Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 review: A spooky maze with Vidya Balan, Madhuri Dixit and Kartik Aryan; Save your screams for last

The climax is definitely superb, but the first half is slow and tries your patience in Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3. Vidya Balan and Madhuri Dixit delight you with their presence.

Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 review: With Kartik Aaryan as the main character and Vidya Balan as the original Manjulika, who played the abandoned ghost in the 2007 Priyadarshan-directed debut of the trilogy, Anees Bazmee returns with the third instalment of the horror comedy. Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 also stars Madhuri Dixit Nene, Triptii Dimri, Vijay Raaz, Rajpal Yadav, Sanjay Mishra, Rajesh Sharma, and Ashwini Kalselar.

The film opens with a narrative in Rakht Ghat, West Bengal in 1824. Once the background is briefly established, the narrative then shifts to the present. Nearly 200 years later, Rooh Baba (played by Kartik Aaryan) and his sidekick defraud people as ghostbusters in Kolkata. Meera (Triptii Dimri) and her uncle Rajesh Sharma approach Rooh Baba and invite him to accompany them to Rakht Ghat, where they will fake save the town and their fort from Manjulika.

It is Vidya Balan and Madhuri Dixit show in Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3

It was exciting to witness Vidya Balan’s homecoming as Manjullika. It was a delight to watch Madhuri Dixit Nene take a horror risk with her character in the film. The narrative intensity in one sequence, where the two are involved in a kind of tug-of-war, is higher than in the majority of the movie. Most of my time was spent waiting for them to appear on the screen. Had it not been for Manjulika and Anjulika, the film would only be a one-time watch. Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 has arguably been borne by both Vidya and Madhuri.

Kartik Aaryan plays Ruhan Randhawa (Rooh Baba) but unfortunately, director Anees Bazmee mostly makes him into an Akshay Kumar impersonator. The actor tries to resemble the original star of this franchise in terms of delivery, humour, and body language. Your tolerance is put to the limit, and eventually, the laughter gets old and almost obnoxious.

Triptii Dimri works hard to create amazing chemistry with Kartik and adds glitz. There were moments when you wish she had more depth to her personality, a secret agenda or an undiscovered past. Unfortunately, for an actor of her calibre, she is only used as a prop.

Sanjay Mishra, Ashwini Kalsekar, and Rajpal Yadav make a respectable trio, but their jokes pale in comparison to the second installment. Vijay Raaz gets some of the funniest jokes and does a wonderful job on his part. The filmmaker fails to make the best use of them.

What worked and what didn’t

Disclaimer: For those who didn’t like Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2, the most recent version might not be that great after all!

Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3‘s plot centres on betrayal, a struggle for the throne, and unexplainable flashbacks, but it certainly doesn’t live up to its Bhool Bhulaiyaa legacy because of the poor gags. Before the intermission, the film struggles to maintain viewer interest. A lethargic first half would be an understatement. It puts your patience to the test. After the intermission, though, the tempo quickens and becomes an exciting and captivating journey. There are a few effective jokes and a few jump-scare scenes throughout the story, but those are few and far between. There are some humorous meta-dialogues, such as the ‘Kavva Biryani‘, ‘Jawan‘ and the ‘Shehzada‘ reference. This also applies to the Netflix moment, as depicted in the teaser.

Vidya Balan is unquestionably the most compelling character in this horror comedy, which dares to play with ideas of gender, myth-making, and the meaninglessness of regal titles in the contemporary world.

The romance happens in one scene where the hero and his leading lady are taken from a dusty setting that represents Bengal to a pristine Ladakh and I still wonder why. You won’t be impressed by Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 save for its tunes. You won’t recall a single song after the movie, except for the well-known Ami Je Tomar‘s several renditions throughout and maybe even ‘Jaana Samjho Na‘. In addition, some of the movie’s songs were unnecessary and could have been eliminated. The background music in the scary sections is excellent.

The badly crafted Bangla and incredibly poorly researched portrayal of Bengali culture and celebrations cannot be saved by a few jumpscares and a few giggles. You will, however, be shocked by the film’s unexpected climax, regardless of how hard you attempt to guess the plot.

Final verdict: The film features impressive VFX, particularly in the end, along with some tense visuals and a terrifying history. Overall, watching Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 is a festival entertainment experience. If the first half had been more solid, the movie could’ve easily passed for 3 to 3.5 stars.

2.5 stars