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Valathu Vashathe Kallan offers decisive proof that Jeethu Joseph is not criticized enough for introducing crimes against women, particularly assault and harassment, as plot devices and for so-called character development, in his films too casually, apparently because he or his writer(s) could not think of anything else. Since the beginning of his career, it is almost as if Jeethu has taken to bluntly introducing a crime against a woman into his narratives, apparently believing that this is the best way to emotionally engage the audience, given people’s sensitivity to such incidents. But surprisingly, his films have rarely been about the victims themselves; Rather, they focus on the men around them and how they fixing things, thus turning women into mere objects who face violence so that their male counterparts can have stronger character arcs.

Valathu Vashathe Kallan too, as expected but unfortunately, no different. To show how ruthless Antony is, Jeethu and writer Dinu Thomas Eelan have created an introductory scene in which he manipulates a college girl, who came to the station with her mother to file an assault complaint, into believing that she is to blame. In front of his mother, Antony blames her and twists her story to make it seem like he is filing a false complaint. Heartbroken, he commits suicide shortly after. Although Jeethu and Dinu had all the options in the world to establish Antony’s cruelty, the casual way in which they used such a sensitive and triggering incident from the beginning, and then relegated the victim to just another character, underlines their utter apathy. Even as the film progresses, the number of women facing violent crimes or being brutally murdered only increases, but Valathu Vashathe Kallan is rarely her story. (The next line may contain spoilers) Although, unlike his previous projects, Jeethu has tried to justify the many crimes against women here by presenting the real villain as one with “sadistic male chauvinism”, thus attempting some psychological reasoning, this only ends up seeming like a convenient attempt to wash his hands of the issue, as the narrative structure suggests anything but.

Watch the trailer of Valathu Vashathe Kallan here:

One of the great shortcomings of Dinu’s script is that from the beginning it seems intent only on establishing points or demonstrating how intelligent he is, leaving things superficial. Although scenes like Antony’s introductory one offer insight into the characters, Dinu never manages to delve deeper. Even the bond Irene shares with her parents is reduced to a few cliché moments and a song with trite imagery. What makes matters worse is the flimsy dialogue, and its fragile nature becomes extremely evident when performed by mediocre actors in the film. Even as Valathu Vashathe Kallan enters its next phase and turns into a race-against-time thriller, everything seems too polished to seem real. Dinu’s attempts seem focused more on teasing the audience than offering them a shocking experience.

Unlike Jeethu’s previous directorial venture, Mirage (2025), which faced significant backlash for being filled with too many unimpactful twists, Valathu Vashathe Kallan hardly ever tries to surprise the audience or throw them off balance. Instead, Jeethu and Dinu have carefully ensured that the film relies solely on suspense, making it look like a jigsaw puzzle with too many pieces scattered around. However, what detracts from the experience is the writing, where everything goes according to Samuel and Theresa’s plan, although they are not the masterminds of the crime nor did they have enough time to divert their strategy. One has to watch the entire second half of Valathu Vashathe Kallan plagued with the question of why all these police officers, who are not morally grey, are helping Antony find his son and follow his orders without hesitation, even after learning about all the heinous things he has done. While it could be argued that they are simply following a superior officer’s orders to find a missing person, the sheer servility in their overall nature in these scenes can only be interpreted as convenient writing.

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It’s good that Valathu Vashathe Kallan came only after Mirage, when people’s opinion of Jeethu Joseph and their trust in him is at its lowest. As a result, the Biju Menon-Joju George starrer might feel a lot more tolerable. Had Valathu Vashathe Kallan come first, it is unlikely that the crime thriller would have even been rated as a worthy one-time watch.

Apart from the writing, another major drawback of Valathu Vashathe Kallan is the lackluster acting by many. While Biju Menon and Joju George deliver serviceable performances, simply the bare minimum expected from actors of their potential, others, like Shyamaprasad and Gokul, are completely underwhelming, and at times feel as if they’ve been forced to perform here at gunpoint. Satheesh Kurup’s unnatural cinematography and Vishnu Shyam’s uninspired music only make matters worse for the film.

Valathu Vashathe Kallan Movie Cast: Biju Menon, Joju George, Lena, Vyshnavi Raj, Leona Lishoy, Shaju Sreedhar, Niranjana Anoop
Valathu Vashathe Kallan film director: joseph jeethu
Valathu Vashathe Kallan Movie Rating: 1.5 stars