Monday Masala: Anushka Sharma’s Pari was the only time Bollywood almost got bhoot right

Anushka Sharma's 2018 film Pari is one of the best horror films in Bollywood. Directed by Prosit Roy, the film tells the tale of spooky Ifrit and its descendants.

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Monday Masala: Anushka Sharma’s Pari was the only time Bollywood almost got bhoot right
Pari starred Anushka Sharma in the lead role.

Horror is one genre which, if not made carefully, turns into comedy. This is what happened with Vicky Kaushal's latest release, Bhoot Part One: The Haunted Ship. Directed by debutant Bhanu Pratap Singh, the film is receiving mixed reviews from film critics, with most saying it didn't make them scream with fear but rather they laughed out loud due to its absurdity.

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But how correct is the age-old sentiment - Bollywood can't make horror films? Before Vicky Kaushal's stint with horror, another big Bollywood name tried her hands at the genre. Anushka Sharma not only played the lead in 2018 film Pari but also produced her first horror flick. The film was one brave attempt and succeeded in making us jump on our seats.

After a number of failed attempts with Horror Story (2013), Alone (2015), Ragini MMS 2 (2014), Raaz 3 (2012), 1920 (2008) to Veerana (1988), and these are just a few examples, Bollywood finally seemed to have won here with the Prosit Roy directorial, Pari. Here we explain why Pari was, probably, the only time Bollywood almost got bhoot right.

STORYLINE AND DIRECTION

As the tagline of Pari goes, it was indeed 'not a fairytale'. The film is set in the rainy, wet Kolkata. From the greenery, eerie surrounding and rain that never stops, the setting is appropriate for a spooky ride. Starting from Kolkata it navigates through Barackpur and then to Dhaka and comes back full circle, giving it a promising premise. The story doesn't begin in the current times but in an older time when a professor (Rajit Kapur) discovers Ifrit, the most powerful djinn who wants to propagate its bloodline. Rukhsana (Anushka Sharma) is the descendant of Ifrit and is hiding away from some cruel men after the death of her mother in an accident. Rukhsana meets Arnab (Parambrata Chatterjee) and then begins the love story.

Pari is made of gory scenes, eeriness and a suffocating atmosphere. The director scared us with common day-to-day household things like incense sticks, a bucket of water, a tube of Boroline cream, a nail cutter, cartoons on TV and the dogs on the street. And, how can one forget the artificial eye?

ANUSHKA SHARMA'S PERFORMANCE

After Phillauri (2017) and NH 10 (2015), this was Anushka Sharma's third as producer-actor. While she played a ghost in the 2017 film too, in Pari she scared us. Her portrayal of Ifrit's descendant Rukhsana was bone-chilling in some parts, but it also garnered our sympathies in others. She wasn't a girl possessed but was born that way. She nudged the audience to contemplate if there's a possibility of humaneness in the devil.

Watch Pari trailer here:

BACKGROUND SCORE

The most important part of a horror film, which can make it or break it, is its music. Right from the start of the film, it is the music which sets the mood for what is going to happen ahead. Composed by National Award-winning music director Anupam Roy, the music of Pari is one of the highlights of the film. Even though the film has only two songs - Meri Khamoshi Hai and So Ja So Ja - the way they have been used in the film will give you goosebumps.

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WHY WE SAID ALMOST...

Here is the reason why we said Pari almost got bhoot right. It also has its share of shortcomings, which thwarted the film into becoming a cult in the genre. As soon as the director explains it all, halfway through the film, it loses its essence. The makers forgot that in the end it is a horror film and needs to induce more fear. Rather, what it does is go the Bollywood way and make it a romantic film. A romance between a pari and a human, sounds interesting, but definitely not scary.

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