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{{Use Indian English|date=November 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2015}}
{{Infobox film
| name = No. 20 Madras Mail
| image = No.20 Madras Mail.jpg
| alt =
| caption = Poster designed by [[Gayathri Ashokan]]
| director = [[Joshiy]]
| producer = D. Sasi
| screenplay = [[Dennis Joseph]]
| story = Harikumar
| starring = [[Mohanlal]] [[Sumalatha]] [[M. G. Soman]] [[Jagadish]] [[Ashokan (actor)|Ashokan]]
| music = {{Plainlist|
* [[S. P. Venkatesh]] (score)
* [[Ouseppachan]] (songs)
}}
| cinematography = [[Jayanan Vincent]] [[Anandakuttan]] [[Santosh Sivan]] (second unit)
| editing = K. Sankunny
| studio = Tharangini Films
| distributor = Tharangini Release
| released = {{Film date|1990|02|16|df=yes}}
| runtime = 177 minutes
| country = India
| language = Malayalam
| budget = 
| gross = 
}}

'''''No. 20 Madras Mail''''' is a 1990 Indian [[Malayalam]]-language [[Comedy film|comedy]] [[Thriller film|thriller]] film directed by [[Joshiy]] and written by [[Dennis Joseph]] from a story by Harikumar. The film features [[Mohanlal]], [[Jagadish]], [[Maniyanpilla Raju]], [[M. G. Soman]], [[Ashokan (actor)|Ashokan]], and [[Suchitra Murali]]. The film features [[Mammooty ]] too, as himself, in an extended cameo appearance.The [[background score]] was composed by [[S. P. Venkatesh]] while the song was composed by [[Ouseppachan]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.malayalachalachithram.com/movie.php?i=2352|title=No.20 Madras Mail Film Details|publisher=malayalachalachithram|access-date=16 October 2014}}</ref> The plot follows three youngsters who are embroiled in the murder mystery of a young woman in a train journey from [[Thiruvananthapuram]] to [[Madras]].
''No.20 Madras Mail'' was released on 16 February 1990 and received positive reviews. Almost half of the film was shot inside a train. Four years later, the film was remade in [[Hindi]] as ''[[Teesra Kaun]]'' by [[Partho Ghosh]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ibosnetwork.com/asp/filmbodetails.asp?id=Teesra+Kaun+%281994%29|title=Teesra Kaun Film Details|publisher=IBOS|access-date=16 October 2014}}{{Dead link|date=January 2026 |bot=InternetArchiveBot }}</ref>

== Plot ==

The train [[Trivandrum Mail|No.20 Madras Mail]] to [[Chennai Central|Madras]] starts from [[Trivandrum Central railway station]]. R. K. Nair, a [[Kollam]]-based businessman takes the first class coach to Madras with his wife Geetha and daughter Devi from [[Kollam Junction]]. Tony Kurishingal, along with his friends Hitchcock Kanjikkuzhi and Kumbalam Hari boards the same coach from [[Kottayam railway station|Kottayam]]. Tony is the son of a wealthy businessman, Kurishinkal Kariyachan, Kanjikuzhi is a [[detective novel]]ist and Hari is a young politician. Three of them are going to Madras to see a test [[cricket]] match, a [[cabaret]], and to make attempts to make Kanjikuzhi's novel ''Vaarikkuzhiyile Kolapathakam'' a movie. All three are drunkards.From [[Ernakulam Town]] station, another passenger Sunil boards the train at the last moment.

After seeing Devi, Tony and friends make several attempts in getting a seat for Tony in the same coach of Devi, with the help of ticket inspector Nadar, but with little success. While doing so, Tony gets into heated arguments with Nair and Sunil, who shares the same coach. Film actor [[Mammootty]] himself boards the train from [[Thrissur railway station|Thrissur]] and gets into the same coach. Nadar leaves the train at [[Palakkad Junction railway station|Palakkad]] after giving company with Tony and gang and the new TTE Chokalingam / Choki assumes duty. Tony and his friends visit Mammootty and become friends with him. Meanwhile, Tony tries to flirt with Devi while she returns from the restroom, which causes Tony to land in trouble with Nair, but on Mammootty's intervention the matter is settled.

In the morning, as the train reaches [[Chennai Central railway station|Madras]], Devi is found murdered in the toilet. Suspicion lands on Tony and friends and they run away from the spot in fear. The investigation is carried out by police officer DySP Murthy who learns from Chokalingam that Mammootty had taken photos of Tony and friends while in the train. He gets the photo from him and are publicly displayed. Mammootty helps Tony and friends to return to Kerala secretly as he believes they are innocent.

