Blood Money, a Zee5 Tamil suspense thriller, stars Priya Bhavani Sankar, Metro Shirish, Kishore, Subbu Panchu and others. Presented by Irfan Malik, the film is written by Sankar Dass and directed by KM Sarjun. Non-Tamil speakers can watch the 1 hour 29 minutes film with English subtitles.
The synopsis reads, “In a race against time, journalist Rachel goes on a dangerous mission to rescue two Tamil brothers whose lives are at stake in a Kuwaiti prison.”
Zee5’s Blood Money Review Contains No Spoilers
The opening of Blood Money (2021) is of prison in Kuwait where two Indians are hanged. Two other men in the same prison are worried as they know someday, they’ll be hanged too. The story then shifts to Rachel (Priya Bhavani Shankar) in Chennai, India. Rachel is a journalist with a News channel. She has her baggage of loss in the past, and as a journalist, she’s fierce.
As Rachel begins her new assignment, she comes across a viral video of an older woman and her granddaughter. In the video, the older woman shares that two men from her family have been in Kuwait for years. She received a letter saying that the men from her family would be hanged and received ‘Blood Money’. Such people receive ‘Blood Money’ as compensation. Rachel is saddened by the plight of the older woman and her granddaughter and decides to help the family.
Rachel heads to Sri Lanka to ensure that these two men are not hanged. She faces some hurdles as she tries to uncover the truth and save the lives of two innocent men. Why does Rachel go to Sri Lanka? Will she succeed in saving the lives or end up losing her own? We find out by the end.
The concept of Blood Money is quite intriguing and can be covered in many ways. In the Zee5 film, writer Sankar Dass had an honest idea in his mind. The first 40 minutes hold your attention as we learn what’s going on. It is emotional and heartbreaking. Rachel as a character becomes likeable instantly, and you want to see how she carries out the mission. However, when the mission starts, the execution is clumsy. When the narrative shifts to Sri Lanka, it fails to astound you.
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Anything related to war-like incidents is not easy to solve. But in Blood Money, the obstacles Rachel faces are not even challenging. The journalist and her colleague get away easily from getting trapped in any trouble for a long time. The honest attempt of showing an emotional thriller falls weak during such moments. The easy solutions to every problem make the story unreal, disinteresting and predictable.
Actor Priya Bhavani Shankar has given a good performance as journalist Rachel. She’s a layered character who is broken and emotional inside but tough on the outside. The rest of the cast plays their part well too. But the story doesn’t demand much from anyone else due to the convenient plot.
Blood Money Review: Final Thoughts
Overall, the Zee5 thriller is an honest attempt to show the reality that is not limited to just people in India. But it takes us to a “terrifying” world where problems are solved without greater challenges. Considering the topic they highlight, that’s not how it works. Actor Priya has done a good job, but the film fails to leave a good impression.
The film is now streaming on Zee5.
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