Romeo (Hindi)

Romeo is a 2024 Indian Tamil-language romantic comedy drama film written and directed by Vinayak Vaithianathan in his directorial debut and produced by Meera Vijay Antony.^[1] The film stars Vijay Antony and Mirnalini Ravi in lead roles. The soundtrack and background score were composed by debutants Barath Dhanasekar and Ravi Royster, while the cinematography and editing was handled by Farook J. Basha and Vijay Antony himself.^[2][3] The film extensively shot in Malaysia, Bangkok, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Tenkasi, Chennai and Mahabalipuram.

Romeo was theatrically released on 11 April 2024, coinciding Ramzan, to mixed-to-positive reviews from critics.

Plot

Arivazhagan “Arivu”, a Malaysian returnee in his mid-30s, yearns to experience love before marrying. At his village, he meets Leelavathi “Leela”, at her grandfather’s funeral. She’s an aspiring actress, but her father’s disapproval forces her to pretend to work in an MNC in Chennai. Arivu selflessly assists with Leela’s mother’s medical expenses when she falls ill. However, he hesitates to propose to Leela due to his earlier kindness. Leela and her friends cleverly manipulate Arivu’s innocence to facilitate her move to Chennai and escape her oppressive family. With marriage being her only option, Leela reluctantly agrees. Smitten with her, Arivu consents to the arrangement.

Upon arriving in Chennai, Arivu faces interference from Leela’s three friends – an aspiring director, cinematographer, and stylist – who join the couple and keep Arivu at bay. Despite their initial attempts to annoy him, Arivu wins over Leela’s friends with his kindness. Fearing Arivu might use her friends to get closer to her, Leela asks them to leave and informs Arivu of her plans to file for divorce. Heartbroken, Arivu seeks solace in a bar with his uncle, where he meets the manager, Vikram, who helps him contact Leela using a pseudonym, ‘Vikram’. Leela develops a friendship with ‘Vikram’, who shares his fear of fire without revealing the reason. When Leela lands a debut role in a film directed by her friend, the producer misbehaves with her, prompting ‘Vikram’ to confront him.

Arivu decides to support Leela and her friends by producing their film, “Romeo”, a romantic drama, on the condition that he plays the lead role. Leela initially declines Arivu’s offer but eventually accepts it due to her friends’ persuasion. Meanwhile, Arivu, still pretending to be Vikram, continues to motivate Leela, and they develop a strong friendship. As the film’s preproduction and test shoots progress, Arivu struggles initially but eventually improves his skills. When Leela requests to meet Vikram in person, Arivu avoids the meeting, causing Leela to become distraught and lose focus during filming. To revive her spirits, Arivu reestablishes contact with Leela as ‘Vikram’.

During filming, the producer who had previously misbehaved with Leela sends goons to abduct her, but Arivu bravely fights them off despite his fear of fire. Severely injured, he’s hospitalized, and Leela pleads with her husband to prioritize his well-being over her dreams. Leela then calls ‘Vikram’, asking why someone who loves her would go to such great lengths to make her happy. Arivu as ‘Vikram’ shares the story of his long-last mute sister, Janani, during a riot in Rameshwaram, causing Arivu’s fear of fire. Arivu’s uncle discharges him from the hospital, revealing his fear of fire to Leela, who finally realizes that ‘Vikram’ is actually Arivu. However, she doesn’t confront him.

Before the final day of shooting, Leela invites ‘Vikram’ to visit her, where she introduces him to Janani. Arivu, fearful of revealing his true identity, controls his emotions and pretends Janani is someone else’s sister. After the final day of shooting, Arivu provides Leela with the divorce papers she had requested. However, Leela interrupts the shooting to reveal that she knows Arivu is ‘Vikram’, confessing that she loves her husband more than anyone else. The two reconcile, with Janani present.