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Mathu Vadalara
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Ritesh Rana
Written by	Ritesh Rana
Produced by	Cherry Hemalatha Pedamallu
Starring	Sri Simha Naresh Agastya Athulya Chandra Satya
Cinematography	Suresh Sarangam
Edited by	Karthika Srinivas
Music by	Kaala Bhairava
Production companies	Clap Entertainment Mythri Movie Makers
Release date	25 December 2019 (2019-12-25)
Running time	130 minutes
Country	India
Language	Telugu

Mathu Vadalara (transl. Leave the intoxication) is a 2019 Indian Telugu-language comedy thriller film directed by debutante Ritesh Rana. The film features Sri Simha, Naresh Agastya, Athulya Chandra and Satya in the lead roles while Brahmaji and Vennela Kishore play supporting roles. Kaala Bhairava scored the music. The plot follows Babu (Simha), a delivery boy who gets stuck in an apartment alone after accidentally taking water mixed with hallucinogens.

The film's title was inspired by a song from the mythological film Sri Krishna Pandaveeyam (1966). The film was released on 25 December 2019 and opened to positive reviews. It was successful at the box office. The sequel Mathu Vadalara 2 is released in 2024, which was also a commercial success at the box office.

Plot

Babu and Yesu are delivery men and close friends who share an apartment with Abhi, an unemployed roommate who spends his days binge-watching crime television shows. Plagued by severe financial struggles, Babu receives advice from Yesu, who details how he secretly steals cash from his delivery clients. Although initially hesitant, Babu decides to try the scheme. The following day, he enters an isolated, gated apartment complex where he experiences a series of strange chance encounters: a woman who hits him with her scooter, a police constable named Banerjee conducting a passport verification, and a resident named Ravi.

Babu eventually arrives at apartment 401, delivers a package to an elderly woman, and surreptitiously steals a ₹500 note from her cash. He tries to bluff her into believing she underpaid him, but when she catches on to his scam, a scuffle breaks out, and the old lady collapses. Panicking upon finding her lifeless body, Babu imagines Yesu and Abhi instructing him on how to cover up the crime. He moves her body into the bedroom to make it look like she died peacefully in her sleep. In the process, he notices her granddaughter, Bujji, listening to loud music on her headphones, completely oblivious to his presence.

When a security guard suddenly enters the apartment, Babu hides inside a bathroom closet. From his hiding spot, he watches the guard pretend to fix the shower while actually swapping out the memory card of a hidden spy camera. Babu steals the camera and desperately texts Yesu and Abhi for assistance. Meanwhile, Bujji invites Ravi into the apartment to smoke marijuana. It is revealed that Bujji had earlier laced the elderly woman's water bottle with drugs—and she inadvertently drugs Babu as well through contaminated water. Babu loses consciousness and falls asleep in the bedroom.

When Babu wakes up, he finds himself in a completely different living room, sitting next to a fresh corpse. Horrified, he flees the building, reunites with Yesu downstairs, and returns home. Checking his delivery bag, Babu realizes his packages are gone, replaced by ₹50 lakh in cash and the mobile phone of Constable Banerjee. He deduces that the corpse he sat next to belonged to the policeman. Backed by Yesu and Abhi, Babu devises a plan to return to the complex, retrieve his delivery bike and missing packages, and erase the security footage.

Upon returning to apartment 401, Babu is shocked to find the elderly lady alive and well. Furthermore, a chance encounter with the actual male resident of flat 503 reveals that the girl who hit him with the scooter the previous day was using a fake identity. Babu pieces together the layout and realizes that he had actually passed out and awoken in apartment 501, not 401.

Entering flat 501, the friends discover Banerjee's corpse. While searching for the missing delivery packages, they stumble upon a hidden drug laboratory and find the mysterious scooter girl unconscious. Babu identifies 501 as Ravi's apartment, and shortly after, they discover Ravi's dead body hidden inside. By intimidating the security guard, Babu retrieves the spy camera footage from 401.

When the girl regains consciousness, a brief scuffle ensues before they interrogate her. She reveals her true identity as Myra, a drug dealer who came to collect a shipment from Ravi, the cook and supplier. The previous morning, while Myra was waiting in flat 501, Constable Banerjee had knocked on the door asking about a neighbor, only to accidentally uncover the illicit drug lab. When Ravi attempted to negotiate a bribe, a heavily intoxicated Myra abruptly murdered the officer.

