With Nandini Reddy’s Maa Inti Bangaaram, Samantha Ruth Prabhu got the comeback her fans have longed for. Little did they know that she was shooting portions of the film while pregnant. “People have loved Sam for years,” says the director in a chat with Hindustan Times, adding, “Our idea was to show people the Sam they love, and you know, they’ll come back to the theatre.” Nandini tells us all about the precautions they took while shooting the film which celebrates their star.
How pregnant Samantha Ruth Prabhu shot Maa Inti Bangaaram
Maa Inti Bangaaram’s production lasted for six to seven months after Nandini kicked off shooting in November 2025. The filmmaker says they kept a tight schedule, with around 54 days of shooting in total. “So, thankfully, we had done away with most of the action portion. We were doing Thassadiya, actually, when I discovered that she was carrying,” says Nandini, adding, “But thankfully we were at the fag end of filming when she got pregnant.”
The song featured energetic steps, and Samantha also had a car chase sequence left to shoot that would require her strength. Given that they needed to shoot the action outdoors, Nandini says ample care was taken to ensure Samantha’s comfort. “We took care that it wasn’t too strenuous for her and that she had enough breaks. It’s also not shot in top sunlight because we were heading into summer while shooting these. We took precautions to ensure she wasn’t exhausted too much,” she says.
Celebrating the star that Samantha Ruth Prabhu is
Nandini can’t help but gush when she talks about her lead star, Samantha. “She is a superstar in every aspect. Her performance, her humour, her emotions, her action, her dance…I mean, she’s done it all. Our attempt was to show her in all her glory,” says the director, adding, “We knew that itself would do magic for the film because she’s so loved.”
While Nandini gives ample credit to Samantha’s co-stars, Gulshan Devaiah, Manjusha Mukkavilli, Sreemukhi, and others for the film, she calls the lead a ‘one-man show’. “She looks tiny, but she’s got really broad shoulders on which she carries things amazingly well. We all worked together towards one goal while shooting. That is to elevate our hero, Samantha, in the best possible way. And I think everyone was game for it, so it was fun,” she rounds off.
Maa Inti Bangaaram was released in theatres on June 19 to a positive response.