‘Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3’ Review: A Slapdash Sequel Suggests It’s Time To Lay This Hindi Horror-Comedy Franchise To Rest

The kindest thing that can be said about Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 is that it’s unpredictable. There is little in it to prepare you for a climactic twist which is, in equal measure, audacious and ridiculous. While well-intentioned, it’s staged so clumsily that it fails to evoke the required empathy. But I will say — I did not see it coming.

Otherwise, we are back in familiar territory. The Bhool Bhulaiyaa franchise started with the classic 1993 Malayalam film Manichitrathazhu, which was remade in Hindi in 2007. Both versions delivered a skillful cocktail of laughs and scares without true paranormal activity. In each, the real culprit causing the leading lady to turn into Manjulika, the unhinged spirit of a royal dancer, was eventually identified as dissociative identity disorder.

But when director Anees Bazmee took over the reins with the 2022 reboot, the horror became real. Black magic, spirits, jump scares, ominous backgrounds and, of course, Shreya Ghoshal’s magical rendition of the song “Ami Je Tomar” were all part of the mix, as well as a cheerful lowbrow humor. My favorite bit was Rajpal Yadav’s Chhote Pandit and Sanjay Mishra’s Bade Pandit mistaking Manjulika for the latter’s wife, Panditayeen, and asking her to make daal (lentils), only to get slapped hard by the ghost.

In the third installment, Bazmee retains the tropes of the first two Hindi films: a sprawling palatial mansion in which one room has been locked for years because it’s believed that a specter resides there; a royal family hiding secrets; the mysterious dancing Manjulika. The popular title track returns, along with “Ami Je Tomar.” And, of course, there are the atmospherics — long empty corridors, darkened skies, spooky sounds and enough CG crows to populate a sequel to Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds. 

Once again, Kartik Aaryan plays Ruhaan (a.k.a. Rooh Baba), a fraudulent ghostbuster who makes money by exploiting people’s fear of the supernatural. He is summoned to a castle somewhere in West Bengal where, oddly, the locals seem to recognize him. And there begins a tale that includes punar janam (reincarnation); a poor raja desperate to sell his palace; several characters speaking in terrible Bengali accents; sibling rivalry; and the oversized shadow of Manjulika, no longer pining for her murdered lover.   

Among the picture’s highlights is the return of Vidya Balan, whose terrific performance as Avni, an archaeologist who believes that she is Manjulika, was key to the success of the 2007 movie. Her dance, with disheveled hair, frantic eyes and red vermillion spread across her forehead, was truly chilling. This time she plays Mallika, a restoration expert who may or may not be Manjulika, and her performance is pitched to match the overall hamminess of the film.

In fact, Bazmee has not one but two trump cards here. Madhuri Dixit also enters the franchise as Mandira, a potential buyer for the mansion who is clearly hiding something. At one point, Balan and Dixit have a face-off in which they are ready to strangle each other. At another, they have a dance-off in the palace. The clash of two of Hindi cinema’s finest actors should be riveting.

But the screenplay, written by Aakash Kaushik, is so disjointed that it’s difficult for characters to make an impact. Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 does not follow any internal logic, playing as a slapdash assortment of jokes, scares, exposition, songs and set pieces strung together in the hope that it will add up to a coherent and compelling narrative. Mandira and Mallika trade barbs or giggle together maniacally, seemingly at random, or it’s all revealed to be a dream. Dixit is billed as a special appearance, which perhaps explains why the part is so underwritten that I started focusing on her expansive collection of saris and the size of her jewelry — Mandira loves dressing up.

I also wondered what the late Saroj Khan might have done with an opportunity like the dance duel. While Dixit and Balan are superb in the Chinni Prakash-choreographed sequence, there’s little about it as memorable as the dance-off between Dixit and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in Devdas.

Mostly, Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 lurches along. Two romantic songs are bunged in, perhaps to give Triptii Dimri something to do; otherwise, she is mostly tasked with looking lovely. Vijay Raaz and Rajesh Sharma, both actors with solid comic chops, are relegated to the ornate background — though I did smile when Raaz, as the poor raja, says he’s willing to take on the ghost in the palace but not live another day in poverty.  

Aaryan is front and center, and he does it all: being charming and funny, romancing and dancing, defeating the spooks. I like that the actor is willing to poke holes in the trend of hyper-masculine Bollywood heroes. Ruhaan scares easily and, just like in the second film, when things get too daunting, he tries to run away. But the copious energy he invests is sabotaged by the flat writing. The jokes just aren’t funny enough — though there is one killer line about Shehzada, which was one of Aaryan’s major flops — and the scares aren’t terrifying enough.

Perhaps it’s time to give Manjulika a rest. After all, there’s only so far you can take a vengeful ghost and two terrific songs.