Babu then reviews the spy camera footage and spots a shocking detail: Abhi was present at the crime scene. Babu confronts and beats up Abhi, who confesses to being the ultimate mastermind behind the drug operation, acting as the chemist while Ravi handled distribution. Abhi explains that after Myra killed Banerjee, he scrambled to fix the situation by knocking out Myra and murdering Ravi to eliminate loose ends. When Babu unexpectedly texted him for help from apartment 401, Abhi seized the opportunity to frame his own roommate by dragging the drugged Babu into flat 501 and leaving him in the middle of the staged crime scene.

Enraged by the ultimate betrayal, Babu destroys the laboratory, triggering a massive chemical explosion that releases the drugs into the air, getting everyone instantly high. Weeks later, Babu and Yesu awaken in a police interrogation room. The investigating detective informs them that the chemical blast has left both Abhi and Myra permanently mentally unstable. In a corrupt twist, the detective strikes a deal and allows Babu and Yesu to walk away scot-free in exchange for keeping the ₹50 lakh. However, the victory is short-lived. In a mid-credits twist, the Prime Minister of India suddenly appears on television to announce the immediate demonetization of all current ₹500 and ₹1000 currency notes, rendering the detective's extorted millions completely worthless.

Cast

• Sri Simha as Babu Mohan "Babu"
• Satya as Yesu Dasu "Yesu"
• Naresh Agastya as Abhi
• Athulya Chandra as Myra
• Brahmaji as S. Banerjee
• Vennela Kishore as Ravi Teja
• Ajay as Tejaswi Thota
• Jeeva as a detective
• Vidyullekha Raman as Bujji
• Gundu Sudharshan as a security guard
• Pavala Syamala as an old woman
• Ajay Ghosh as a house owner

Themes and influences

The film was inspired by several true incidents including a door delivery man who would take extra rupee notes from customers and hides it underneath his shirt and a 2017 incident in which a man was dubbed "The Ganja Grower of Golconda", both of which are shown in the film's end credits. The serial Ori Na Koduka that appears in the film, which is about a husband who is still alive and cares for his wife despite getting shot in the head, is based on an episode from the 2014 Tamil serial Chandralekha broadcast on Sun TV in which the roles were reversed. The absurdity of the happenings in the serial was meant as a jab at the over-the-top nature of Indian serials. The name of the character Yesu Dasu (played by Satya) was inspired by the name of the veteran Indian playback singer.

Soundtrack

The songs were composed by Kaala Bhairava. Lyrics were written by M. M. Keeravani and Rakendu Mouli.

• "Mathu Vadalara (Title Track)" - Kaala Bhairava
• "Saalaa Rey Saalaa" - Pruthvi Chandra

Release

The film was released on 25 December 2019. Additional screens and shows were added in Hyderabad a few days later.

Reception

The Times of India gave the film a rating of three out of five stars and stated that the film is a "A perfect thriller which makes audience glued to their seats and also spills some laughs". The Hindu wrote that "Mathu Vadalara isn't a very crafty thriller, which it could have been with some more effort. But it's definitely a step in that direction by a new team that's brimming with ideas". Hemant Kumar of Firstpost rated the film 3.25/5 and wrote, "Mathu Vadalara is a worthy addition to the new age Telugu cinema, and it wins you over with its clever use of humour and suspense to build a gripping narrative."

Accolades

Award	Date of ceremony	Category	Recipient(s) and nominee(s)	Result	Ref.
Critics Choice Film Awards	28 March 2020	Best Writing	Ritesh Rana, R. Teja	Nominated
South Indian International Movie Awards	18 September 2021	Best Comedian – Telugu	Satya	Nominated
		Best Male Debut – Telugu	Sri Simha	Won
		Best Debut Director – Telugu	Ritesh Rana	Nominated

Sequel

Main article: Mathu Vadalara 2

In August 2024, the sequel was announced with Faria Abdullah, Rohini, and Sunil being the new additions to the franchise, while Sri Simha Koduri, Satya, and Vennela Kishore would be reprising their roles.

External links

• Mathu Vadalara at IMDb