DSP Sunil Menon interrogates the recently arrested Perumal "Vaathiyaar". Meanwhile, constable Kumaresan is suspended by Ragavendar on loose grounds for disobeying superior's orders and for not replying to a reprimand memo. He is also denied credit for apprehending and arresting Perumal. When Kumaresan is just about to leave to his village with the traumatised Tamilarasi, he is called back to duty by Sunil to be the driver for escorting Perumal through the jungle to safer place. Along the way, Perumal narrates his story and reveals his transformation from a school teacher to an empathetic revolutionary leader. The process of Perumal's transformation is due to the death of a farm labourer named Karuppan and his wife. Karuppan was a young man from an oppressed community, who worked as a farm labourer under a cruel landlord. After his fiancée Maari was held captive and sexually harassed by the landlord, Karuppan and his friends stormed the landlord's house to rescue his fiancée. The landlord was killed by Karuppan. The naive Perumal intended to hand over Karuppan and his fiancée to the police for prosecution in court. But the corrupt police, instead of arresting him for prosecution, reported him to the landlord's son. The landlord's son brought his men to kill Karuppan and his fiancée. In the fight that ensues Perumal is also seriously injured by the landlord's son. This event becomes a turning point for Perumal (Vaathiyaar), who was then a teacher, to transform into a revolutionary leader against social injustice. Perumal follows an influential figure named comrade KK who rescues him and teaches him politics. KK goes on to become a mentor and father figure to Perumal. One day there is an assassination attempt on Comrade KK. Perumal then replaces KK in trying to form a union at the sugar factory after the early disappearance of Comrade Rangasamy who also tried to form a union. Perumal starts working as a labourer at the Mahalakshmi Sugar Factory under the name of Karuppan. Perumal begins to push for a union among the factory labourers. Perumal meets Mahalakshmi, a fellow comrade only to realise that she is the factory owner's daughter. Over time, Perumal becomes inspired by her and fond of her. They eventually get married. Subsequently, Comrade Rangasamy's dead body is found in the river, which triggers the formation of the Union. After the formation of the union, farm labourers were able to fight for their rights, making it impossible for landlords to abuse them. One day KK was killed by the factory owner, causing Perumal to resort to violence and call their group the
Makkal Padai (People's Army) to avenge the actions of the responsible. As a result of the violence,
Makkal Padai was banned and hunted down by the police.
Makkal Padai moves secretly and operates underground. Perumal's wife Mahalakshmi later gave birth to a daughter, while Perumal continued to fight for the people to get their rights. For the next few years, Perumal lived a happy life with Mahalakshmi and his child. In the present, during the journey through the forest, the police convoy gets lost and a series of events lead Ragavendar to accidentally slip and slide into a ravine, but Perumal rescues him, with the same chain that binds him. After the rescue, the police remove Perumal's handcuffs. At the prodding of Perumal, Ragavendar suddenly confesses that it is he who shot driver Raghu during a brutal incident that had occurred in the first film. The police convoy continue their conversation with Perumal and it comes to the question about the train bombing. Perumal reveals his side of the story that initially they had only planted the bomb for opposition without intending to detonate it. They wanted to cancel the bombing by defusing it as the government remained silent in taking actions against the bomb threat. But the defusing operation was mismanaged and the bomb explodes, destroying the bridge. The train accident becomes inevitable. Perumal tells the convoy that he is ready to show them the path that leads them back to the barracks or to the check post, based on their wish. As they discuss,
Makkal Padai members ambush the police convoy and manage to free Perumal. As Perumal leaves with other members, Raghavendar still embarrassed and angry at Perumal takes the revolver Perumal gave his gang and fires a pin point shot that hits Perumals leg.Perumal let's this to thinking it was an accidental shot, not knowing it was done calculatively as injuring him can slow his escape. Meanwhile, the news about the leaked photos of Perumal's capture and the tortures performed by the police, and the communication from Ragavender that Perumal has escaped, forces A. Subramaniyan to decide that Ragavendar should be arrested to save face, and Amudan, the SI, promoted as the new OC, to recapture Perumal. There is a bloody confrontation between the police and the
Makkal Padai men. Ragavendar is plotting to kill all members of his convoy, fearing that they would reveal his action of killing Raghu. During the shootout, Ragavendar shoots one of his fellow police officers in the back at close range, breaking his head and making it look as if he was killed by the
Makkal Padai troops, which causes Amudan to kill all the
Makkal Padai members who surrendered. While about to kill another convoy member, Ragavendar is caught and stopped by Kumaresan. Amudan and other policemen later learn of Ragavendar's actions after checking his revolver. Pressured by the police siege and the bullet wound to his leg, Perumal decides to make a final speech with all his energy to surrender peacefully and safeguard his fellow comrades. Perumal limps and makes his way to surrender, but Amudan shoots him at
point-blank range and orders his battaltion to shoot at Perumal. Perumal suddenly hit with his wife's memories gets some energy and decide to standup signifying his unwavering fighting spirit only to be shot by Bala seconds later. While Kumaresan drives Amudan, Ragavender and two other policemen, with Perumal's body back to the barracks, Amudan keeps applauding their victory and talking about the benefits they are about to get. Enraged, Kumaresan crashes the jeep into the edge of a ravine, leaving the policemen trapped. He then walks away and pens a final letter to his mother, stating that if he never returns, she should know that he has died helping people in need. == Cast ==