Aadujeevitham ending explained: How did Prithviraj aka Najeeb finally escape from his master?

Aadujeevitham, starring Prithviraj Sukumaran, is undoubtedly one of the most hard-hitting films from the Malayalam industry, which is already being hailed as among the best in the country. The Blessy directorial, which is based on Benyamin’s best-selling novel Aadujeevitham, depicts the real-life struggles of Najeeb who boarded a flight to Saudi Arabia with the dreams of a better life only to end up in a slave-like existence in the desert. But in the end, Najeeb does escape from the desert farm to reach a detention centre where he comes across his master again but is spared. Why didn’t the Arab take him away and how did Najeeb finally board the flight back home to freedom? Read on to know what happened at the end of Aadujeevitham. (Of course, spoilers ahead!)

Aadujeevitham plot

Najeeb, a labourer from Kerala, reaches the Gulf along with Hakeem with the hopes of building a better future, like the scores of Malayalees during the 70s and 80s. After hours of waiting at the airport for their sponsor to pick them up, an Arab comes up to them and takes away their passport. Assuming him to be their sponsor, they go with him, unaware that their destinies have been altered forever. Instead of the promised factory job, Najeeb is beaten and threatened to work as a goatherd at Masara (the farm) and denied the basic amenities of even proper food, water and shelter.

Also read: Aadujeevitham (The Goat Life) movie review – Prithviraj Sukumaran delivers career-best performance 

Aadujeevitham ending

After spending years at Masara, just with his goats and camels to keep him company, Najeeb finally sees a glimmer of hope when Hakeem, who was also working at a nearby farm, reaches out to him with a plan to escape plotted by his co-worker Ibrahim Khadiri. Najeeb and Hakeem follow Ibrahim Khadiri through the never-ending swathes of desert, with not even a drop of water. They trudge through the cruel desert land for days, facing desert storms and even poisonous snakes. Hakeem fails to make it through, and Ibrahim inexplicably disappears. Now, Najeeb, all alone, finally sets sight on the road and reaches back into civilization with the help of a kind-hearted Arab. But with no official documents in hand, he cannot board the flight back home and surrenders before the police. Though imprisoned, Najeeb now has access to food and water that were denied to him during his time at Masara.

Just when things begin to look up for him, Najeeb sees his Arab master who has come to the prison to identify labourers who had escaped. Fearing the worst, Najeeb imagines himself being dragged away back into his hellish life at Masara. Though the master sets his eyes on Najeeb, he walks past him, muttering something.

As a petrified Najeeb stares at the Arab, another prisoner informs him that the Arab cannot take him away as he is not his official sponsor. Najeeb realises that he underwent the most brutal and horrific torture from a person, who was not even authorised to lord over him. The film then cuts to show a plane as illegal immigrants line up to return to their homeland. Instead of big suitcases full of gifts and perfumes that Gulf-returning Malayalis bring home, Najeeb says that he only has his life to offer his wife Sainu and child, whom he was yet to see.

Also read: Aadujeevitham star Amala Paul: ‘All these characters took a toll on me’ | Exclusive 

Aadujeevitham (The Goat Life), starring Prithviraj Sukumaran, is now streaming on Netflix. Prithviraj, who underwent a drastic physical transformation to resemble a man struggling for survival at the desert farm, is winning accolades for his impressive performance in the film. Through the harrowing and horrific ordeal of Najeeb, the film sheds light on the scores of Malayali labourers who faced unimaginable horrors in the Middle East.