Leo Tolstoy once said that all superhero origins are alike, but every villain falls in his own way. However, Tolstoy knows nothing about superheroes. It's true that many superhero origin stories hit the same beats, but that's because they work. A good story will take those familiar beats and make something that feels new, as Minnal Murali (2021) does.
Jaison (Tovino Thomas) seems like an unlikely candidate for superherodom. He's a tailor in Kurukkanmoola, a village in small town Kerala, but he dreams of moving to the United States in order to earn enough money to win the hand of Bincy (Sneha Babu), daughter of the village's corrupt police Sub-Inspector Sajan (Baiju). Bincy isn't willing to wait around, though, and becomes engaged to successful doofus Aneesh (Jude Anthany Joseph). Jaison goes to her house to confront her while drunk and dressed as Santa Claus, and he's struck by lightning before Sajan can shoot him.
Meanwhile, tea shop employee Shibu (Guru Somasundaram) has spent most of his life pining after his childhood crush Usha (Shelley Kishore). he's ecstatic when he learns that her marriage has collapsed and she and her young daughter are moving in with her brother Dasan (Harisree Asokan). On a rainy Christmas Eve he paddles a boat out to catch a glimpse of Usha, and he's struck by lightning.
After a rough night, both men are fine. Better than fine, really, because this is a superhero origin story. Jaison learns that he's much faster and stronger, with superhuman hearing and perfect aim. His nephew Josemon (Vasisht Umesh) explains the concept of superheroes to him, and they experiment with his powers. Meanwhile he starts to get over Bincy, especially as he spends more time with "Bruce Lee" Biji (Femina George) a multiclassed travel agent/karate instructor who happens to be Aneesh's ex-girlfriend.
Shibu, meanwhile, gleefully experiments with his new telekinetic powers, and pointedly does not get over Usha. He's as devoted as ever, despite her complete lack of interest, and uses his new abilities to terrify his boss after the man makes a crude pass at her.
(Usha is an interesting character, because as written, she has very little agency, but that's the point; she has very little agency due to her situation. She just wants to take care of her sick daughter, but she's practically besieged by unwanted suitors, all varying degrees of creepy, and she does not have any way to get them to leave her alone. Of course, when Usha finally does get the chance to make a choice, it is a catastrophically bad one.)
When Jaison discovers that his adoptive father Varkey (P. Balachandran) was beaten by Sajan, he dons a disguise and crashes a school function in order to beat up basically the entire police force. He signs his work, writing the name "Minnal Murali" on the wall before he vanishes. On the same night, Shibu dons a much creepier disguise and robs the bank in order to pay for an operation for Usha's daughter. The police and press believe that the bank robbery was also committed by Minnal Murali, and Shibu is happy to take advantage. While Jaison is performing good deeds as Minnal Murali, Shibu is committing crimes while using the same identity.
And then Usha makes her choice, and everything goes wrong. Kerala gets an actual supervillain, and a true superhero must rise in order to stop him.
This is a superhero origin story, and it hits all of the expected beats. The rural setting makes a difference, though, and that's not the only twist. I don't think I've ever seen the hero and villain using the same identity before, for one thing. And while Usha is very much trapped by circumstance, Biji has plenty of agency, never really winds up in the "hero's girlfriend" role, and is at least as important to saving the day in the final confrontation as Jaison is. Ultimately, though, Minnal Murali is a good superhero story well told.
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