Vanda Costa

Saramandaia is a Brazilian telenovela originally written by Dias Gomes in 1976. It's considered remarkable because of the Magic Realism (used by the author to subtly criticize the Military Regime of the time) and had 160 chapters. The story centers on the name change that the city undergoes, promoted by the younger citizens and reviled by the older ones. It also focuses on the lives of the city's quirky residents.

After his grandfather's death, André Cajarana goes to Rio de Janeiro to understand the death of his father—whom he had always believed to be a hero—and to try to prove his innocence.

Maria Augusta, Maria José, and Maria da Glória reunite in Rio after studying together in Switzerland and prove their friendship despite many twists and turns, crimes, and romances.

Set in Rio de Janeiro, the main plot follows the romantic adventures of four young people: Sônia, Joyce, Paulo, and Carlos. The youngest, Joyce, was raised by her aunt and uncle, Flávia and Dario Rodrigues, following her mother's death and her father's disappearance. Dario and Flávia are Sônia's parents, and they raised both girls as sisters. The story becomes even more complicated with the arrival of Carlos, a young man of humble origins who falls for Joyce the moment he meets her. Joyce, however, does not reciprocate his advances and spurns his interest. Increasingly in love with Paulo, she even pretends to be blind after an accident—solely to remain close to the doctor—and proves willing to do whatever it takes to keep Sônia out of her way.

A hardworking market vendor, Mrs. Xepa faces many sacrifices to raise her children alone. However, as they achieve social advancement, they begin to feel ashamed of their mother.

The soap opera follows the story of young Aurélia Camargo (Norma Blum), a girl who falls in love with the ambitious young journalist Fernando Seixas (Cláudio Marzo), who also falls in love with her, but rejects her when he receives an invitation to marry Adelaide (Fátima Freire), the daughter of Tavares do Amaral (Felipe Wagner), a wealthy banker. Feeling abandoned by her great love, Aurélia dreams of one day having him back. Until, when she turns 18, she is surprised with an inheritance from her grandfather, and becomes a very rich woman, allowing her to create her own rules for her life. However, for the society of the time, it was not good form for a woman to enjoy such independence. For this reason, Aurélia begins to rely on a distant relative, Dona Firmina Mascarenhas (Zilka Sallaberry), to act as her mother, and on the administrator Mr. Lemos (Alberto Perez), to guide her in business. So, she sees a great opportunity to have Fernando in her life again.

Cecília is in love with Eduardo, a millionaire who doesn't care about their relationship. Ready for a new direction in life, she ends the relationship and goes to work as a flight attendant in New York. Later, she returns to win back her love, but things are not the same anymore.

Reporter Tião, who routinely brings neighbor’s son Zeca along for leisure features, is drawn into investigating mysterious disappearances in the city. He uncovers Dr. Kiriri’s hidden laboratory, where the mad scientist and his secretary Mérilin transform victims into dust and send them to another galaxy. Tião must expose and stop Kiriri before more people vanish.