ALEX BROWN
Two of Indian cinema’s biggest stars finally share the frame. The trailer for O.M – Chapter 1: Udhiram – The Blood Wood, Rajkumar Periasamy’s Tamil action drama starring Dhanush and Mammootty, has arrived exactly one week before the film opens in theaters worldwide on November 20, 2026. It reveals a story set in the middle of a violent red sandalwood smuggling war, and it also confirmed a small but notable title tweak.
What is O.M about?
According to Pinkvilla, the trailer casts Dhanush as a woodcutter caught up in the red sandalwood trade, a world of smugglers, lawbreakers and enforcers. Sai Pallavi plays Nithya Reddy, a CBI officer leading an undercover mission called Operation Mole. That is where the new stylized title comes from: the film is now presented as O.M, with the trailer spelling out the Operation Mole reference. Reports earlier in the campaign described Mammootty’s character as a smuggler, and the trailer gives him a menacing, grey-shaded look.
Industry reports put the runtime at close to three hours, though the makers have not officially confirmed it.
O.M Chapter 1 cast
- Dhanush as the woodcutter at the center of the story
- Mammootty, returning to Tamil cinema after about seven years
- Sai Pallavi as CBI officer Nithya Reddy, her first role as a cop
- Sreeleela
- Naseeruddin Shah
Who made it?
Rajkumar Periasamy, who directed the 2024 hit Amaran, writes and directs. The film is produced by Dhanush’s Wunderbar Films and RTake Studios, with music by Sai Abhyankkar. It was first dated for October 16 and then moved to November 20, a shift several outlets linked to avoiding a box office clash with Rajinikanth’s Jailer 2. It is planned as the first chapter of a two-part story.
How fans reacted to the O.M trailer
Pinkvilla’s roundup of reactions on X was mostly positive, with praise for the trailer’s cut, Sai Abhyankkar’s background score and, above all, Mammootty’s look. Some viewers worried the trailer gives away too much of the plot. Filmibeat’s Tamil edition noted a louder strand of social media chatter comparing the setup to other recent gangster dramas, though that is fan debate rather than anything the film’s makers have addressed.
O.M release date
O.M – Chapter 1 opens worldwide on Friday, November 20, 2026, the same weekend as The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping. Indian films have been unusually strong in North America this month, with Ramayana: Rise of a Legend cracking the U.S. top five, so O.M’s overseas opening will be one to watch.
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Sources: Pinkvilla, Filmibeat, DT Next, Outlook India, Gulf News.