In a terrific sequence in Maa Inti Bangaaram, Swarna (Samantha Ruth Prabhu) teaches her best friend Kiranmayi (Manjusha) a strange but important lesson. “Be it a hero or a housewife, when the dialogue lands right… it can scare anyone,” she tells her bemused friend. Swarna has just threatened a man who sniffed out her past, and goes on to utter the most muttered commercial film dialogue ever: “Do you know who I am?”
Nandini Reddy’s Maa Inti Bangaaram is at its most convincing when it takes on the sweet absurdities of the Baashha film genre. It positions a woman in place of a man, giving her deep insecurities and gendered marriage biases to fight apart from just thugs.
Anirudh (Diganth Manchale) is nervously making a return to his hometown, a few years after eloping, when the film opens. But his bride has more reasons to be skittish. Swarna isn’t just facing the wrath of prodding in-laws who don’t approve of her, but also the ideals set by generations of brides before her. One wouldn’t describe Swarna as ideal in a traditional sense of the word. For one, she can’t cook or offer prayers (the film is set in the 80s). But Swarna, led by a heightened sense of competitiveness, doesn’t take no for an answer. This leads to some expected hilarity, but not in the usual sense. We’re introduced to a female friend who goes above and beyond the “friend of the heroine” trope. Manjusha brings on the laughs as Kiranmayi, Swarna’s childhood friend and ride or die, who begrudgingly helps her dole out mutton curries, make impressive rangolis and keep her friend’s dark secret.
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