A film where the hero plays the role of a police officer is usually cue for bombastic action scenes glorifying the power of the khaki uniform, with several sequences justifying custodial violence and extrajudicial killings. Dulquer Salmaan’s Salute, directed by Rosshan Andrrews and written by Bobby-Sanjay, stands out in this respect. The thriller is centered around a policeman whose conscience comes in the way of doing what is necessary to keep his job. The film begins with Aravind Karunakaran (Dulquer Salmaan), an SI who is on long leave, going to a police station to get the details of a case that he had investigated three years ago. The double murders of Martin and Sheeba had rocked the town back in the day, and Aravind along with others in his team, including his superior officer and brother Ajith Karunakaran (Manoj K Jayan), had come under tremendous political pressure to resolve it quickly. Convinced that they had the right man, the police at the time planted evidence to secure his arrest and nail him in court. But later, an unexpected encounter makes it clear that the criminal is someone else. While everyone is convinced that they must let the matter be, Aravind cannot be at peace.Dulquer is understated as the conflicted Aravind, caught between familial love and his strong sense of right and wrong. There are shades of Nayattu in the film, with police officers who know the system like the back of their hand, playing cat and mouse with each other. Aravind hero worships his brother, but the relationship unravels when they disagree on the case. The other characters in the family are oblivious to what’s happening, and this feels strange because they’re a close-knit unit. Nevertheless, the tension between the brothers is an interesting angle and doesn’t fall into a predictable pattern. The absence of a conventional villain, someone the hero cop has to vanquish, also works to the film’s advantage. I wish, however, that the film had explored Aravind’s guilt and dilemma some more. He comes off as a black-and-white cop who goes by the rulebook, someone who is ready to make major decisions at the drop of a hat. Are there no chinks in his armour, no grey shades to his personality? The ‘too perfect’ nature of his character makes him a little less real, while Manoj K Jayan’s nuanced performance makes Ajith more human. The trailer of the film which was unveiled on December 24 last year, hints at an intense police procedural drama. “Lies. Truth. Justice. Aravind Karunakaran is here to blaze his way to your heart! Releasing in theaters near you on January 14! This is a film I have a deep love for. And this trailer is an honest taster of the film. I hope you find that same love for it as I did when I first heard it. Which grew with each day I spent on it (sic),” Dulquer wrote while sharing the trailer with followers on social media.
Dulquer was recently seen in Kurup, which is inspired by the life of Kerala’s most wanted criminal Sukumara Kurup. He is also teaming up with his father Mammootty for the first time by bankrolling his upcoming film Puzhu, which also stars Parvathy Thiruvothu in the lead.
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