Mahesh Babu's scene from Trivikram Srinivas’ SSMB28 leaked from sets, fans criticise glorification of smoking

Days after its first look was revealed, a snippet from Mahesh Babu’s upcoming film with Trivikram Srinivas has leaked online. The film, tentatively titled SSMB28, is an action adventure and marks the first collaboration between the star and the director. The leaked scene is supposedly shot on a mobile phone from the sets and features the actor himself.

The 16-second scene, shot from inside a window, shows Mahesh Babu, exit a car smoking a cigarette. The actor is dressed in blue denims, black shirt, and also has shades on his eyes. The actor then walks away from the car into the direction of some other artistes. The short clip does not reveal much about the sequence or the film itself but it has been enough to get fans excited.

#SSMB28 #SSMB28FromJAN13 @urstrulyMahesh #MaheshBabu #MaheshBabu @_mb4005 @_Pandugaadu @_Rishi_Prince_ @Akash_dhfm143 @Priya_4005 @rowdypriyadhfm3 @MbRamesh_4005 @Urstrulyskth pic.twitter.com/kmP0S4OlNc

—  (@Chaitan68716433) March 27, 2023

Many praised the short sequence and Mahesh Babu’s ‘swag’ in particular. This is ‘mass level swag’, read one tweet. Others, however, criticised how the scene seemed to be glorifying smoking and equating it with ‘style and swag’. One fan commented on a Reddit post about the leaked scene, “It's dangerous that people feel swag with heroes smoking cigarettes and cigars prime example kgf.” Another quipped, “Final message Smoking is injurious to health.” Many remarked that the scene was probably the same which was featured on the official poster.

A day prior to the leaked video, Mahesh Babu had unveiled the first look poster of the film and announced its release date. The poster is filled with swag as Mahesh walks with a cigar in his mouth, between a crowd with a convoy behind him.

SSMB28 stars Pooja Hegde opposite Mahesh Babu. S Radhakrishna (China Babu) is producing the film with a huge budget under the banner of his production house Haarika & Hassine Creations. The film is set to release on January 13, 2024 in time for the Sankranthi festive weekend, arguably the biggest festive weekend for Telugu cinema.