Malik follows the rise of Sulaiman, played by Fahadh Faasil, from a young man involved in crime to an influential figure in the coastal community of Ramadapally. Its structure and moral conflicts reminded me of The Godfather and Nayakan, especially the idea of a man seen as a protector by those around him.
An arrest that opens up the past
The opening sequence introduces Sulaiman’s household and the world around him with impressive control of the camera. As he prepares to leave for the Hajj pilgrimage, he is arrested at the airport. The story then moves through different accounts of the past, gradually revealing the relationships and conflicts behind his position.
The violence depicted in the film invites comparison with real tensions around policing, religion and coastal communities. But Malik is a fictional narrative, and its characters and events should not be treated as a documentary record of the 2009 Beemapally firing. The film is most useful here as a way of examining power and memory, rather than as a substitute for a sourced history.
From smuggling to community power
As a young man, Sulaiman becomes involved in smuggling goods from the Middle East. That business draws him further into crime and helps establish his influence locally. Over time, the community’s dependence on him complicates the distinction between protection and power.
He also opposes a harbour project that he believes threatens the coast and could displace residents. His ability to speak for the community is part of his authority, but the film keeps returning to the costs of how that authority was built.
Conflicting perspectives and moral questions
The flashbacks and differing perspectives kept the story intriguing for me. Characters have reasons for the versions they tell, so a single event can take on a different meaning as the film unfolds. Strong performances, editing and the screenplay hold those strands together.
Sulaiman reminded me of Velu Naicker in Nayakan: a man regarded as good by his own people, despite the violence surrounding his rise. The film left me questioning whether a desired outcome can justify the methods used to reach it. That uncertainty gives Malik more weight than a straightforward story of a heroic protector.