Back in Kerala, they are confronted by Sunil. Sunil sneaks upon Tony holding a [[switchblade]] at the lake where Tony, Hari and Kanjikkuzhi were bathing. Sunil attempts to murder Tony, Hari and Kanjikkuzhi, thinking they murdered Devi. Tony defeats and subdue Sunil in the fight that ensued. Tony orders Sunil to spill information about Devi's killer. Sunil was actually the lover of Devi and both had planned to elope from the train at [[Erode]], but failed as Sunil could not get out off the train in time during the halt. Devi, with the help of the station master takes a taxi to the next station, [[Salem, Tamil Nadu|Salem]], and get back to train.

Sunil makes amends with Tony, Hari
and Kanjikkuzhi and becomes their new friend. Also, from Sunil, they learn about Sr. Gloria, who tells that Devi gave her a [[personal diary|diary]] before leaving for Madras. After acquiring the diary from the convent, they come to know that Nair is not Devi's father, but only a stepfather and that he killed her father in her childhood. On learning that Nair might be the murderer, Tony calls Nair by phone impersonating Mammootty's voice and says that he has got the diary and [[blackmails]] him to give ₹20 lakh in return for the diary. Tony informs Mammootty and convinces him to proceed with the play. Mammootty and Nair meets and agree to fix the deal on the same train on a Wednesday. Mammootty boards the train at [[Palakkad]] on which Nair has already booked an entire bogie. He informs that the diary is not present with him and would hand it over at Salem when Tony joins the train.

Nair leaves the train at [[Erode Junction railway station|Erode Junction]] railway station and goes to Salem station via taxi to find Tony, but Tony and Sunil enter the train in between, they along with Mammootty overpower Nair's henchmen. Meanwhile, Nair reenters the train at Salem Jn. and finds that Tony has already entered. Tony and Mammootty attack Nair and make him confess the truth. Nair reveals that he killed Devi after she caught up the train at Salem, fearing that Devi would inform the police about her father's murder. The next morning, when the train arrives Madras, DySP Murthy, who had already been informed of everything by Hari and Kanjikkuzhi, arrests Nair and his goons.

Tony, Hari, and Kanjikkuzhi has proved their innocence. On another day, while boarding the No.19 [[Trivandrum Mail]] to return home, they find Mammootty again in the same train, who tries to leave the train after seeing them, but only to be stopped by Tony and friends who promises a happy and safe journey back home.

== Cast ==
{{colbegin}}
* [[Mohanlal]] as Tony Kurishingal
* [[Jagadish]] as Kumbalam Hari, Tony's friend and Politician
* [[Maniyanpilla Raju]] as [[Hitchcock]] Kanjikkuzhi, Tony's friend and Detective Novelist
* [[Ashokan (actor)|Ashokan]] as Sunil / Suresh, Tony's friend
* [[Suchitra (actress)|Suchitra]] as Devi, Sunil's girlfriend
* [[M. G. Soman]] as R. K. Nair, Devi's stepfather
* [[Siddique (actor)|Siddique]] as Tony's clubmate and Friend
* [[Sumalatha]] as Sister Gloria, Devi's teacher
* [[V. K. Sreeraman]] as DYSP Moorthy
* [[Jayabharathi]] as Geetha, Devi's Mother
* [[Innocent (actor)|Innocent]] as Nadar (TTE), Tony's friend
* [[Jagathy Sreekumar]] as Chokkalingam / Chokki (TTE), Nadar's friend
* [[Janardhanan (actor)|Janardhanan]] as Adv. Thomas Mathew, R. K. Nair's Friend
* [[Janagaraj]] as Murukesan, Hari's Friend
* [[Jagannatha Varma]] as Kurishingal Kariyachan, Tony's Father
* [[Valsala Menon]] as Mariyamma, Tony's Stepmother
* [[Santha Devi]] as Mother Superior
* [[K. P. A. C. Sunny]] as Sreedhara Menon, Devi's father
* [[K. P. A. C. Azeez]] as Station Master, [[Erode Junction railway station]]
* [[Shyama (Malayalam actress)|Shyama]] as Mollykutty, Tony's Sister
* [[Kollam Ajith]] as Goonda
* [[Thalapathi Dinesh]] as Goonda
* Vinod Kozhikode as Goonda
* Baby Ambili as Young Devi
{{colend}}
;Cameo appearances
* [[Mammootty]] as a fictionalized version of himself (extended cameo appearance)
* [[Thiagarajan]] as Himself
* [[Cochin Haneefa]] as Himself
* [[Captain Raju]] as Himself
* [[Priyadarshan]] as Himself
* [[Rajeev Nath]] as Himself
* [[G. Suresh Kumar]] as Himself

