Athadu

The plan is to stage a murder-for-votes scheme. Siva Reddy, Baaji Reddy, and Farooq hire Nandu and Malli to carry out the fake attack. They hope the public sympathy vote will boost the opposition's chances. The arrangement is designed to manipulate the election outcome, not to commit real murder.

On the day of the staged attack, Siva Reddy is actually shot dead, derailing the ruse. Malli dies in a car accident amid the chaos. Nandu escapes by leaping onto a moving train as pursuit closes in.

While on the moving train, Nandu meets Pardhu, who is returning to his hometown after having run away as a child. Their unexpected encounter marks the start of a tenuous bond. Pardhu unknowingly becomes involved in Nandu's dangerous world.

The train halts at a station, and the police searching for Nandu close in. A sub-inspector fires, hitting Pardhu instead of Nandu, turning a supposed victim into an unwitting casualty. The incident forces Nandu to vanish again into the crowd.

Exhausted and hidden in Basarlapudi, Nandu is taken in by Pardhu's family who mistake him for Pardhu himself. They welcome him warmly, treating him as a prodigal relative. He begins to slip into their life while keeping his true identity a secret.

Inside Basarlapudi, Nandu becomes a helper to the community—protecting farmland, assisting a struggling family, and even withdrawing funds from his own account to fund Poori's sister's wedding. His generosity earns him trust and a place among the family. The line between helper and impostor blurs as he continues his acts of kindness.

He eventually confides his real identity to Ramana, Pardhu's childhood friend, revealing that he is the contract killer hired for the job. Ramana struggles with the discovery but chooses to protect him, complicating the family's perception of Nandu. The revelation makes Nandu more deeply tied to Basarlapudi.

CBI officer Anjaneya Prasad is assigned to Siva Reddy's murder case and travels to Basarlapudi, but fails to uncover Nandu's true identity. He notes inconsistencies and follows the trail but remains misled by the surrounding circumstances. The investigation continues to circle around Malli and the supposed conspirators.

Prasad uncovers a critical link—a withdrawal from Nandu's bank account—and tricks Nandu into revealing himself back at Pardhu's house. The family is left devastated as the truth comes crashing down. Yet Ramana defends Nandu, highlighting the good he has done for the family.

Nandu returns to Pardhu's grandfather Satyanarayana Muruthy, who privately acknowledges him as Pardhu's grandson. The elder offers guidance and hands him Pardhu's shotgun to seek the truth and clear his name, reminding him that he did not need to act, but chose to out of love. The gun's backstory foreshadows the dangers surrounding the pursuit of truth.

Back in Basarlapudi, Nandu records Baaji's confession implicating Malli as alive and bribed to kill Siva Reddy to frame Nandu. He uses the recording to pressure Baaji and uncover the conspiracy surrounding the chief minister's position.

Nandu tracks Malli to a church, where corrupt officers ambush them. Nandu defeats the attackers, and Malli, taking Nandu's shotgun, fires but the obstructed barrel backfires and kills him.

Prasad arrives and presents the recording; Baaji Reddy is confronted and tries to dismiss the evidence as inadmissible. Prasad warns that the truth could still destroy him, and Baaji ends his own life.

With the truth established, Prasad officially clears Nandu's name and releases him. Nandu returns to Basarlapudi to live with Pardhu's family as his own, embracing his new identity.