The precious girl has arrived) is a 2020 Indian Tamil-language legal drama film written and directed by J. J. Fredrick in his directorial debut, and produced by Suriya under his banner 2D Entertainment.

The film stars Jyothika leading an ensemble cast including R. Parthiban, K. Bhagyaraj, Thiyagarajan, Pratap K. Pothan and Pandiarajan.

It revolves around a rookie lawyer who leads to the reopening of a notorious 15-year-old case of a dead killer, alleged to have kidnapped and murdered young girls.

Ponmagal Vandhal was initially scheduled for theatrical release on 27 March 2020; however was postponed indefinitely, following the Tamil Nadu government's orders to closure of cinema theatres, as a safety precautional measure due to COVID-19 pandemic.

15 years later, A resident in Ooty named 'Petition' Pethuraj reopens the case, citing that Jothi is innocent and he wishes to pose a defence for her.

After proving that the main eyewitness, Ramar, who had testified against Jothi, was in Chennai at the time of the murder, and that he was merely a character fabricated by the investigating officer DSP R. Alexander, Venba is successful in getting a second hearing.

This leads to the public prosecutor being replaced with Rajarathinam, a renowned criminal lawyer appointed by a businessman Varadharajan, Rohit's father.

Sakthijothi had eloped with a man from a different caste and moved to Jaipur in the early 1990s, and as a result, her husband was murdered by her father and relatives in the name of honour killing.

It is revealed that Jothi had discovered the whereabouts of a dilapidated bungalow in Lovedale, which is said to have been a hide-out for Rohit and Diwakar, who used to kidnap and rape young girls there.

At the next hearing, Varadharajan takes the stand, and Venba openly accuses him of being a cutthroat criminal who has been building his reputation by silencing all those of who have raised their voice against him.

[8][9] Frederick, who was an alumnus in Loyola College, Chennai; directed two short films within a year, which opened to critical acclaim and he worked as an assistant to director I. Ahmed in the proposed project Idhayam Murali, which did not happen.

[11] Frederick revealed that the film talks about the sexual assault and violence against children which is considered to be a sensitive topic and that had a great impact on the society.

The other supporting cast had an ensemble of veteran filmmakers and screenwriters: Parthiban, Bhagyaraj, Pandiarajan, Pratap K. Pothan and Thiyagarajan.

[38] M. Suganth of The Times of India rated it 2 stars out of 5, saying, "For, both in its writing and making, there is a strong made-for-TV feel about this project [...] As far as courtroom dramas go, Ponmagal Vandhal is decidedly lacklustre.

It's about the burden of trauma, a life lived with the memory of childhood abuse that doesn't stop with the event itself but seeps into your cells as you grow up, forever altering your identity, your perception of self.

[39] Pradeep Kumar of The Hindu commended the film's delivery of a "powerful line of messaging" but also noted that the movie "falls prey to the Tamil cinema formula", not affording enough time for the viewers to process the emotions.

[40] Rediff.com's Divya Nair rated 1 out of 5 stars, stating "It is unfair that good actors like Jyotika and Parthiban are wasted in what could have been a spectacular courtroom drama, backed by facts and evidence rather than tears and words.

"[42] Gauthaman Bhaskaran of News18 rated 1.5 out of 5 stars stating "There is very little novelty in Ponmagal Vandhal, except for the fact that Jyotika's Venba uses tears and emotions to convince the judge with very little hard evidence to prove her point!

"[43] Writing for The New Indian Express, Sudhir Srinivasan stated "For a film about a buried crime that gets unravelled after an old case is reopened, the court proceedings feel frustratingly spurious.

"[44] In a positive review, Ranjani Krishnakumar of Firstpost rated 3.5 out of 5 stars stating "Ponmagal Vandhal fits perfectly into Jyotika's pursuit.

Ponmagal Vandhal, too, has a purpose and it's a laudable attempt by first-time filmmaker JJ Fredrick, who gives us a legal drama that asks quite a few uncomfortable questions about the safety of young girls.

[47] Sowmya Rajendran of The News Minute gave 3 out of 5 stars and said, "Ponmagal Vandhal is ambitious in what it wants to do and Fredrick has good instincts as a filmmaker.