Samantha also featured in three high-profile Telugu films during 2016 ; while Srikanth Addala 's family drama '' Brahmotsavam '' opposite Mahesh Babu was a box office failure , her role in Trivikram Srinivas 's romantic comedy , '' A Aa '' alongside Nithiin , won her critical and commercial acclaim . Portraying Anasuya Ramalingam , a naive girl trying to escape from the controlling behaviour of her mother , Samantha received positive reviews for her portrayal of the character . A critic from The New Indian Express noted " '' A Aa '' undoubtedly is Samantha ’s film " and that " right from her first frame till the last , she delivers a stellar performance and shows what she can do if given ample screen time " , adding that she was " a joy to watch " . Likewise , a reviewer from The Hindu noted " Samantha , after a long time , gets enough screen time and scope to shine " , stating " she ’s vulnerable as a 23-year-old reeling in her mother ’s shadow and can also play the high maintenance , stubborn girl with ease " , while concluding " this is a role she can be proud of " . Similarly Bollywoodlife.com noted her " earnest performance was the life and soul of the romantic comedy " , while DNA India 's critic cited that " Samantha and Nithiin 's performances in this movie will be what people would rave about for days to come " . The film also performed well at the box office , doing exceptionally good business for a Telugu film released in the United States . Her performance subsequently fetched her the Best Telugu Actress Award at the Filmfare Awards , her fourth such recognition . She then featured in the commercially successful action film '' Janatha Garage '' directed by Koratala Siva , with a critic noting despite " a limited role , she gives a nice performance " . She then portrayed the lead female role in Atlee 's '' Mersal '' , and featured alongside Vijay for the third time in her career and her performance received positive reviews and the movie became one of the highest grossing Tamil films of 2017 and was a blockbuster . '' Mersal '' went on to join the 200 crore club
Filmfare Awards
64th Filmfare Awards South
Samantha Akkineni