Irumudi

Trinadh Rama Kasu is a plantain farmer and merchant who lives in Polluru with his wife, Kaveri, and their school-going daughter, Manikanta "Maniamma". He shares a close relationship with Manikanta and encourages her to speak openly about anything happening in the village and school. He frequently confronts men who harass local women and girls, although his alcohol addiction and tendency to use violence occasionally creates tension with his family and his friend and mentor, "Guruswamy" Goparaju.

Goparaju has a school-going daughter, Gayathri, and observes a 41-day Ayyappa Deeksha every year. Unlike Trinadh, Goparaju discourages Gayathri from speaking openly about incidents of harassment, fearing that confronting the perpetrators would bring public embarrassment to her and the family. Meanwhile, several school-going girls from the village begin dying under mysterious circumstances. Their deaths are generally believed to be suicides resulting from family problems, romantic relationships, or academic pressure. Since the village does not have facilities for higher education, the girls travel outside the village to attend school. They have to walk to a pickup point to board the school bus and are frequently subjected to harassment and eve-teasing. Trinadh confronts several of the perpetrators. To address the problem, Goparaju approaches local MLA Bujji Raju, who arranges for the school bus to enter the village and pick up the students. Gayathri, Manikanta, and their friends subsequently travel to school together. Gayathri and some of her classmates are selected by their teacher Dhanalakshmi to attend special classes at her house because of their academic performance. Dhanalakshmi gradually begins behaving differently toward Gayathri and warns her to follow her instructions. Subsequently, Manikanta notices changes in Gayathri's behaviour and suspects that something is wrong.

Another student who had been attending Dhanalakshmi's special classes stops going and warns her friends not to attend. She later dies under mysterious circumstances. Manikanta learns that Gayathri may also be facing a serious problem and attempts to tell Trinadh, but is unable to do so. Around the same time, Manikanta asks Trinadh to give up alcohol. Trinadh agrees and begins his 41-day Ayyappa Deeksha. While he is observing the Deeksha, Manikanta continues trying to understand what has happened to Gayathri and the other girls. Gayathri subsequently goes missing after attending a special class. Trinadh and Goparaju search for her and discover a dead body, which turns out to be Manikanta's. Trinadh is devastated by his daughter's death, removes his Ayyappa mala, and abandons his Deeksha. He begins searching for those responsible for her death and interrogates several people who may have information. One of Trinadh's former enemies tells him that Gayathri had been seen alone on the night she went missing. Bujji Raju subsequently arrived, warned the men present and took Gayathri with him. Trinadh becomes suspicious because Bujji Raju had claimed that he was travelling to the city that night.

Trinadh then discovers an audio message sent by Manikanta before her death. The message indicates that she had discovered what was happening to Gayathri and the other girls. Trinadh confronts Goparaju and accuses him of being involved in Manikanta's death. He reveals that Dhanalakshmi had been sexually exploiting schoolgirls and supplying them to Bujji Raju, a pedophile. Girls who attempted to expose the exploitation were killed, with their deaths made to appear as suicides. On the night of Manikanta's death, she and another girl went to Dhanalakshmi's house while searching for Gayathri and witnessed Bujji Raju and Dhanalakshmi exploiting Gayathri. The duo subsequently pressured Goparaju to prevent Manikanta from revealing what she had witnessed. Goparaju tells Manikanta that exposing the incident would result in public humiliation and could affect Gayathri's future; Manikanta refuses to remain silent. Before Goparaju kills her, she manages to send an audio message to Trinadh containing information about what she has discovered. After learning the truth, Trinadh kills Goparaju for his involvement in Manikanta's death.

Trinadh then takes the surviving girls who were exploited to Dhanalakshmi's house and confronts her. He encourages the girls to overcome their fear and confront those responsible for their exploitation. Bujji Raju arrives with his men and attempts to stop Trinadh, threatening to have his associates attack Trinadh's village and family if he is assassinated. Trinadh refuses to back down and decapitates Bujji Raju in front of the girls. He then confronts Dhanalakshmi over her involvement in the exploitation of the students and the deaths of those who attempted to expose it. He kills Dhanalakshmi and her accomplice. After the confrontation, Trinadh performs the funeral rites for Manikanta. He keeps the promise he made to her and completely gives up alcohol, later resuming his Ayyappa Deeksha. During the penance, he sees a child reminding him of Manikanta, who asks him to bless her with the two pouches of the Ayyappa Deeksha, symbolizing his spiritual journey from Trinadh Rama Kasu to "Guruswamy" Trinadh Rama Kasu.

• Ravi Teja as Trinadh Rama Kasu
• Priya Bhavani Shankar as Kaveri, Trinadh's wife
• Sai Kumar as "Guruswamy" Goparaju
• Baby Nakshathra as Manikanta "Mani"/"Manimma", Trinadh and Kaveri's daughter
• Ajay Ghosh as Yerraji
• Jabardasth Komaram as Nagulu, Yerraji's son
• Ramesh Indira as MLA Bujji Raju
• Swasika as Dhanalakshmi, High School Teacher
• Laxman Meesala as Babu, Dhanalakshmi's assistant
• Surabhi Prabhavathi as Lakshmamma, Guruswamy's wife
• Sam as Gayathri, Guruswamy's daughter
• Praneetha Dev as Soujanya, Gayathri’s friend
• Sree Lasya as Anusha, Gayathri’s friend
• Yashika as Erraji’s daughter and Nagulu’s sister
• Rajkumar Kasireddy as Bajji Shop Vendor
• Lokesh Kumar Parimi as Suri, Trinadh’s friend
• Kishore Kumar Polimera as Trinadh’s friend

Actors played as Donkarayi Eveteasers:

• Vinay Mahadev
• Sai Swaroop
• Lakshmi Narayana
• Manoj

The film score and soundtrack are composed by G. V. Prakash Kumar, his first collaboration with director Shiva Nirvana and second with Ravi Teja. The first single, a devotional song titled "Irumudi Kattu", was released on 29 June 2026.^[16][11]

A critic from Sakshi Post rated the film 3.5/5 and wrote, "Irumudi is a sincere, emotional and socially relevant film that works largely because of its performances and strong core story. Raviteja delivers one of his most mature performances in recent years [...] Despite a few predictable portions in the second half, Irumudi remains an engaging watch with plenty of emotional highs."^[23] Suresh Kavirayani of Cinema Express rated the film 3.5/5 stars and wrote, "Despite a few logical loopholes and some predictable portions in the second half, Irumudi is a gripping family drama that blends a socially relevant subject, Ayyappa Deeksha and family emotions effectively. Ravi Teja’s excellent performance, Shiva Nirvana’s focused narration and dialogues, along with the cinematography, music and supporting performances, make it a worthwhile watch."^[24]

Sashidhar Adivi of Filmfare rated the film 3/5 stars and wrote, "Irumudi is a solid, intense drama elevated by Ravi Teja’s restrained performance and a convincing father-daughter bond. But predictable villains and uneven emotional beats prevent it from becoming as powerful or shattering as it could have been."^[25] BVS Prakash of Deccan Chronicle wrote, "Shiva Nirvana redeems himself with this emotionally charged dark drama after films such as Kushi. He demonstrates that he can handle a darker, Tamil-style dramatic narrative while avoiding the usual clichés of forced comedy and unnecessary songs. Despite its shortcomings, Irumudi works in parts, primarily because of Ravi Teja's powerful performance, the emotional father-daughter relationship, and a gripping climax."^[26]