Saamy (2003)

Aarusaamy is a police officer who does things his own way. Transferred to Tirunelveli as deputy commissioner, he at first seems ready to go along with Perumal Pichai, the strongman who controls the district through bribes, threats and political muscle, and to the despair of honest colleagues he even takes the money. But Aarusaamy has his own plan for cleaning up the town, and his clash with Pichai soon escalates into open war. Directed by Hari in his fast, loud, tightly plotted style, Saamy was a blockbuster that sealed Vikram's status as an action star, with Kota Srinivasa Rao a memorable villain and Harris Jayaraj's songs very popular. It was remade in Telugu as Lakshmi Narasimha and in Hindi as Policegiri, and was followed by Saamy Square in 2018.