Despite being an academically brilliant engineering graduate, Gowtham prefers working as a TV journalist and yearns to join the BBC.

While all goes well, Gowtham suddenly gets arrested on charges of cheating banks (to the tune of several lakhs) of rupees by producing fake documents and degree certificates.

Gowtham then decides to infiltrate and expose the fake certificate scam with the help of his neighbors, Balaji, Senthil, and Anu.

Gowtham recalls the scene at the police station about the fake documents used to obtain loans from the banks; they carried the same photograph as the one present in his degree certificate.

Gowtham's plan works, and he manages to save Balaji just in time; he fights and kills all of them, including Thura's son.

Gowtham infiltrates and records the scammers on his mobile phone while posing as an applicant for a fake certificate; on the other side, Thura starts looking for people responsible for spreading the news and manages to track the right guy.

He sends one of his colleagues in the guise of a fake certificate applicant to Thura's place while recording the events via microcamera-enabled spectacles.

Gowtham lands a kick at Thura, causing him to hit his head on screws in the destroyed terminal and fall unconscious.

The assistant doctor turns out to be a fake; he unknowingly injects the wrong medicine into Thura's glucose stream, and his pulse begins to deteriorate.

The project materialised in October 2013, with producer S Thanu revealing that Atharvaa and Catherine Tresa were signed on by his production house to feature in a film directed by T.N.

The film will have music by Sivamani of Arima Nambi fame and camera work by ace cinematographer, Arvind Krishna.

[6] Behindwoods wrote, "What could have been an intelligent crackerjack suspense entertainer ends up being a medially engaging product due to few lacklustre moments and some sluggish screenplay in the second half.

Despite its flaws, this savvy thriller is worth watching once mainly for some exhilarating action sequences, Atharvaa’s top class performance[7] and a few adrenaline-pumping moments.

"[8] Hindustan Times wrote "Like so many Tamil films, Kanithan begins with a fantastic idea and story, but Santosh lets these spin out of control -- till the script sinks beyond salvation.