Why is Ronth better than Officer on Duty, but falls short of Nayattu

Compared to the hard-hitting Officer on Duty, Ronth gives a more realistic and relatable portrayal, but does not quite hit the mark as his film Nayattu did. All three films are penned by Shahi Kabir

Ronth, Officer on Duty, Nayattu

Filmmaker Shahi Kabir’s second directorial Ronth (streaming on JioHotstar via OTTplay Premium) is the latest Malayalam film to narrate the stories of cops. Though this is his second directorial venture after Ela Veezha Poonchira, Shahi Kabir has penned several cop stories for films such as Nayattu, Joseph and the recent Officer on Duty. Compared to the more hard-hitting Officer on Duty, Ronth gives a more realistic and relatable portrayal but does not quite hit the mark as his film Nayattu did. Though all are police stories that also look into the personal lives of cops, the tonality and the presentation differ in all three, with Officer on Duty taking the more rutheless approach.

Why Ronth is better than Officer of Duty

The 2025 Malayalam film Officer on Duty stars actor Kunchacko Boban as a hot-headed cop who does not think twice before hitting a woman even if she is pregnant. The Jithu Ashraf directorial starts the film on this note, setting the violent tone that is to succeed in the movies.

A typical fake jewellery case takes a sinister turn as it is linked to some drug-addicted youths, who seem to be on a path of vengeance path after one of them gets killed in police custody. But even the cops are not shown as keepers of the law, as in one creepy scene a police officer molests two girls tied to a tree. Though a thriller from start to finish, Officer on Duty has several such disturbing scenes that leave you with an unsettling feeling.

Ronth, on the other hand, has taken a more nuanced route to tell its story of two cops on patrolling duty. Though we get a tough officer in SI Yohannan (Dileesh Pothan), he is also seen as considerate and sensible in most of the scenes. Actor Roshan Mathew is the naive cop, who is yet to get the real sense of what policing means. Through their one night of duty, we see the different situations that the cops have to deal with on a daily basis. By portraying them as ordinary people, dealing with their own personal troubles and traumas, Ronth humanises the police force without overdoing it. But Ronth suddenly changes its tone in the final leg, giving us a Dalit youth’s death, that leads to an unconvincing end.

Also read: Ronth movie review: Shahi Kabir’s grounded cop drama echoes Training Day with a conscience

Ronth falls short of Nayattu

The 2021 Malayalam film Nayattu stands out from the rest of the cop stories as it sticks to its tone and treatment till the very end. Cops Maniyan, Praveen and Sunitha are on the run, after a crime is committed as they fear getting framed. Filmmaker Martin Prakkat has directed this film, which blends in politics of state and the police force to give us a gripping film. Actors Joju George, Kunchako Boban and Nimisha Sajayan play the lead roles in the film, which also revolves around the events sparked by a Dalit’s death.

The Ronth climax also connects to Nayattu but that looked abrupt and needless to say the least. Notably, Nayattu also gives us a strong woman character in Nimisha’s Sunitha, who is also relevant to the plot till the last.

Share