Shadow) is a 2021 Indian Malayalam-language mystery thriller film directed by Appu N. Bhattathiri in his debut and written by S. Sanjeev.

[4] In the film, John Baby, who is recovering from a traumatic accident, meets Nitin, a young boy who interests him with murder stories.

As he resumes his life as a first-class Judicial Magistrate, strange things start to happen as he hallucinates, probably from the accident.

Baby decides to search the place mentioned in the boy's story with the help of the police and finds a human skull submerged in a pond.

In order to find the source of these stories, Sharmila, Baby and Nitin travel to the house of a person who kept some case files of her late investigator husband, Sachin.

Sharmila feels sorry for the elderly Vishwanathan, given how much he seemed to repent and how much time had passed, and so she helps him leave before the cops are called.

Luckily, Baby reaches in time to save her from being strangled, but Viswanathan accidentally loses his footing on the balcony and falls to his death.

[15] Baradwaj Rangan of Film Companion South wrote "Kunchacko Boban and Nayanthara are in fine form but Nizhal is another example of how stars alone cannot make a movie.

"[16] The Indian Express gave the film 2 out of 5 writing "There are a few glaring logical holes in the narration that cannot be discussed without spoiling the suspense.

"[17] The Times of India gave the film 3 out of 5 writing "The background score by Sooraj S. Kurup is an interesting aspect of this movie.

"[18] Firstpost gave the film 2.75 writing "It’s a pity that Nizhal’s unusual premise wrestles with so many scripting flaws because the atmospherics in the narrative are on the ball and the mystery remains engaging till the finale.

Oh well..."[19] The Hindu gave the film a negative review writing "Managing to build up the anticipation and to keep the audience guessing until the time of the scriptwriter’s choosing would mean half the job done in constructing an effective thriller.

Imagine the feeling when you expect a lion to walk out of a cave, after listening to its majestic roars for some time... and you see a mouse crawling out instead!

"[21] The Free Press Journal gave the film 3 out of 5 writing "In all, Nizhal certainly scores due to its fresh and novel plot involving a talented kid, but it doesn’t deliver more than a decent watch that can surely be seen as a promising directorial debut with controlled expectations.

"[22] The New Indian Express gave the film a negative review writing "There is no doubt about Aneesh’s comic abilities, but his inclusion felt forced.