Ronth film review: The raw, gut‑punch Malayalam cop thriller that will haunt you

When was the last time a film kicked you in the gut and left you reeling long after the credits rolled? For me, that film is Ronth, a Malayalam cop procedural that pulls no punches.

Starring Dileesh Pothan and Roshan Mathew as two cops on night patrol, this superbly crafted thriller-drama will knock you out with its rawness and emotional heft. Here’s the beauty of this film — it’s unflinchingly real. There’s no attempt to glamorise the thankless job of a Kerala cop. It’s mundane to the point of being soul-crushing, and the film revels in the reality of a mid-tier cop’s life — no slow motion, no swagger, just exhaustion and survival.

The camera (take a bow, two-time Kerala State Award winner Manesh Madhavan) lovingly lingers on Roshan Mathew and Dileesh Pothan. Roshan plays a babe-in-the-woods cop, while Dileesh is the seasoned veteran — cynical, sharp, and street-smart enough to sniff out a criminal before anyone else. Roshan’s character is still wet behind the ears, not yet street-hardened, and it shows. They’re starkly different — in looks, temperament, and experience — but your heart goes out to both of them. Somehow, despite their differences, you walk away rooting for both. It’s hard not to.

There’s simply no respite here, and director Shahi Kabir doesn’t flinch from plunging into darkness. The night patrol forms the heartbeat of the film, as the two cops respond to calls — domestic violence, missing persons, a mentally ill man endangering his child. They go from call to call, trying to save lives, and often failing. There is no glory in this grind.

You see them trying to keep their own inner demons at bay. Both carry traumas that sneak up when they least expect it. Roshan’s monologue about his mentally ill father’s suicide when he was a helpless child is gut-wrenching. So is Dileesh Pothan’s hardened exterior cracking just enough to show his devastation after his wife unravels from the grief of losing their newborn in childbirth. These aren’t just cops — they’re broken men trying to do their job without falling apart.

Shahi Kabir is masterful with the “show, don’t tell” technique. He trusts his actors — and what a cast he’s assembled. Roshan and Dileesh are electric. They begin as uneasy colleagues, not fans of each other, but gradually form a reluctant bond forged through shared pain and experiences. This dynamic forms the emotional spine of the film.

Interestingly, Ronth also has a Dubai connection. Social media influencer Lakshmi Menon, who has a significant following in the UAE, makes a solid impression in a key role. And the film’s razor-sharp editing, which keeps the tension simmering, is handled by Dubai-based editor Praveen Mangalath. Both bring an international touch to this rooted, hyperlocal story.

I often joke that Malayalam filmmakers have a knack for ending films on gutting notes — even a love story is more likely to end in tragedy than in bliss. It takes a certain courage to deny your viewers a neat resolution. Ronth does just that. Without giving away the ending, let me just say — it will sucker punch you. It will drain you. It will make you question life, morality, and how humans operate in the greys just to make things work in their favour.

This is one of the best Malayalam films — and cop procedurals — you’ll see this year. Set almost entirely inside a police jeep, it explores big questions: How quick we are to discuss police brutality, and yet how easily we overlook that many Kerala cops aren’t even armed well enough to protect themselves. It questions justice, crime, and the cost law enforcement pays every day. There's nothing glamorous or privileged about keeping crime off the streets.

There’s a telling line from Dileesh’s character — a mentor of sorts — to Roshan’s more hesitant officer: “You may be a police officer, but you don’t understand policing or the politics behind it.”

Movies like Ronth remind you that what stays with you isn't star power or action set pieces — it's powerful performances, moral complexity, and a sense of truth. Ronth — which means “patrol” — is a film that will haunt you.

Ronth is out in UAE cinemas now