Why Are Today's Tamil Crime Thrillers Obsessed with the Past?

Alen Mathews

In a world of CCTV cameras and digital footprints, it has become harder to commit the perfect crime on screen. South Indian filmmakers have figured out that the best way to get away with it perhaps is to go back in time.


Take the case of the 2025 Tamil hit ‘Sirai’, a story set in 2003 that takes viewers back to a 1997 murder, or ‘Por Thozhil’, released in 2023, based on solving serial killings that took place in 2010.

Crime thrillers these days seem to subscribe to a recurrent pattern. Either they are set entirely in the past, or the protagonist must solve a crime committed decades ago. This “time travelling” device seems to be an effective ruse to break the monotony of technology-backed storytelling.

The past serves as a linchpin that connects the viewer emotionally to the narrative, say filmmakers. “We connect with Tom and Jerry not because they are relatable or because the tricks are ingenious. It’s because of the cat-and-mouse format that resonates with viewers,” says Mohan Raja, director of 2015 Tamil action-thriller ‘Thani Oruvan’. “Also, a hero combing through CCTV footage for hours and easily locating the villain through mobile phone tracking do not make for an interesting watch.” The ‘past setting’ allows a wider narrative canvas, shrouded in the veneer of nostalgic familiarity and novelty.

Setting the story in the past also lends nuance to the crime and characters, says veteran script writer Sab John, whose best works include ‘Gunaa’ (1991) in Tamil and ‘Chanakyan’ (1989) in Malayalam. “Subjective drama is less these days. A lot of today’s crimes are triggered by drugs or anxiety. So, the charm of the past is needed to add a new layer of enigma to the characters, especially that of the villain who sets the narrative into motion,” says Sab John, who has guided 100s of writers to the reel world through his ScreenWrite.in platform that he founded in 2009. “The villain is the protagonist in a crime film. The hero just gets to piece together the plot that belongs to the criminal.”

Shahi Kabir, policeman-turned-filmmaker credited with the script of ‘Ronth’ in 2025, a crime thriller which follows two police officers on night patrol, says, “We take time to establish the hero in a movie and make the audience empathise with him. In the end, you can’t have science and technology cracking the case. The hero should solve the puzzle and gratify the audience.”

To surpass the limitations of depicting a world under the surveilling gaze of the state apparatus, period procedurals set in the past offer greater scope for narrative maneuvering. The hero who has to build his case from scratch might come across as contrived if the plot is situated in the high-tech present.

“Presenting a case that occurred decades ago, wherein the digital tools of today can be of no help, is an effective strategy to mitigate the audience’s doubts. Setting the plot in the past prods the viewer to more willingly suspend their disbelief,” says Kabir, adding that resentment of the present and fear of the future make it easier to accept stories from ‘simpler times’ without nitpicking.

“Surveillance is ubiquitous. Either a CCTV is watching you, or a phone is listening to you. But it is vital for a thriller that the crime is committed in seclusion. Period setting is one way of doing it,” says Mohan Raja. “The viewer too should be allowed to actively use their grey cells and partake in the problem-solving alongside the investigator.”

P S Mithran, who directed cyber-crime thriller ‘Irumbu Thirai’ (2017) sees it differently. “As probe methods grow more scientific, criminals, too, adapt to AI, phone mirroring, and other high-tech ways. The stories are set in the past, not always to bypass CCTVs or phone tracking; it’s a chance at world-building.”

Rajesh Kumar, who has written more than 1,000 novels, several of which were adapted into movies, including medical thriller ‘Kuttram 23’, says a lot of homework is required to write crime fiction, and one needs to keep updating oneself to stay current or give readers something different. “I have friends in the police and forensic departments. I consult with them and provide my readers with insight into cutting-edge detection techniques.”



Some of the best Tamil crime thrillers of the past decade


2016 Dhruvangal Pathinaru about a hit-and-run, ‘suicide’ in 2011

2018 Imaikka Nodigal about serial killings in 2011

2023 Por Thozhil Serial killings in 2010

2025 Sirai Story set in 2003 about a 1997 ‘murder’



Malayalam crime thrillers released in 2025



Rekhachitram about a murder in 1985
Detective Ujjwalan about multiple murders in late 1990s
Kalamkaaval about 20 murders in 2000s
Eko Murder, about a missing case in 1970s-1980s