Classmates is a 2006 Indian Malayalam-language coming-of-age romantic comedy-drama film directed by Lal Jose and written by James Albert. The film features an ensemble cast including Prithviraj Sukumaran, Narain, Jayasurya, Indrajith Sukumaran and Kavya Madhavan. The story revolves around a college graduate class of 1991. In 2006, working in different corners of the world, the friends get together for a class reunion to revive the joy and laughter of their college days. On the night of the reunion, one of the students is almost murdered and goes into a coma.
Classmates was produced by Prakash Damodaran and P. K. Muralidharan through their company Arya Films, and is the company's debut production. The soundtrack album and background score were composed by Alex Paul. Classmates' cinematography was handled by Rajeev Ravi and editing was done by Ranjan Abraham. Principal photography primarily took place in and around C. M. S. College, Kottayam and was completed in a span of two months, during the months of April and May.
The film was released on 25 August 2006 during Onam holiday period. The film became a major box office success, with a theatrical run of 150 days at Abhilash Complex, Kottayam. It became the highest-grossing Malayalam film of 2006. The film won two Kerala State Film Awards, five Kerala Film Critics Association Awards and three Asianet Film Awards. It was later remade into Tamil as Ninaithale Inikkum and in Telugu and Marathi as Classmates (2007) and Classmates (2015), respectively.
Classmates has since become one of the most acclaimed films of its decade, particularly for its soundtrack. It is considered by many critics as one of the best campus films in Malayalam cinema. The film developed a cult following in the years after its release and is frequently referenced in popular Keralite culture. With the release of film, the concept of alumni meet started trending in Kerala, and schools and colleges started organising such get togethers to help the ex-students keep in touch with each other. The film is now regarded as a classic in Malayalam cinema.
Plot
The film centres on a group of classmates who attended the same Chemistry class in their final year of college. Among them, Murali is a singer and P. Sukumaran alias Suku is a firebrand leader of the left-winged students union. Pious, a rich and spoiled brat of parents settled in Gulf, is the campus Romeo and Sukumaran's best friend. Suku's rival Satheeshan leads the opposite faction of student politics and is aided by his sidekick Valu Vasu. Thara Kurup is the daughter of the Member of the state Legislative Assembly (MLA) from Muvattupuzha; she is a dancer who regularly wins awards for the college with her performances.
It was Murali's dream to have a reunion, but he mysteriously dies before the reunion can be organised. His parents, Iyer and Lakshmi, both teachers at the college, decide to fulfill their deceased son's dream and bring his classmates together for a reunion. After 15 years, Sukumaran is now a diamond dealer based in Mumbai, a rich and successful businessman earning in crores and is a divorcee. Satheesan is now an MLA, following his dreams to become a minister, while Vasu continues to be his sidekick. Pious is now settled in the Middle East. Thara, while still unmarried, becomes a dancer and runs a dancing school.
The coming together of these classmates is the occasion for them to relive the past and to fulfil Murali's dream. When all are together, Raziya arrives. But during the occasion, Suku attempts suicide, but later many of them suspects that it was not a suicide even though they found some writings and suicide notes in his personal diary. Pious reveals Suku's flashback to Iyer in the hospital.
When Satheeshan finds out that Suku and Thara are in love, he plans to separate them. He made her stand against Suku in an election in their college. On the day of the voting for the election, Satheeshan steals a letter that Thara wrote for Suku with Vasu's help and keeps it in the ballet box. Pious sees this. Angrily, Suku and his friends hit Satheeshan and his friends. Due to the fight, the vote counting gets postponed to the next day, and Principal Geevarghese calls the police and tells them to stay there. That night, Pious and Suku plan to take Thara's letter from the principal's room, but the plan fails. The next day, Thara's letter gets exposed. Satheeshan tells everyone including Thara that Suku misused her letter. Suku loses his mind, hits Satheeshan again, and tries to kill him. When he was going to kill him, a girl tells him that Murali is dead in the generator room of the hostel.