Veerappan

During his teenage years, Veerappan starts working as an assistant to his relative Sevi Gounder, a notorious poacher and sandalwood smuggler. This early association pulls him into the forest-based criminal networks that will define his rise to power.

Veerappan rises to dominance in the Sathyamangalam Forest, assembling and leading a small armed group. He becomes a defiant figure against the governments and border security forces, enforcing his brutal control over the forest and its resources.

In 1991, Veerappan and his associate Gandhi behead IFS Officer P. Srinivas. The act signals a brutal escalation in his campaign against state authorities, drawing violent attention to his gang.

Years after the Srinivas killing, Veerappan avenges Gandhi's death by misleading an STF covert operation through Gandhi's informer. The mission led by T. Harikrishna S.P. fails, and Veerappan's army kills the STF officers and seizes their arms.

The Tamil Nadu STF chief appoints an undercover IPS officer to operate in Karnataka and launches Operation Cocoon. The plan relies on a web of tribals and informers, including a deputy spy, a female STF spy, and a landlord who befriends Veerappan's wife Muthulakshmi. The aim is to infiltrate Veerappan's circle.

A loyal undercover team led by Rambo Krishna departs from the Palar base near MM Hills, Karnataka, heading toward Veerappan territory. The unit consists of 41 members from two states, including forest officials and informers, traveling in two vehicles with IPS officer K. Gopalakrishnan aboard the jeep.

Veerappan's gang plants landmines at more than 14 locations along the route to slow the STF advance. The Palar convoy triggers the mines, and K. Gopalakrishnan is thrown from a jeep's footboard and severely injured. Police retaliate fiercely and manage to prevent the snatching of arms for the moment.

An undercover officer disguises as a subordinate to the Kadaani underworld don to negotiate an arms deal with Veerappan's gang. The attempt fails, underscoring the challenges of turning Veerappan away through bargaining.

Kumar, a master strategist and former spy, infiltrates Veerappan's gang by posing as a timberyard owner to negotiate another arms deal with Velupillai Prabhakaran. His infiltration sets up the framework for Veerappan's eventual extraction from the forest and gives authorities a path to maneuver against him.

On 18 October 2004, Veerappan is escorted out of the forest by Kumar, who has infiltrated his gang. The escort moves toward a final arrangement that leads to a staged exit from the forest and a planned confrontation with the STF.

Veerappan and his men board an ambulance stationed at Papparapatti village. They are warned and asked to surrender, which Veerappan's group refuses, triggering a violent confrontation with STF forces.

A fierce firefight ensues and Veerappan, along with his associates, is killed on the spot. The operation ends Veerappan's notorious era, though the forest's violent history leaves a lasting mark on the region.