'Mom' trailer finds Sridevi again in peak form

When it comes to Sridevi, adjectives and superlatives begin to pale and fail. In the trailer of her eagerly awaited new film "Mom", she is seen at the peak of her performing power, furnishing an intensity and a heft far beyond what one expects in a film about the mother-daughter relationship.

The trailer, which released on Saturday, is swathed in mystery. We know nothing about the plot except that it is a mother-daughter story and for a change there are pretty strong male characters in this chick flick.

Nawazuddin Siddiqui (he plays a sleazeball named DK), Akshaye Khanna and Adnan Siddiqui leave a strong impact in the little that they are given to do in the trailer.

Nawazuddin, the chameleon of an actor, is seen in prosthetics for the first time. His balding pate and buck teeth stand out, as does his confrontation scene with Sridevi where she cynically tells Nawaz, "God can't be everywhere."

"That's why he created the Mother," retorts Nawaz.

It remains to be see how far this mother is willing to break the rules for her daughter's sake. As expected, there are many moments of warm kinship between the one-and-only Sridevi and her screen daughter played by Sajal Ali. They reminded me of Waheeda Rehman and Sridevi in Yash Chopra's "Lamhe".

But the trailer gives nothing away as to the cause of the friction and drama between the mother and daughter. Who are the bad guys and who are the good guys in "Mom"? The trailer withholds this information.

What we can say with utmost certainty is that Sridevi delivers yet another powerhouse performance. As mom to a teenage daughter, she looks ten years younger than her real age and ten times wiser than any mother put in a situation of crisis that seems to demand intuition.

Debutant director Ravi Udyawar seems to have handled the incredibly talented star-actress without keeling over in awe. The narrative has a balanced, even and unostentatious feel to it. "Mom" looks like another winner for the mighty Sridevi.

--IANS

skj/rb/vt