Bhool Bhulaiyaa, Stree, Munjya and others – Decoding the massive appeal of horror comedies – bring out the popcorn and the scares! | Hindi Movie News

Back in 2007, a simple woman Avni, gets possessed by the spirit of Manjulika on-screen, and creates havoc in her otherwise blissful marriage, and terrorises an entire village. The horror seems to have no end in sight, till a psychiatrist decides to dig deeper, and finds out that there is more than what meets the eye…. Coupled with a haunting music score and the right use of prosthetics, this potboiler had all the trappings of sending shivers down your spine.However, it was also peppered heavily with a dose of unintended laughs, rib-tickling jokes and an affable Chhote Pandit (remember Rajpal Yadav with the red face?), making the otherwise petrifying Manjulika somewhat watchable! A win-win for all. Yes, we are talking about Bhool Bhulaiyaa, that kick started the trend of a new genre in Hindi cinema – one that was here to stay, and how!

Going back in time
Historically, horror movies in India were marked by the usual stereotypes – jump scares, screeching doors, wind blowing in your hair and last, but not the least, an ancestral haveli perched atop a hilly town, with a lone watchman, with many scary tales up his sleeve. Case in point were Purana Mandir (1984), Tahkhana (1986), Purani Haveli (1989), and many others, all with similar sounding names, and eerily similar plots. Aditya Sarpotdar, who directed the recent hit Munjya, looks back at that era and tells us, “Earlier, horror movies in India were largely dependent on theatrics and lacked an element of novelty. The only exception was the movie Mahal (1949), a black and white drama, directed by Kamal Amrohi, and starring the late Madhubala. However, in the late 80s and early 90s, the makers lost the plot completely.”

Like Aditya pointed out, the scare-o-meter of these movies was questionable, and soon, they became forgettable. Then, came a wave of well-made, quality horror movies, out of which Raaz (2002) and Bhoot (2003) stay on top of the list. Armed with the right doses of horror, these movies were largely successful in scaring the wits out of the audience, in more ways than one. However, they were also followed up by umpteen lacklustre attempts like 1920: Horrors of the Heart, 1921 and others, diluting the once popular genre.
What changed?
While there are staunch horror movie lovers across the country, there are also some, who are somewhere walking on a thin line – those who love to consume horror content, but are too scared to either watch the whole thing at one go, or in isolation. Enter horror comedies! These movies, containing a fair amount of horror are also marked by some (unintended) comic moments, hence providing the much needed relief, intermittently. Talking more about the same, Pranav Garg of Maya Cineplex told us, “Horror has always excited the audiences – if you go back in time, Vikram Bhatt used to make good horror films like Raaz and 1920 (the first part). The genre generates curiosity. With horror comedy, it is something that will keep on growing with times to come, like Stree 2 is generating a lot of buzz, Munjya was a surprise hit. These films give the audience an opportunity to step out as a family, as opposed to core horror, which targets a niche audience.”

Plot needs to shine
Most movies in the horror genre (even well made ones) have their task clearly cut out. Follow a linear path, introduce the ghost element, and then weave the story around that. (family getting affected, supernatural elements come into play, exorcists called in etc). However, it gets more tricky in the space of horror comedies. Not only does it have to scare the audience, but also make them laugh in the process. Case in point is the brilliant Stree, which came out in 2018. Directed by Amar Kaushik, and starring Rajkummar Rao and Shraddha Kapoor in lead roles, the movie is about the ghost of a woman, who only attacks men at night! Turning the tables around patriarchy, the feminist plot in the movie saw men glued to their wives when they ventured outside their houses, earning both applause and love from the audience. Not to forget the iconic dialogue, ‘Wo stree hai. Wo kuch bhi kar sakti hai’

Raking in moolah
Made on a low budget, most horror comedies are devoid of exotic locales and designer dresses, and hence do a decent business at the box-office. (see box). Talking about how horror comedies are the right step in that direction, Akkshay Rathie, distributor and exhibitor tells us, “Horror is truly an underserved genre in Indian cinema, and the potential to score at the box office is much higher than what we have seen. But yes, add the element of comedy and it has a wider appeal, since, if done with the right aesthetics, it goes from A rated movies to U/A movies, with a wider appeal.”

Crossover trend
Horror comedies have not only kick-started a new genre, but have also brought forward a crossover universe, where plots and characters of movies will overlap with each other. Talking more about it, movie business analyst Atul Mohan said, “like spy-verse and others, this horror verse is also here to stay. Like in Munjya, Varun Dhawan’s character from Bhediya is seen, who asks Abhishek Banerjee’s character Janardan from Stree for help, thus creating a crossover with Stree, Bhediya and Munjya. Hence, we can expect sequels of these movies to be out soon, all overlapping with each other.”

Nostalgic element
Like Atul said, most horror comedies end on a cliffhanger, and their sequels are eagerly looked forward to. Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2, which came out in 2022, starred Kartik Aaryan and Kiara Advani in lead roles, and was lapped up by the audience. Its part 3 is in the offing too, with a casting coup of sorts, that includes Kartik Aaryan, along with Triptii Dimri, the OG Manjulika Vidya Balan, and none other Madhuri Dixit. The recently released Stree 2 has set the initial box office on fire! The film has not only superseded its first part, but also has now beaten the record of many other biggies – including ‘Gadar 2’ last year and ‘Kalki 2898 AD’ this year.

What constitutes a good horror movie?
Aditya tells us, “When it comes to this genre, the first point to remember is that you have to find the right balance between horror and comedy, because you are handling two different genres that are at opposite ends. For example, you are setting up a jump scare moment, but you have to flip it in the next beat, by making the audience laugh, introducing a joke. So, it is all about timing, since both your jump scare and humor has to stem organically from the same script. The second important thing is to find a narrative that organically blends horror and comedy. The third aspect is that when it comes to this genre, right from your cast to your crew, each one of the team members needs to be on the same page, in terms of what they are trying to achieve.”

Content over casting
Unlike many other genres, horror comedies do not always require massive stars for appeal. Case in point being Munjya that starred newcomer Abhay Verma and Sharvari, who is only a couple of movies old. Its director Aditya tells us, “Horror comedies do not always require big stars, though it will be great if more stars start picking up the genre. Regardless, the genre itself is so strong that it will cater to the audience, who now prefer content over casting. In my own movie Munjya, the main character is a CGI (Computer-generated imagery)! Hence, it is pretty obvious that with a strong script, the movie will run on its own shoulders.”