Vakeel Saab 2021

Pallavi Nivetha Thomas, Zareena Anjali, and Divya Nayak Ananya Nagalla are independent, middle-class working women sharing a home in Hyderabad. One night, after their car breaks down on a highway, Pallavi’s friend Viswa offers them a lift. Later, Bunty and Viswa rush a severely injured Vamsi to the hospital. Meanwhile, the three women return home in a taxi, appearing shaken, implying their involvement in the incident. They try to move on, but Vamsi, seeking revenge, threatens them, leading to Zareena losing her job. The local police, aware of Vamsi’s powerful connections through his father, MP Korentla Rajendra Prakash Raj, discourage the women from filing a complaint.

The next day, Pallavi is kidnapped by Vamsi’s friends, who threaten, blackmail, and molest her in a moving car before dropping her back home, leaving her traumatized. A few days later, Pallavi is arrested based on a complaint from Vamsi, who labels the women as prostitutes and charges Pallavi with attempted murder. In despair, Zareena and Divya encounter Satyadev Pawan Kalyan, a seemingly alcoholic man who suggests they seek emergency bail. Initially skeptical of his help, they later learn that Satyadev was once a reputable lawyer but was suspended for four years after harming a fellow lawyer in court. Concurrently, his wife Amrutha Shruti Haasan died due to pregnancy complications while he was away on an important case, sending him into depression and alcoholism. Although he initially declines to help, an attack by Rajendra’s men motivates Satyadev to represent Pallavi in court.

In court, Vamsi’s lawyer, Advocate Nanda Gopal, argues that the women, after being helped by Vamsi and his friends, demanded money for sexual favors, painting them as prostitutes. He attacks Pallavi’s character, emphasizing her choice to live with friends despite having family in Hyderabad. The women counter, claiming Vamsi attempted to rape Pallavi, who acted in self-defense. Satyadev’s defense centers on the concept of consent and a woman’s right to say no.

During the trial, Satyadev exposes the police’s collusion with Vamsi, revealing inconsistencies in the complaint timeline and proving Pallavi was not immediately arrested despite lodging a complaint against Vamsi. Nanda’s attempts to provoke Zareena into admitting to taking money from the men causes a moment of distress, but Satyadev presses on, ultimately causing Vamsi to admit the truth in a fit of rage, saying the women “got what they deserved.”

Satyadev critiques societal double standards that label women as immoral for behaviors that are acceptable for men, emphasizing that > no means no > regardless of context.

Following the trial, Satyadev and the women are attacked on a train by Siva but manage to fend off the attackers and return to court. The women are acquitted, while Vamsi, Bunty, and Siva face pending sentences, and Viswa is let off with a warning.

After the case, Satyadev resumes his legal career to help ordinary people, Zareena regains her job, Pallavi gets engaged, and Divya moves into her newly constructed home.