S Saraswathi

S Saraswathi is a 2026 Telugu drama thriller co-written, co-produced and directed by Varalaxmi Sarathkumar in her directorial debut. She also plays the lead, opposite Prakash Raj and Priyamani. The film opened in theatres on 6 March 2026 and streams on ETV Win.

What the story is about

Lakshmi, a government nurse, drops her daughter Saraswathi at school for the Independence Day celebration, which is also the girl’s birthday. When she comes back, the school says the only Saraswathi on its rolls is someone else’s child, and the police find nothing to show her daughter ever studied there. Lakshmi then makes a grave accusation against the school’s staff, and with no evidence to back a case, she turns to the lawyer Ramanujam, who takes it on. The film follows how the truth about Lakshmi and Saraswathi comes out.

Cast and characters

• Varalaxmi Sarathkumar as Lakshmi
• Prakash Raj as the lawyer Ramanujam
• Priyamani and Kishore as Prabhakar
• Jiiva as Aditya (extended cameo)
• Rao Ramesh as Chief Justice Uma Maheswar and Murali Sharma as Sub-Inspector Krishna Reddy
• Radikaa Sarathkumar as Dr. Tulasi and Nassar as Anthony
• Raghu Babu as Principal Rambabu, Saptagiri, Srikanth Iyengar and Getup Srinu

Crew and music

• Director, co-writer and co-producer: Varalaxmi Sarathkumar
• Music: Thaman S
• Production: Dosa Diaries LLP

Naveen Chandra was at first reported to be in the cast. The film was renamed from Saraswathi to S Saraswathi after objections from the censor board.

Release and reception

S Saraswathi was released on 6 March 2026. Reviewers credited its intent and its subject, the safety of women, but most found it predictable.

• The Indian Express (Yashaswini Sri), three stars: it “has all the ingredients of a film that could have shaken you”, but the filmmaking only partly delivers.
• The Times of India (Sanjana Pulugurtha), two and a half stars: sincere, but needed a sharper screenplay and steadier pacing.
• The New Indian Express (Suresh Kavirayani), two and a half stars: a serious, relevant subject let down by predictability.
• The Hindu (Srivathsan Nadadhur): its call for a safer world for women “is hard to dismiss”, but the storytelling is unoriginal.
• Moneycontrol (Bhawana Tanmayi), two and a half stars: “an average viewing experience”.

No box-office figure attributed to a named outlet is on record.

Where to watch S Saraswathi

S Saraswathi streams on ETV Win, where our team saw it listed on the platform. No exact streaming start date is on record.

More Telugu films like this on Tollywood Desk: Court: State vs a Nobody, Oka Court Case, Missing Meghana.

Sources: the Wikipedia article on S Saraswathi and the reviews it cites; our own cast, crew, release and OTT records.