agmtw logo
search
Kumari Srimathi

Kumari Srimathi

A smartly written Telugu family drama with an underdog protagonist worth rooting for

7.5

TV Show

India
Telugu
Comedy, Drama
2023
GOMTESH UPADHYE
Babu Mohan, Gautami Tadimalla, Madhavi Latha

TLDR

Move over, antihero dramas—the age of the underdog trying to start a small food and beverage business is here.

What it's about

In order to make enough money to buy back her late grandfather's ancestral home, an independent woman defies her family by attempting to open her own bar.

The take

Sometimes the ability to create good drama (and comedy!) just depends on one's attentiveness to how the world works and how people would reasonably react to it. And this new Telugu-language series illustrates this perceptiveness and empathy to great effect. Kumari Srimathi tells a story free of unnecessary gimmicks and stylization, but still manages to make clashing cultural values and the struggle to make money compelling just through an attention to detail.

Right off the bat, there's so much that drives Siri, our title character: her love for her late grandfather, her frustration with her conservative but well-meaning family, and her outrage at all the assumptions people make about her as a single woman. All of this is channeled into her impulsive gamble to save their old ancestral home. But Siri, played by a tough and incredibly sympathetic Nithya Menen, isn't the only star of the show. Many times these family dramas are content with assigning stereotypes to secondary characters. And this show also admittedly does this, but there are significantly more of them who feel just as real as the protagonist—all attempting to negotiate for the things that matter most to them, all coming from an earnest place.

What stands out

Siri could've easily been portrayed as either too naive or too unlikable, but Nithya Menen finds a strong, determined center to this character that avoids the usual tropes we might associate with the independent woman. Whereas many Hollywood productions might still try to focus on simply making a character like this appear desirable—as if her independence is something she needs to be rescued from, or rewarded with a relationship—Kumari Srimathi (or at least its first two episodes watched for this review) keeps her dedicated to her mission. She moves through the world with purpose, almost like she's in a legal thriller rather than a family dramedy, and it makes her all the easier to cheer on.

Comments

Add a comment

Your name

Your comment

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

Say Nothing

A powerful take on the Northern Ireland conflict that smartly shows all sides

8.5

Interior Chinatown

A novel and daring action comedy that plays on Asian American stereotypes

7.5

Dune: Prophecy

Two sisters shift the balance of power in this Dune prequel series

7.0

Ethos

A level of attention to aesthetics usually reserved for the most elaborate films, mixed with a complex and relevant story, make this series from Turkey unmatched in its quality

9.9

Caliphate

A psychological thriller that provides insight on what drove so many young people to ISIS.

8.9

Pretend it’s a City

A wildly entertaining series of interviews with a New York legend

9.2

Occupied

Norway's most expensive show ever is a timely thrill ride with a grim geopolitical premise.

8.7

Escape at Dannemora

Based on a true prison escape story, this slow-burn suspense thriller features once-in-a-lifetime performances by a star-studded cast

9.3

Unorthodox

A well-acted fact-based thriller about untangling the grip of a close-knit community

8.5

Voice

A serial killer is taken down by the sound of their voice in this intriguing crime drama

7.6

Curated by humans, not algorithms.

agmtw logo

© 2024 agoodmovietowatch, all rights reserved.