Movie: Mithra Mandali
Rating: 2/5
Banners: Sapta Aswa Media Works, Vyra Entertainments, BV Works
Cast: Priyadarshi, Niharika NM, Rag Mayur, Vishnu Oi, Prasad Behara, Vennela Kishore, VTV Ganesh, Satya, and others
Music: RR Dhruvan
Cinematography: Siddharth SJ
Editor: Peekay
Art: Gandhi Nadikudikar
Presented by: Bunny Vas
Producers: Kalyan Manthina, Bhanu Pratapa, Dr. Vijender Reddy Teegala
Written and directed by: Vijayendar S
Release Date: October 16, 2025
After Priyadarshi scored a hit with “Court” earlier this year, and Vishnu Oi created a laugh riot in “Mad Square”, followed by social media star Niharika NM making her Telugu debut, “Mithra Mandali” naturally drew attention. In addition, the film gained further buzz before release with successful producer Bunny Vas presenting it.
Let’s find out whether it delivers the promised laughs from its promotional content.
Story:
The story begins at a local police station, where officer Sagar K. Chandra (Vennela Kishore) refuses to register a complaint. At the same time, Tutte Narayana (VTV Ganesh), who has just secured an MLA ticket, rushes in claiming his daughter Swecha (Niharika NM) has been kidnapped. In private, he admits she actually eloped but insists it be treated as a kidnapping to preserve his community support.
Coincidentally, the man who came to file the earlier complaint turns out to be linked to Swecha’s disappearance. He reveals that she left with Chaitanya (Priyadarshi) and his group of friends, known as Mithra Mandali.
The rest of the film explores how Swecha and Chaitanya fell in love and how a simple elopement spiraled into a full-blown kidnapping drama.
Artistes’ Performances:
Priyadarshi, who has been taking up lead roles recently, blends into the group here rather than standing out as the main hero. His character has little prominence beyond the romantic track and a song. He does a routine comedic act, which is passable. Vishnu Oi delivers a few laughs, while Rag Mayur is okay in his comic timing. Prasad Behara’s comedy falls flat on most occasions.
Vennela Kishore as the police officer and Satya in a key role manage to lift the humor in parts. VTV Ganesh is neat in his part. Vamsi provides laughs in police station sequences.
Niharika NM, the popular social media influencer making her Telugu debut, has a decent screen presence but does not leave a strong impact.
Technical Excellence:
The background score is in sync with the genre, and the songs are funny. The cinematography is functional at best. Screenplay lacks finesse, and the writing is mediocre as an imitation to 'Jathi Rathnalu'. Rest of technical departments did their job as required.
Highlights:
Few comedy episodes
Drawback:
The total set up looks mostly silly
The screenplay lacks coherence
Many episodes leave us in boredom
Analysis
“Mithra Mandali” is built on a wafer-thin premise. Rather than a solid storyline, it plays out like a series of skits loosely stitched together. At first, the idea of two parallel tracks colliding - a politician wanting his daughter’s elopement framed as a kidnapping, and the chain of events leading to that elopement - comes across as clever. But the novelty fades quickly.
Instead of staying committed to this setup and mining it for consistent humour, the director keeps throwing random situations to stretch the runtime. Sequences are repeated, jokes are recycled, and many of the so-called comedy scenes fall flat.
A few moments do land well.
The meta gag where a character begins narrating the story right from the anti-smoking disclaimer earns genuine laughs, and the scenes involving Vennela Kishore and Satya work to an extent.
The English-language comedy bits and the romance between Niharika and Priyadarshi are mildly amusing. However, the repetitive tracks about the gang wanting to buy drinks, borrowing money for tea, and Prasad Behara’s portions quickly test patience.
Plot-less comedies can work if the writing is sharp and the timing precise. Here, both are lacking, making much of the film feel absurd rather than entertaining. Even Satya’s so-called “important character” ends up illogical.
The director clearly aims for Anudeep-style humour in the vein of “Jathi Ratnalu,” but the writing never reaches that level. It stays firmly in mediocre territory.
Overall, “Mithra Mandali” pushes Priyadarshi back into the comedian zone rather than reinforcing him as a lead actor. The comedy setup gradually turns farcical and absurd. While a few jokes land well, the largely plot-less narrative and repetitive make the film a dull watch.
Bottom-line: Forced Laughsl
