arun's debut film Tharangam, starring Tovino Thomas, Balu Varghese, and Santhy Balachandran in the lead roles. Dominic and writer-actor Santhy are now basking in the success of Lokah Chapter 1: Chandra, which has become the new industry hit in Malayalam cinema. However, in a post marking the eighth anniversary of the film earlier today, Dominic shared a special poster and acknowledged that his journey as a filmmaker started with the 2017 film. "The film that started it all, the friends who stayed," wrote the director before thanking his Lokah VFX artist Ajmal Haneef for the special poster.
Upon its release, critics appreciated the film for its unique approach to storytelling, but it is now viewed as a cult classic that did not get enough appreciation at the time. In our Tharangam review, Meera Suresh described it as "a laudable experiment" and said that its makers deserved appreciation for "taking the risk" with such a film.
Tharangam follows the adventures of two foolhardy and corrupt police officers, Pappan and Joy, played by Tovino and Balu, respectively. Pappan and Joy are police officers, but they also demand ridiculous favours in a difficult situation. The film's existential and satirical comedy has echoes of Kundan Shah's Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, whereas its eccentricity and colourful characters are somewhat reminiscent of Quentin Tarantino's films. Dominic expressed his love for Tarantino in the title cards of the film themselves.
