Mathu Vadalara review: Yet another gem on the changing scene of Tollywood

Starring Sri Simha Koduri, son of Tollywood music director MM Keeravani, Mathu Vadalara isn’t a conventional launch, one would expect from a ‘star kid’. Though the film was made on a small budget, the trailer garnered interest among the cinephiles, especially the urban youth. Directed by debut director, Ritesh Rana, the thriller hit the screens on Thursday. Here’s the review of Mathu Vadalara. 

Mathu Vadalara review

Mathu Vadalara is a story that revolves around drugs and the director makes sure the audience experience a memorable psychedelic trip. Not many movies in the Indian cinema have actually dealt with the concept of drug abuse at its core. But Mathu Vadalara does it quite well, with a certain sense of awareness.

The cast including Simha, Satya and Naresh perform with ease, and their camaraderie works brilliantly throughout the film. The characters are authentic and relatable. Added to that usage of Chiranjeevi, TV soaps, memes and GIFs, brings in a fresh flavour. With a fine balance between comedy and suspense, the film doesn’t try too hard to either complicate the plot or create an unrelated comic piece. The real heroes though are the ones behind the screen are definitely the writing, editing and sound design departments. Even when the performances mellow down at one place or two, the gripping writing comes to the rescue and makes sure the pace of the narrative always kicks in, to keep the audience hooked until the end. 

All in all, Mathu Vadalara is another spark in the changing scene of Tollywood. The movie will set an example for future filmmakers on how to tell trippy yet relatable new-age thrillers.

Positives: Story, Screenplay, Editing, Sound design

Negatives: Only works for niche 

Review by Halfday