Vadamaalaiyan's sister Draupadhi, who is in a relationship with Karnan, misunderstands the situation during the latter's brawl with her brother and breaks up with him. This does not sit well with Vadamaalaiyan, one of the village's heads who desires to marry Karnan's sister Padmini, who is far younger than him. Within Podiyankulam, Karnan and Yaeman are considered unruly by many except its chieftain Duryodhanan, who befriends them both. His grandfather Yaema Raja is worried that Karnan would lose the opportunity to join government service, if his hot-headedness would involve him in any legal trouble with the Melur villagers, and is constantly looking out for him. Weeks later he participates in an open selection camp for Reserve Police. In 1997, Karnan of Podiyankulam wins the local deity's sword as part of a competition, which had not been won for years. Despite multiple petitions, Podiyankulam is constantly denied a bus stop thanks to the influence of Melur's local government. Podiyankulam's inhabitants, who belong to the oppressed communities, are forced to use the bus stop of Melur for commuting, which irks the locals who belong to the dominant castes. In southern Tamil Nadu, two neighbouring villages Melur and Podiyankulam find themselves in constant conflict as the latter is denied a bus stop.
Īfter a brief-long pre-production work, the film was launched in January 2020, with the title Karnan was also announced. Loosely influenced from the 1995 Kodiyankulam caste violence, the film features the titular character Karnan, hailing from a conservative background, fighting for the rights of his people. The film features music composed by Santhosh Narayanan, cinematography handled by Theni Eswar, and editing done by Selva R. The film stars Dhanush, Lal, Yogi Babu, Natarajan Subramaniam, and Rajisha Vijayan (in her Tamil debut).