Kajal Aggarwal in ‘Satyabhama’ | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
We don’t often get to see Telugu films with a woman in the lead role, that too in a story where she gets to deliver a powerful punch. As far as credit goes, the makers have given this film a lot of praise. SatyabhamaThe police drama, directed by Kajal Aggarwal, takes a leap of faith to present a film that has women at the centre. Directed by Suman Chikkala, the film acknowledges the role played by SHE Teams and the SHESafe app for women in distress. Kajal appears in the ‘mass’ segment with slow-paced and action sequences accompanied by Sricharan Pakala’s rousing music. However, the film doesn’t go that route Singham Or duties It tries to strike a balance and explore a serious drama in which the police have to fight the demons of the past to get closure.
ACP Satyabhama (Kajal Aggarwal) is a police officer who puts her duty above everything else. This is helped by her husband, writer Amar (Naveen Chandra), who almost always supports her and is patient, even when she arrives a few hours late for her wedding. This kind of confrontation takes the worry of balancing personal and professional life off Satyabhama’s shoulders, but soon she has to deal with a setback that starts affecting her personal life as well.
Satyabhama (Telugu)
Direction: Suman Chikkala
Cast: Kajal Aggarwal, Naveen Chandra, Prakash Raj
Story: When a woman seeks help in a domestic violence case, ACP Sathyabhama’s plan goes awry. She has to deal with setbacks, overcome guilt and trauma, and find out the truth.
The narrative tries to break certain stereotypes. For instance, many mainstream films have lines in which ‘wearing bangles’ becomes a metaphor for lack of courage, lack of masculinity. In one scene, Satyabhama walks into a lockup wearing a red sari and bangles, knocks a man unconscious and makes him spill the beans. Such small instances aside, the initial scenes that present her as a tough police officer don’t go beyond the mainstream template, with a thumping background score, slow motion walks, fabulous hairstyles and power dressing. While this helps set the tone of the narrative, some novelty in the way she tackles cases would have helped raise the bar.
The story begins when a woman named Haseena comes to the police station and seeks protection from her abusive husband. Things do not go as expected and Satyabhama finds herself accountable to Haseena’s brother Iqbal and her elderly father. After a long time some of her higher-ups think the case is closed, this upsets her and she sets out to find the truth. Several characters are introduced as sub-stories unfold and Satyabhama goes through a labyrinth, unable to move forward in professional and personal spheres.
Several characters emerge – played by Ankit Koyya, Sampada, Payal Radhakrishna, Neha Pathan and Prajwal Yadma. A subplot of friendship and love adds a new dimension to the drama but it is not welcome. Actors Prakash Raj, Nagineedu and Ravi Varma are in characters that do not leave an impact. Naveen Chandra is also wasted in a thinly written part. A political angle is explored but it is abandoned as soon as the plot involves AI-incorporated games, chat windows, impersonation, terrorism and more. A subplot touches upon religious orthodoxy but eventually, when the complex puzzle is solved, it becomes a simple revenge drama. It is hard to stay invested in what is happening or feel genuinely concerned for any of the characters involved, including Satyabhama. What saves parts of the climax to some extent is how Satyabhama faces the crisis and it comes across as a subtle commentary on the gun culture.
Kajal Aggarwal excels in the action segments and her demeanour is designed to reveal very little in terms of emotions; she is expected to express her trauma with balanced emotional outbursts. It works in parts while in others, we barely connect with her character’s plight.
Satyabhama This could have been a thrilling police drama, especially since the screenplay is written by Sashi Kiran Tikka (Goodachari And Chief) but it falls short.
