Where to Watch
Not yet streaming in the US at the time of writing — Baththa opened in cinemas in 2026. Check local cinema listings and legal streaming services for updates. No pirated sources are listed here.
Overview
In 1986 Madras, a small accident sets an extraordinary story in motion. A timid eight-year-old boy, playing where he should not be, accidentally traps a feared gangster inside a deserted school toilet — and suddenly two lives that should never have crossed are locked together. The gangster, Baththa, is a man used to being feared, not to being hungry, lonely, or vulnerable. As hours stretch on, the boy’s fear gives way to curiosity, and Baththa’s bluster gives way to something far more human. Director Balaji Tharaneetharan builds a warm, funny, and surprisingly moving drama out of this single absurd premise, letting the unlikely pair trade stories, jokes, and silences until a genuine bond forms between them. Set against the bustle and color of 1980s Madras, Baththa is about the masks people wear, the loneliness underneath them, and how an ordinary child can change a hardened man forever.
Director & Cast
Director: Balaji Tharaneetharan. Main cast: Vijay Sethupathi as Bathvachalam ‘Baththa’, Lijomol Jose as Kannima, Santhy Balachandran as Selvi, Arjun Chidambaram as Jyoti.
Why Watch Baththa?
Watch Baththa for Vijay Sethupathi at his most endearing. He plays a feared man forced to sit still, and the comedy and tenderness that emerge from that stillness are wonderful to watch. The film works because it never rushes its central friendship: it lets a child’s honesty chip away at an adult’s armor, scene by scene, until both characters feel fully real. It is funny without mocking its characters, emotional without turning sentimental, and richly rooted in its time and place. If you love stories where enemies become family, and where a single day can change two lives, Baththa will win you over completely.
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Trailer
No official YouTube trailer is embedded in this post. For the verified studio trailer, search the studio’s official YouTube channel.
Poster: TMDB. Rating and runtime verified on TMDB.
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