South actor Samantha Ruth Prabhu is back on the silver screen after three years with director Nandini Reddy’s Maa Inti Bangaaram (Our family treasure).
She was last seen in Kushi and Shaantakulam in 2023 and is now back as Swarna, the Pedda Kodalu (elder daughter-in-law), a small town housewife with a mysterious past.
After the success of Oh! Baby in 2019, Samantha and Nandini Reddy have joined hands once again for this project.
At the outset, we meet Dr Anirudh (Diganth) and his young wife Swarna (Samantha), who are trying to endear themselves to Anirudh’s conservative family post their marriage.
Swarna, who’s not accepted by Ani’s family – especially his politician father – desperately tries to fulfil the family’s expectations by any means.
She tries to mould herself along the lines of the traditional younger daughter-in-law Anasuya, be it religious rituals or cooking.
However, Anasuya is not convinced that the elder daughter-in-law is all that she claims to be.
In Swarna’s desperation, she makes gaffes,, but as the family starts to warm up, her past, in the form of the villainous murderer Karuna (Gulshan Devaiah), starts to catch up with her. What does Swarna’s past involve? How is she connected to Karuna, who has escaped from prison? Does she manage to protect herself and her new family?
Maa Inti Bangaram is a Samantha film all the way, and she is the biggest strength of this film.
The movie rests solely on her shoulders and her performance, ranging from humour to action to emotions, is a pleasure to watch on screen. She switches from comedy to vulnerability to fear and throws a punch quite effortlessly.
Director Nandini Reddy has clearly understood Samantha’s strengths as an actor and has tailor-made this role for her.
Given the fact that Samantha has a petite frame, even the physicality of the role has been tailored for her.
The characterisation of Swarna as a simple saree-clad housewife who can take on rowdies in an instant adds more allure to the role as well. The Oh! Baby actress has nailed the role like a pro, and one just can’t fault her performance in any way.
Director Nandini Reddy had spoken about reversing the hero-with-a-past template for Maa Inti Bangaram, and she has done precisely that.
The movie revolves around Samantha, who is the hero of the film, and the women-centric film gives a good platform for most of its female characters, be it Sreemukhi (Anasuya) or Manjusha Mukkavilli (Kiranmayi).
The director has also ensured that the movie has plenty of family drama, humour and action that will appeal to the mainstream audience.
In the first half, we are introduced to the various characters, and it proceeds at a brisk pace thanks to the lively screenplay and humour. The interactions between the family members are highly nuanced and authentic, and one immediately connects to those moments. The scenes between Anasuya and Swarna and between Swarna and Kiranmayi are some highlights in the first half.
When we get to the second half, Karuna comes in full force and action scenes start to play out here. Swarna’s secret past starts to unravel, but predictability also sets in. The emotional quotient is much higher, and the director tries to draw on that to keep the audience engaged and invested.
What is perhaps the film’s biggest drawback is the backstory between the villain Karuna and Swarna. The Karuna-Swarna thread lacks the emotional depth to make the conflict between them highly impactful. Had the director given us a stronger and more emotional conflict between the antagonist and protagonist, the film would have been elevated several notches.
All the supporting artists in the film like Sreemukhi, Manjusha, Gautami and Diganth are solid, while Gulshan Devaiah gives us a quiet, composed villain who is simmering and dangerous in Karuna.
With regard to the technical aspects, the production has not been compromised in any way. Music director Santhosh Narayanan captures the mood of the film effectively using instruments ranging from drums to the guitar and the Veena to capture the emotions on screen. Cinematography by Om Prakash is truly visually appealing, especially in the family home portions of the movie.
Ultimately, Maa Inti Bangaaram is about a woman’s love for her family, her strengths and how she will rise to the occasion when her loved ones are threatened. Samantha showcases her talent and star power in the film, while Nandini Reddy gives you an authentic entertainer, though it doesn’t reinvent the wheel. As Swarna says in the film, “Let’s come on” – and the film does exactly that, giving women-centric cinema a big boost.
