Man descends into a dangerous cave with just a rope and a flashlight to rescue childhood friend

On September 3, 2006, Subhash, hailing from Manjummal in the Ernakulam district of Kerala visited the Guna Caves with his nine friends. But unfortunately, when he was crossing one of the crevices he fell into a very deep cave. It looked almost impossible to get him back from there. But his friend Siju David was determined to rescue him and eventually did manage to do so. The incident shows how special friendships are. The incident has now been turned into a movie called the "Manjummel Boys" which is currently doing rounds on the internet. 

The movie shows a group of boys who do odd jobs and save up to go on a trip to the picturesque caves in Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu. The friends don't appear to be a very careful bunch, however, an incident would change their friendship for the better. When Subhash fell into a cave, his friends refused to leave his side leading to a humongous rescue operation. Siju David got inside the cave with the help of the fire department tied to ropes to save his friend. The man was also awarded the Jeevan Raksha Padak in 2008, a civilian award conferred for saving a person's life. The movie made by Chidambaram tries to capture the real-life story and the beautiful friendship in the finest details. A review in Quint ponders upon why the men didn't have more of their individual characters.

The director says, "Each of them is a hero and has contributed in their own ways to rescue Subhash. They have journeyed with me from the inception of this movie till this moment. What I wanted to show on screen was how they as a group braved the situation. It would definitely have been easier for me to shoot with fewer people, but this is a very difficult life experience each one of them has gone through. So, when I watch the movie with them, no one should feel excluded or left out." The film also captured the intensity of the moment when Subhash fell into the seemingly bottomless pit, originally known as Devil's Kitchen. The caves got their current name from Indian actor Kamal Hassan's movie "Guna" which made the caves popular in the first place.

The film portrays the change of emotion among the group of friends from reckless abandon to sheer panic. The boys scatter around, trying to get any help possible in getting their friend back. They eventually realize that he's stuck in a ravine somewhere and alive, giving them hope that all is not lost. As per the movie, each friend played a crucial role in the seemingly impossible rescue. The incident is quite horrifying to witness on screen which makes one wonder how it would have been for the men who actually experienced it. It is also a remarkable to note that a friend was ready to give up his life for another friend. This emotion is aptly captured by a couplet used in the movie that goes, "Our love isn't for mortals... it transcends into the divine."