Dominic Arun’s Lokah: Chapter 1 — Chandra is proving to be the dark horse of this Onam season. Despite stiff competition from Mohanlal’s Hridayapoorvam, this superhero film starring Kalyani Priyadarshan and Naslen has emerged as the audience’s top pick. With trade analysts pegging the film’s opening weekend collection at Rs 50 crore gross worldwide, we decode why Lokah is striking a chord with viewers.

A homegrown superhero with a cultural heartbeat

Superhero movies may be a fad in the West, they are hard to come by in India, let alone Kerala — 2021’s Minnal Murali is an exception. But Lokah introduces the audience to Chandra — a vigilante rooted in Malayali folklore. She flies, she fights, she saves the day and also represents the urban loneliness of a Malayali migrant in Bengaluru. Rooted in myths of yakshis, chaathans (goblins) and goddesses, Chandra is a larger-than-life tale viewers can relate to.

Kalyani Priyadarshan carries the film on her shoulders

As Chandra, Kalyani Priyadarshan commands the screen. From brooding silences to sudden bursts of ferocity, her screen presence, action stunts, and occasional emotional outbursts are magnetic. The pre-interval scene where she takes on a group of thugs has already become a talking point on social media.

A villain who chills

Every superhero story is only as strong as its antagonist, and Lokah has a formidable one in Inspector Nachiyappa Gowda (Sandy). Misogynistic, corrupt and cruel, Nachiyappa is emblemic of the institutional rot. Step by step, Dominic peels off the layers from his persona, until the final showdown. Sandy’s performance matches the ferocity of his villainous turn in Leo (2023).

World-building that feels real

Lokah is truly pan Indian. The story brings together Malayali superheroes, Tamil cops and Kannadiga gangsters cross paths in a polyglot Bengaluru. The detailing is sharp — a red streak in Chandra’s hair, neon smoke in action sequences, the dingy bachelor pad of Sunny (Naslen) and Venu (Chandu Salimkumar), complete with liquor bottles and a judgmental cat named Jango. The city itself becomes a character, mirroring the isolation and chaos of its inhabitants.

Dominic Arun’s flair for narrative

Seven years after Tharangam, Dominic Arun proves once again that he knows how to play with genre. The film’s flashback sequence before the interval, that depicts Chandra’s origin story, is sure to give you goosebumps. Even when the screenplay briefly slows in the second half to introduce cameos and future plotlines, it retains its grip through humour and a sense of intrigue about what comes next.

Action designer Yannick Ben and composer Jakes Bejoy elevate Lokah to a true big-screen spectacle. The stunt choreography is inventive, blending real-time fights with stylised animation to keep Chandra’s enigma intact. Bejoy’s score heightens the moments, making the audience a part of Chandra’s journey.