Bougainvillea

The final act shatters the fragile reality that Dr. Royce has built around his wife, Reethu (later revealed to be Esther Emmanuel). Throughout the investigation she has been haunted by gaps in memory, imagined children, and the recurring vision of drowning – clues that hint at a hidden tormentor. When the criminologist Meera and the house‑help Rema disappear, the police finally trace the thread back to Royce’s ancestral house, where dozens of bougainvillea paintings—purchased anonymously by Royce—line a locked room.

Inside that house, Royce reveals his true nature: a cold, methodical killer who has been using his wife’s amnesia as a shield. He drowns her in the bathtub to keep her from remembering, forces her to help abduct the missing women, and disposes of their bodies by feeding them to the pigs and hunting dogs he raises. The notes she finds under her mattress are his fabrications, meant to steer her deeper into his lies. When he locks Reethu and Rema in a room and murders Rema’s husband Biju, the façade collapses.

In a desperate, climactic showdown, Meera breaks into the attic where the corpses are stored. Royce tries to sedate Reethu, but she stabs the syringe, seizing a rifle and confronting him. Meera attacks, and amidst the chaos Reethu fires, killing Royce. The dying doctor’s last manipulation—insisting that Meera is a psychopath— is rendered powerless as his victims finally see his true face.

The police, led by ACP David Koshy, acknowledge their failure to see beyond Reethu’s shattered mind and to suspect the “protective” husband. The film ends with a haunting glimpse of Esther visiting Royce, now a condemned prisoner serving a life sentence. She tells him she will never forget nor forgive, echoing the prayer he once forced her to say. The bougainvillea that once symbolised her art now stands as a silent witness to the darkness she survived.

Last Updated: October 13, 2025 at 19:15