==Production==
[[Dennis Joseph]] got the plot idea from a friend of his named Harikumar, who is also actor [[Ashokan (actor)|Ashokan]]'s brother. Initially, [[Joshiy]] and Joseph thought about casting newcomers in the principal roles. However, Joshiy later decided it to be a [[Mohanlal]]-starrer. Subsequently, the age of the characters were increased to make them youngsters rather than teenagers; [[Jagadish]] and [[Maniyanpilla Raju]] were added as Mohanlal's buddies. Some of the scenes were based on Joseph's own experience from his train journeys. Originally, [[Jagathy Sreekumar]] was fixed in the role of the actor the youngsters meet on their train journey. But a day before the filming began, Mohanlal suggested to cast [[Mammootty]] in the actor's role and to swap Sreekumar to one of the [[Conductor (rail)|TTE]]'s roles.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/director-no-20-madras-mail-reveals-mammootty-was-not-part-original-cast-134684|title=Director of 'No. 20 Madras Mail' reveals Mammootty was not part of original cast|date=6 October 2020 |publisher= The News Minute}}</ref> Joseph and Joshiy liked the idea but was skeptical whether Mammootty would agree to do a supporting role in a film with Mohanlal in the leading role, since mid-1980s both the actors have attained stardom and have been appearing only in equally important roles or otherwise cameos, nevertheless, Joseph asked Mammootty who immediately agreed without hesitation.<ref>{{cite web|last=Joseph|first=Dennis|author-link=Dennis Joseph|title={{!}} Dennis Joseph 22 {{!}} Charithram Enniloode {{!}} Safari TV|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yZWCgP1kD8|publisher=[[Safari TV]]|access-date=18 July 2020|language=ml|date=3 January 2019}}</ref> The interior scenes of the train was shot inside an original moving train to avoid artificial feeling of using sets. For that, they bought a [[Nilambur–Shoranur line|Nilambur–Shoranur]] route train for rent and drove it to places to and fro for filming.<ref>{{cite web|last=Joseph|first=Dennis|author-link=Dennis Joseph|title={{!}} Dennis Joseph 23 {{!}} Charithram Enniloode {{!}} Safari TV|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6fNURe9pK3I|publisher=[[Safari TV]]|access-date=18 July 2020|language=ml|date=4 January 2019}}</ref>

==Music==
The film score was composed by [[S. P. Venkatesh]]. The single song "Pichakappoonkaavukal" featured in the film was composed by [[Ouseppachan]] and sung by [[M. G. Sreekumar]], lyrics were by [[Shibu Chakravarthy]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://music.apple.com/us/album/no-20-madras-mail-original-motion-picture-soundtrack/1445423512|title=No: 20 Madras Mail (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)-Single by Ouseppachan|website=Apple Music}}</ref> This song was later reused in the film ''[[Husbands in Goa]]'' (2012). [[A. R. Rahman]] who was then yet to debut as a film composer, did the keyboard and synth programming whereas [[Vidyasagar (composer)|Vidyasagar]] assisted Ouseppachan in the recording of the song "Pichakappoonkaavukal". The chorus portions of the song were done by the above three along with the singer [[M. G. Sreekumar]].{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

{{Track listing
| headline = Track list
| extra_column = Singer(s)
| total_length =
| title1 = Pichakappoomkavukal
| extra1 = [[M. G. Sreekumar]]
| length1 = 3:39

| title2 = Charumandasmitham
| extra2 = [[M. G. Sreekumar]]
| length2 = 3:24

| title3 = Pichakappoomkavukal
| extra3 = [[K. S. Chithra]]
| length3 =
}}

==Release and reception ==
The film was a commercial success,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/entertainment/malayalam/2021/May/10/iconic-malayalam-scriptwriter-dennis-joseph-passes-away-2300914.html|title=Iconic Malayalam scriptwriter Dennis Joseph passes away|work=[[The New Indian Express]]|date=10 May 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.firstpost.com/entertainment/malayalam-film-scriptwriter-dennis-joseph-passes-away-mammootty-mohanlal-tweet-condolences-9610261.html/amp|title=Malayalam film scriptwriter Dennis Joseph passes away; Mammootty, Mohanlal tweet condolences|work=[[Firstpost]]|date=11 May 2021}}</ref> it ran for over 125 days.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://s737.photobucket.com/user/kkvinposter/media/Snehasallapam/Boxoffice/1990_Nana/Nana_1990-Boxoffice_03W.jpg.html?src=pb|title=Photo by kkvinposter|website=Photobucket}}</ref>{{Better source needed|date=November 2017}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{IMDb title|0271678}}

{{Joshiy}}
{{Dennis Joseph}}

[[Category:1990 films]]
[[Category:Films shot in Thiruvananthapuram]]
[[Category:Films shot in Kollam]]
[[Category:1990 Malayalam-language films]]
[[Category:1990 crime comedy films]]
[[Category:Indian crime comedy films]]
[[Category:1990s comedy mystery films]]
[[Category:1990s mystery thriller films]]
[[Category:Films scored by Ouseppachan]]
[[Category:Films set on trains]]
[[Category:Malayalam films remade in other languages]]
[[Category:Indian comedy mystery films]]
[[Category:Indian mystery thriller films]]
[[Category:Films with screenplays by Dennis Joseph]]
[[Category:Films directed by Joshiy]]

No. 20 Madras Mail - Revision history

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