Adios Amigo is a Spanish term for ‘see you soon, my friend’. The new Malayalam film on Netflix is about two strangers who unexpectedly meet and end up going on a journey. This journey helps them discover new things at every turn in the road. Directed by Nahas Nazar, the movie was released on the big screen on 9th August 2024.
Spoilers Ahead
Why was the man in need of money?
A young man, let’s call him ‘The Protagonist,’ is struggling to afford medical treatment for his mother back in his hometown. He was constantly in touch with his sister, who was handling hospital-related matters but was short on money. It is established that the Protagonist does not have a steady job, and as a result, he has to rely on his friends and acquaintances, especially at times of family emergencies such as this. Sojan is his friend, who promised to lend him money. He asked him to meet him at the Vytilla hub bus junction.
How did he meet a young drunk lad?
Though the Protagonist waited for Sojan to show up with the cash he had asked for as a small loan, his friend did not show up, but asked him to wait at the bus stop for a few more hours. At this time, he saw a garishly dressed young man, let’s call him the Drunkard, show up at the bus stop intoxicated but being generous to random strangers. The Drunkard happened to know some of them, which intrigued the Protagonist, who was appalled by the drunk fellow’s antics.
The Drunkard sat next to the Protagonist and began to talk to him, even offering him a drink to soothe his nerves. The man initially refused, but gave in after he insisted. As the Protagonist calmed down after a drink, they began to talk about life in general. The Protagonist was talking about wanting to head to Kottayam to meet his ailing mother, while the Drunkard was hardly listening and kept talking about taking life as it comes.
Why were they heading to Trivandrum?
The Protagonist tried to get away from the Drunkard, but the former was refusing to let him go. Finally the Protagonist joined the Drunkard on a bus to Trivandrum. The drunk person referred to his new friend as ‘boss.’ The Protagonist referred to him as ‘mate’. As the Protagonist and the Drunkard began their journey to Trivandrum, their family members kept checking up on them from time to time to know where they were. It was easy to assume the Drunkard was supposed to be heading somewhere else, but since he had the money, he was going in the opposite direction. The Drunkard was slowly becoming a menace, and the Protagonist was becoming uncomfortable with his newfound friend.
Who did they meet in Kollam?
The Drunkard forced the bus to stop in Kollam, insisting on meeting someone in the town. As they entered a large clothing store, the Drunkard insisted on meeting Hema. By the looks of it, everyone at the store was familiar with him and his usual visits to the store wanting to meet Hema, while she was not keen on meeting him as he was drunk, and asked the Protagonist to bring him along the next day when he was sober.As both left, the Drunkard along with the Protagonist checked into a five-star hotel, which was a shock to the latter. He soon learns this drunk man had been in a car accident with his girlfriend many years ago. Since his recovery, he has gotten married and has a daughter as well. The Protagonist also learned that the Drunkard was ultra rich with a lot of connections and contacts across the state, and that he was of a helpful and generous nature. The Protagonist had hoped the Drunkard would be able to help him financially for his family medical emergency, which was why he decided to stick with him.
On meeting Hema, he learned it was her who had been in the accident, and ever since, the Drunkard had been in immense guilt. He wanted to financially help Hema, but she once and for all asked him politely not to worry about her. It was soon revealed Hema lost one of her legs in the accident, which was why ‘The Drunkard’ wanted to be there for her.
When did the young man learn of his friend’s money problems?
As both friends left Kollam, the Protagonist was getting impatient and regretting his decision to stay with the Drunkard. The Protagonist, in sheer distress, revealed he wanted money for his mother’s treatment at Kottayam Medical College. The Drunkard offered to give him the money without hesitating. He initially asked his wife to send the money to the account number given by the Protagonist, but she refused to do so. She was livid at her husband, who was giving no time to her or their daughter, which forced her to make a difficult call about not helping him.
The Drunkard went out of his way to help the Protagonist, which included asking his brothers-in-law who eventually refused to help him as requested by his father. The Drunkard’s father stated he could not be trusted with such a large sum of money. The Drunkard might be a nice guy with good intentions, but his family refused to understand his perpetual drive to help people in distress.
When did the Protagonist realize he wouldn’t get the money?
The Drunkard hired a driver and his car to come back to Ernakulam in the hope of getting some money. However, the driver, who believed the Drunkard would not give him the money as because of his drunk condition and the Protagonist had no money on him. The distressed driver was in a hurry and refused to let any of them go without payment.
The Protagonist was in a bad state ever since he met his new friend. Sojan was asked to pay the driver. Sojan and the Protagonist had to pick up the Drunkard and head to a safe place. Things only got worse when Sojan forced the Protagonist to join him or be with the Drunkard, who was left on the road. The Drunkard was the only person who remained positive and didn’t blame the Protagonist for the condition his mother was in currently. Sojan, along with many others they met except for Hema, was cursing the Drunkard for being the way he was. It was only the Protagonist who was feeling bad for the Drunkard, but at the same time was grateful as he genuinely tried to lend financial help, unlike others who were finding excuses to not offer aid. The Protagonist chose to be with the Drunkard for the night instead of abandoning him.
What were the Protagonist and the Drunkard’s names?
Both men woke up the next day and the Drunkard claimed his home was not that far from the spot. As they were heading back to his home, they ran into the Drunkard’s ultra-rich father, who berated both for being unemployed and acting useless all this while. This scene was added to demonstrate why the Drunkard, despite having all the money in the world, does not have the heart to live in his home with his family. He always wanted to help people but was restricted by his family. The accident changed his course of life, yet he could not stop being himself despite being ragged by his wife, parents, and siblings.
The Protagonist was appalled to find that the Drunkard allowed himself to go through such humiliation. He also realized that not everyone who was rich was happy. Since he was shown the mansion the Drunkard lived in, he advised him to be responsible towards the people he cares for as well. He was initially under the impression the Drunkard was just a spendthrift. After spending time with him, he was quick to realize the generosity he found in a stranger like the Drunkard was something he’d never witnessed in the people he knew. This included Sojan as well, who did nothing but berate him constantly. The Drunkard was a far better human being than anybody he had met in his life so far. As the Protagonist left, he finally revealed his name was Satpriyan. The Drunkard revealed his name to be Prince. Two men went from being strangers and spent two days together. They soon understood a lot about each other’s struggles and became friends. This proves everyone has a story and a journey to share. No one is entirely happy or sad but only slowly accepting things around them or working towards making their lives better.
Adios Amigo ended with Satpriyan getting down from the bus he was on to head to Kottayam. He ran and hugged Prince, thanking him for sending more money than he had asked for. Prince was quick to deduce his wife finally found a heart to send the money to his friend. This probably meant either she was willing to see how helpful Prince was and wanted to help people in need. Even though the matters between Prince and wife were hardly sorted, this was her way of letting him know there was hope for the marriage to work. His wife was the only person who understood Prince’s real personality, unlike others, including his family. Satpriyan was elated beyond words for Prince’s willingness to help him, and there was a hope they would remain friends from then on.
