Movies like Naanum Oru Thozhilali (1986)
The best movies like Naanum Oru Thozhilali (1986) are Dirt (2018), Padayappa (1999) and 44 Minutes: The North Hollywood Shoot-Out (2003). If Naanum Oru Thozhilali hooked you with its drama and action, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedMaharaja (2024)7.7/10 from 284 votes
- NewestMexicali (2026)Released 2026
- In TamilPadayappa (1999)Also in Tamil
Dirt (2018)
In search of a lifeline for his struggling off road racing team, a man takes on a young car thief looking for a second chance, but as their worlds collide, they must struggle to forge a successful alliance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPadayappa (1999)
Padayappa, a mechanical engineer whose father gives up his property to his foster brother, and then dies of shock soon after. Neelambari initially loves Padayappa, but plans to humiliate him after his family humiliates her father. The rest of the plot deals with Padayappa overcoming all the obstacles placed by Neelambari.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & action
Worth the HypeMovies like this44 Minutes: The North Hollywood Shoot-Out (2003)
After a failed bank robbery, two heavily armed men hold the Los Angeles Police Department at bay for 44 minutes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAsuran (2019)
A family from the underprivileged class is on the run after the teenaged son kills a rich man from the upper caste. Can the pacifist father be able to save his hot-blooded son?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSoorarai Pottru (2020)
Nedumaaran Rajangam "Maara" sets out to make the common man fly and in the process takes on the world's most capital intensive industry and several enemies who stand in his way.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRaayan (2024)
Raayan, a simpleton patriarch has to protect his family when they inadvertently get muddled in a violent world with whirlpool of murder, debauchery, feud, politics and power, a quagmire that he has repeatedly warned them not to get pulled into.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMexicali (2026)
A former special forces contractor is forced out of retirement as an avocado farmer in Mexico when local gangsters try to force him and his family off their farm.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDSP (2022)
A flower seller's son ends up in a tussle with a ruthless rowdy in Dindigul, forcing him to become a policeman and fight the odds.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSilverton Siege (2022)
After a failed sabotage mission, a trio of anti-apartheid freedom fighters ends up in a tense bank hostage situation. Based on a true story.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKodi (2016)
A young politician finds himself in a position where he has to contest against his girlfriend, who is ambitious. Circumstances force his look-alike twin to also get involved in this political battle.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBaywatch: Hawaiian Wedding (2003)
Mitch Buchannon, believed to have died in a boating accident survived and only has amnesia, he has been recovering in a Los Angeles hospital. His new fiancée, Allison Ford, resembles his old lover, Lt. Stephanie Holden who died years ago.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHunting Season (2025)
When a reclusive survivalist and his daughter rescue a mysterious, wounded woman from a river, they become entangled in a deadly web of violence and revenge, forcing them to confront a brutal criminal to survive.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSAS: Red Notice (2021)
An off-duty SAS soldier, Tom Buckingham, must thwart a terror attack on a train running through the Channel Tunnel. As the action escalates on the train, events transpire in the corridors of power that may make the difference as to whether Buckingham and the civilian passengers make it out of the tunnel alive.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & action
SnoozefestMovies like thisViswasam (2019)
A village ruffian, who settles disputes in his native, takes on a big shot when he tries to sort out the rough patch in his marriage after several years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOut of Exile (2023)
Recently paroled thief Gabriel Russell tries to balance his life and mend a troubled family as an FBI agent hunts him down, along with his crew after a botched armored car robbery.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTheri (2016)
When an honest cop, Vijay Kumar's family is ruthlessly slaughtered by a politician and his aides, he decides to change his identity and commits his life to bring his daughter up in a serene atmosphere. But some freak events end up compromising his identity and what he does to save his daughter and avenge the death of his family unfurls as Theri.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Black Book (2023)
After his son is wrongly accused of kidnapping, a deacon who has just lost his wife takes matters into his own hands and fights a crooked police gang to clear him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMaharaja (2024)
A barber seeks vengeance after his home is burglarized, cryptically telling police his "Lakshmi" has been taken, leaving them uncertain if it's a person or object, jeer at his request until they learn what they're really looking for.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRogue Agent (2022)
Conman Robert Freegard poses as an undercover MI5 agent and kidnaps countless victims amidst a high-stakes manhunt, until the woman who fell for him brings him to justice.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStowaway (2022)
A tenacious party girl fights to survive after three thieves commandeer her luxury yacht. Unable to escape and trapped on the yacht at high seas, the prey becomes the hunter as she turns the tables on the intruders and takes matters into her own hands.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
Like Naanum Oru Thozhilali and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Naanum Oru Thozhilali?
The closest matches to Naanum Oru Thozhilali are Dirt (2018), Padayappa (1999) and 44 Minutes: The North Hollywood Shoot-Out (2003). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Naanum Oru Thozhilali?
Start with Dirt (2018), the closest match to Naanum Oru Thozhilali.
What is the highest-rated movie like Naanum Oru Thozhilali?
Maharaja (2024), rated 7.7/10 by 284 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Naanum Oru Thozhilali?
Mexicali (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Tamil movies like Naanum Oru Thozhilali?
Yes: Padayappa (1999), Asuran (2019) and Soorarai Pottru (2020).
How are movies similar to Naanum Oru Thozhilali chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Naanum Oru Thozhilali, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.