The trailer for Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 has dropped, and it features not one but two Manjulikas – the OG one, played by Vidya Balan, and a new one, played by Madhuri Dixit Nene. These details might be insignificant for those unfamiliar with the Bhool Bhulaiyaa franchise. But for fans of Priyadarshan’s 2007 original, it’s a bitter pill to swallow. It’s hugely disappointing to see a classic horror comedy being reduced to double roles, jump scares and the overused trope of Bengali women practising black magic.
Priyadarshan’s Bhool Bhulaiyaa was a Hindi remake of the 1993 Malayalam-language film, Manichitrathazhu, which featured Mohanlal, Gopi Suresh and Shobana. The film, along with introducing horror comedy to Hindi cinema and becoming a commercial success, also broached the topic of mental health at a time when there was little awareness or sensitivity toward it. Through the story of Avni (Vidya Balan) who imagines herself as Manjulika, a court dancer wronged by an evil king, the movie spoke about childhood trauma and how it often seeps into adult life.
But with the entry of Anees Bazmi as director and Kartik Aryan as ‘Rooh Baba’, it has been a pretty downhill journey. ‘Babas’ are being valourised, and Bengali women are being painted as mysterious and powerful witches. Just for kicks.
Regressive or entertaining?
Horror comedies are witnessing a boom. Stree 2 and Munjya did tremendous business this year and even Bhool Bhulaiyaa emerged successful in 2022. So, it is hardly surprising to see that the makers decided to release a third film.
But shifting the film’s action from Rajasthan, which has many ancient lores about haunted places, to Kolkata for furthering a black magic-heavy plot just indulges stereotypes. There are already a lot of memes and reels circulating on social media about Bengali women trapping non-Bengali men into relationships against their will with kaala jaadu. And films like Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 only further such bogus claims. Bazmi and his team must think beyond laughs. Commercially successful movies with big stars influence people. If they further such generalisations, the impact could be extremely harmful.
We all saw what happened to Rhea Chakraborty. She was accused, among other things, of black magic post the death of her then-boyfriend, the Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput.
Such sexist perceptions already deeply impact women’s lives. And the problem intensifies when made larger-than-reality and circulated as ‘fact’ through commercial films.
Take Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 as well. It featured Bengali sisters Anjulika and Manjulika, played by Tabu in a double role. One of them is an evil twin who practises black magic, and the other is a sacrificial goat. Unlike Avni’s character (from the first film) who sees genuine development as the film progresses, Tabu’s Anjulika and Manjulika are stuck in archetypes. Reet (Kiara Ali Advani) exists just to dance with Ruhaan (Kartik Aryan), and look pretty when not doing anything else. Men are the saviours, and women are either witches or damsels in distress. How original.
Going by the third film’s trailer, there would just be more of Tripti Dimri pulling the same coy act, while Balan has to measure up to the first film. Truly a waste of talented actors.
Bazmee does not need to incorporate social messaging like in the Maddock supernatural universe. But the least he can do is not plunge deeper into the abyss of nothingness.
Views are personal.
(Edited by Zoya Bhatti)
It’s incomprehensible that in this day and age, people still belive in things like black magic or voodooism.
Such a shame!