Samantha Ruth Prabhu returned to theatres after three years with Maa Inti Bangaaram, and the comeback could not have been bigger. The film crossed the Rs 100 crore mark at the worldwide box office and became the first female-led Telugu movie to enter the club. While celebrating this huge win, the actress took to Instagram and shared how the film was perceived at the beginning, before it was even released.

In the post, Samantha revealed that a friend called an exhibitor in a B-centre before the film's release to understand expectations. According to the The Family Man actress, the exhibitor responded without hesitation, saying that audiences would not watch a heroine-led film. He added that while people accepted actresses in films headlined by big male stars and knew them for their glamour, they would not turn up for a movie led by a heroine. Samantha said she was listening in on the conversation without the exhibitor's knowledge.

The actress said that exchange captured the perception Maa Inti Bangaaram was up against before its release. "That was the perception before Maa Inti Bangaaram released," she wrote. The film is now streaming on JioHotstar after its blockbuster theatrical run.

To understand how Maa Inti Bangaaram was made and marketed, ET spoke to the film's co-producer Himank Duvvuru, who worked alongside Samantha and Raj Nidimoru on the movie.

'We never started with Rs 100 crore in mind', says Himak

He said the team started making the film with just one goal in mind. "We started the film by only keeping one thing in mind, which is how do we make it a film for everybody in the house to watch. 100 crores, 200, 500 is something that we didn't think or imagine when we were making the film."

He added that there were doubts within the industry about whether audiences would accept a female-led commercial action film. “But I think Samantha's stardom and her affection that she has amongst fans really brought the initial thrust to the film, after which I think then more and more spread and people appreciated it."



Speaking about the film's vision, Himank said the intention was always to create a memorable theatrical experience. "When we started off, we wanted it to be a blockbuster? Yes, of course. I think the goal was to make it big in theatres and give people a very, very good theatrical experience. I think that was the intention with which we started. The intention is always to make the film good, commercial, fun, entertaining, fights and teen comedy and something that everyone can enjoy in the house."

He said the team believed audiences would support the film if they succeeded in delivering that experience. "That's what we set out to do. And as a consequence and as a result of it, we always were confident that if we were able to pull that off, we thought that people would come and watch the film."

Himank also acknowledged that making a film led by Samantha required careful financial planning. "The other thing was because it was being mounted on a female star, Samantha, you also had to be cognizant of certain budget limitations... The first thing is to ensure that the movie is safe, people are safe, producers are safe."

"Hence, I think the planning of the movie was also done in a way where it was really done very efficiently. Both from a production point of view, with support from the direction team, I think it was completely in sync with each other. That's why we were able to do this," he quipped.

Why affordability became part of the strategy for Maa Inti Bangaaram

Himank further opened up about how conversations around cinema today are often dominated by box office numbers, but accessibility remained a priority for the team. "For our movie, we were very conscious of making it very accessible to people. The ticket prices were maintained normal, no price hikes in the first week or whenever, no matter what happened.”

Talking about their marketing strategy, he added that the pricing strategy remained the same across centres.

"We categorically ensured that it was released across different centres and kept, you know, even in other cities and multiplexes, we ensured the pricing was uniform, and there was no increase at all. Absolute numbers, ticket-wise, if you see, we must be one of the top numbers of tickets sold in the country, even though the numbers might be lesser, only because we kept it accessible."

He said keeping ticket prices affordable was a conscious decision to ensure more people could watch the film.

How Samantha, Raj and Himank divide responsibilities

Talking about the production house, Himank praised Samantha's understanding of audiences and said each partner brought different strengths to the table. "Samantha has a great sense of what the people and the audience want. So creatively, and also she is the face in terms of being there as a face of the production company.”

He explained that Samantha, Raj Nidimoru and he jointly discuss stories before deciding which projects to back. "Among them, creatively, decisions are at least the main calls on what stories we should consider. Then we have a discussion on all the stories that have been shortlisted. And we look at viability. We look at who we can do it with, who we can cast it with. And then it's a very, very mutually understanding discussion that we have."



According to Himank, disagreements are part of the process but always serve the film. "I think all of us bring different strengths to our table. And that's the beauty of the partnership. It's not like, yes, there will be disagreements. The disagreements are only because we want to make the product better. We want to make sure we are the best out in terms of every movie that we make. So it's very, very healthy.”

He further explained how responsibilities are divided. "From a creative point of view, once we tick off on what we're doing, then it's Raj's call in terms of how the movie creatively comes to shape. And Samantha, along with looking at the creative part and how it's coming together, also is the one who sort of drives it from a positioning point of view, from a marketing, from an audience point of view. And I am the one who is behind structuring it, taking care of the capital, finance, ensuring that it's... So I think that combination really works."

When asked whether it has become easier to back female-led films today, Himank admitted that it remains difficult and challenging

He recalled the scepticism the team faced before the film's release. However, Himank believes a female-led film succeeds only when audiences connect with its story and purpose. "I think it's a female lead, but it's also what the intent of that story is. I think that is very, very critical. And the uniqueness of it."

He said the film connected with many women because it reflected their lived experiences. And further added that the industry still evaluates female-led films more cautiously than male-led projects. "I don't think it's easy to mount because even for platforms, when they buy, they look at who, what, what kind of returns and all of it."

He expressed hope that the film would encourage more investments in women-led stories. He concluded by pointing out the difference in how failures are perceived.

"You can have two or three flops and come back with a blockbuster. And you won't get judged as a male star. A female star, if you have a bad film, people judge it too easily. They're like, you know what, we knew this was going to happen. We told you, female... So give it a chance. I think people should take that chance, give it a chance. Give it a sensible chance by mounting it in the right way, the right budget, the right people, bracket with the right kind of team. And I think it's definitely possible."

A record-breaking run for Maa Inti Bangaaram

Maa Inti Bangaaram is now streaming on JioHotstar. The film marks Samantha Ruth Prabhu's third collaboration with director Nandini Reddy after Jabardasth and Oh! Baby. Directed by Nandini Reddy, the film is jointly produced by Samantha, Raj Nidimoru and Himank Duvvuru under the Tralala Pictures banner. It has emerged as one of the biggest box office successes of the year.

Within just 10 days of its release, the film overtook Anushka Shetty's Arundhati to become the highest-grossing female-led Telugu film of all time. The cast also includes Gulshan Devaiah, Diganth, Gautami and Sreemukhi, while the music has been composed by Santhosh Narayanan.

The film's success has also created history for Samantha. She is now the first actress in Telugu cinema to headline a solo female-led film that has crossed the Rs 100 crore mark at the box office.