Mathu Vadalara 2 review: Satya shines in this lazily written thriller

Three years after the successful Mathu Vadalara was released, director Ritesh Rana has come up with a sequel. Mathu Vadalara 2, unlike other sequels that milk the franchise with a different premise, is a continuation of the first part. The principal characters –Babu Mohan (Sri Simha) and Yesudas (Satya)- remain, only that instead of being delivery boys they are now part of an investigative agency called HE Team, a dig at the SHE Teams of the Telangana police. 

It is inconceivable that Babu Mohan and Yesudas, who struggled to make a living as delivery executives in the first part of the film, have become agents of a specialised team which mostly deals with kidnap and other sensitive crimes in the sequel. But this is a film where you have to suspend your disbelief and the meta jokes sometimes aid with this. 

Despite being part of an elite agency, Babu and Yesudas are still in deep debt, struggling with their poor pay package. This funny scenario is relatable as many IT employees are moonlighting to earn more while several educated employed people remain depressed about their abysmal earnings.

Babu and Yesudas commit crimes by cheating the agency. The trouble starts when someone frames them in a murder case. The film then becomes a whodunnit, but the flaws in the writing are easy to unmask despite actor Satya, who steals every scene with his goofiness. 

The revelation of the conspiracy has no better explanation either – an agent within the HE Team plots against Babu and Yesudas. Why? We do not know. There is no strong motivation at play. Similarly, this character has collected evidence of the duo’s crimes. How? Again, not explained. The film is riddled with many such glaring plot holes, which could have become enjoyable moments had the writing been better. 

Mathu Vadalara 2 has attempted to create deja vu moments from its first part, which sometimes helps with the plot’s consistency. For example, in a scene, reference is made to the first part of the film where Satya accidentally gets high on drugs. But this portion is rather lacklustre, failing to recreate the charm of the original sequence.

The film’s saving grace, apart from an incredible Satya, is the many references to Telugu pop culture. Ritesh Rana makes fun of the toxic Telugu fanboy culture and the ways young actors cultivate their star image with gimmicks. Vennela Kishore plays the role of a young actor called Yuva and his upcoming film is called ‘Moron’. A particular sequence where Kishore is mobbed by fans who identify themselves as ‘Yuveniles’ (obviously referring to them as juveniles) is a hoot. The film also has a parallel track of a Telugu serial, adding to the narrative’s bizarreness.

As mentioned earlier, this is a film which works when it does, because of Satya. As Babu Mohan, Sri Simha is adequate. Faria Abdullah, the latest addition to the franchise, does not have enough to perform, but she does a good job with what she has. Ajay and Vennela Kishore are also versatile in their roles.  

Kala Bhairava’s background score greatly works in setting the mood and Suresh Sarangam’s cinematography is brilliant. His camera choices keep the whodunnit engaging and add to the quirkiness of the narrative. 

While Mathu Vadalara 2’s absurd setting works, better writing would have made this film memorable, like its predecessor.

Disclaimer: This review was not paid for or commissioned by anyone associated with the film. Neither TNM nor any of its reviewers have any sort of business relationship with the film’s producers or any other members of its cast and crew.