REVIEW:Ek thi Daayan - Page 7

Movie review: Ek Thi Daayan is more tiresome than frightening

by 20 mins ago

#Ek Thi Dayaan #MovieReview

Rating: 3.5

What Aatma promised, Ek Thi Daayan almost delivered. Nawazuddin Siddiqui's presence in Aatma promised to bring innovation and ingnue to Bollywood horror films. But the film turned out to be just another clich ridden Bollywood potboiler. Ek Thi Daayan on the other hand steers clear of all clichs associated with horror films in Bollywood and presents to us a taut supernatural thriller. So you can be rest assured there are no 'tantriks', 'shraaps' or 'bhoots' with garish make-up in this film. The scares and creeps in Ek Thi Daayan can all be attributed to brilliant performances by the leads actors and a well-written script.

In a nutshell, Ek Thi Daayan is the story of Bobo (played by Emraan Hashmi) – in present day one of India's leading magician/illusionist – but a dark and disturbed childhood lurks in his past. Constant creepy hallucinations force him to consult a psychiatrist. During a regression hypnosis session a terrifying event from his childhood surfaces and that forms the base of what happens next. Obviously, as the title suggest, there is a 'Daayan' or two lurking in the narrative but it will spoil the fun of watching this film if their identity is revealed here.

Kannan Iyer showcases assured directorial prowess in his debut feature film and is ably supported by his cinematographer Saurabh Goswami, who artfully frames each scene to create an eerie atmosphere with shadows being his weapon of choice. It needs to be pointed out that on a couple of occasion Saurabh can be blamed for succumbing to the 'shaky-camera syndrome'. Besides the lead actors – Emraan Hashmi, Konkona Sen Sharma, Kalki Koechlin and Huma Qureshi – the others, Pavan Malhotra as Bobo's father, Rajatava Dutta as Bobo's shrink and Visshesh Tiwari as the young Bobo put in equally stellar performances; especially Visshesh who steals a lot of applause off the leads. Sarah Arjun as Bobo's younger sister Misha is cute and engaging.

The first-half of Ek Thi Daayan, which is based on a Mukul Sharma short story, is crisp and as good as any Hollywood horror flick that you might have watched. Instead of resorting to clichs, Kannan Iyer introduces us to fear through a child's eyes. There is a very thin line between what we see transpiring in the film and believe to be real and what could easily be a young boy's imagination; a boy who has been exposed to a healthy dose of supernatural stories and is desperate to believe in those legends. This lends the film originality that has been missing from most Bollywood scare-fares. Most of the first-half is taken up by the flashback involving Bobo's childhood and it makes for some riveting cinema. Kannan Iyer's use of tiny details is most praiseworthy and the narrative is amplified through great acting.

The buildup in the first-half is let down, to a certain extent, post-interval. It seems the film loses confidence in its own voice and tries to cramp in too many things in this period, thereby hampering the narrative. The uniformity in tone and mood is lost as well. The innovative introduction of Lisa Dutt (played by Kalki Koechlin) is one of the few highpoints of the second-half of Ek Thi Daayan. The climax turns out to be predictable and that is a big letdown as one will expect more after the smartly restrained beginning.

A special mention for the music of Ek Thi Daayan, brilliantly composed by Vishal Bhardwaj (also the producer of this film along with Ekta Kapoor) and admirably complemented by Gulzaar sahab's lyrics. The tracks 'Yaaram', 'Kaali Kaali' and 'Lautungi Main' are to die for.

VERDICT: Ek Thi Daayan is an original attempt at a supernatural film, which is a rarity in Bollywood, and for that alone Kannan Iyer needs to be applauded. The performances by the lead actors are effective as each plays it with a flair and assurance. The climax is a letdown, but nonetheless Ek Thi Daayan is an ambitious attempt in this genre. It is one of the best Bollywood films of 2013 so far. Watch it!

Why did they have to name the character Bobo? Lmao.

Hard to take the film seriously with Bobo the Baffler as the protagonist 🤣

Spoilers have already started making rounds on twitter. So anybody who wants to watch this, proceed with caution.

Intervals in films serve different purposes for different people. For some, it's a chance to stretch their legs and tank up on refreshments, for others it's a short respite from a bad film before being subjected to it again. For many it's an inconvenience – an unwanted disturbance during an engaging story that forces you to switch out and then tune in again. For most filmmakers, especially if they are Indian, it's a plot device – a tool to draw the audience in with a clever twist just before the interval point and have them come back wanting more (or so they hope).

Personally, I like to watch my movies at one go, but never have I been as relieved at an intermission as I did while watching Ek Thi Daayan (ETD). The pre-interval scene, set-up cleverly over close to an hour of screen time devoted to a child's fear of a woman he's convinced is a witch, is hair-raising, to put it mildly. As the lights came on, I found a cool sweat on my brow, and my heart pounding a little. I was glad for the interval. Having whistled under my breath and feeling slightly oafish ("It's only a film", I reminded myself), I was ready for a second helping.

Ek Thi Daayan's second half, though, pales in comparison to the first in a manner that seems almost unpardonable. How can a film so cleverly set-up, so effectively paced and so convincingly performed for most part fall so woefully short of absolute enjoyment? Even in its most clichd moments though, most of which show themselves in the film's dying minutes (after the "big revelation"), ETD's better than the kind of Hindi horror films we are subjected to by the Bhatts and the Ram Gopal Varmas on a regular basis.

The first hour is a thrill ride, and largely from the point of view of an 11-year-old boy who finds himself drawn to the crazy world of witches and demons. Bobo (Visshesh Tiwari, natural and brilliant) is a sort of a prodigy – a natural magician – who lives with his father and six-year-old sister. Bobo's convinced there's a hell below every building – a "jahannam" – where evil resides. This crucial part of the story is communicated through conversations between the two kids; while their innocence makes you chuckle, you secretly hope they'll be proven wrong. A woman arrives on cue, and Bobo's convinced she's the witch from – quite literally – the underworld. And what does a daayan want? A child she can sacrifice, of course.

It's a little worrisome that ETD has been rated U/A by the censors, which implies children can watch the film if accompanied by parents. The entire film rests on a child's vulnerability, the fear of the supernatural – in this case a daayan. And I can imagine kids looking over their shoulders forever after viewing it. As with most good films, ETD works largely due to smart writing. In spite of resting on a plot that comes with its share of clichs, Vishal Bhardwaj's script (based on a Mukul Sharma short story) keeps things simple and fresh, the story unravelling at just the right pace. Saurabh Goswami's dim-lit frames heighten mood, while Subrata Chakraborthy and Amit Ray's production design is bang-on.

Kannan Iyer displays an original voice as director, and does a good job with his actors. Emraan Hashmi as the older Bobo is at home given the horror genre (he gets to smooch too) and goes through the motions like a pro. It's the women who really make an impact though, among them Kalki Koechlin impressing with her short role. Huma Qureshi, seen in a light different from her earlier films, is charming as always. It's Konkona Sen Sharma's performance that you take back, her expressive eyes, bewitching smile and captivating presence the film's tour de force

If you have seen the trailers of Ek Thi Daayan, you'd have noticed that the film has a different set of aesthetics than normal cliched Hindi horror or supernatural films. Although, frankly speaking, when you have films like Raaz, Raaz 2 and Raaz 3 and the old Ramsey Brothers films as your competition, you don't need to do a lot to set the bar higher. Having said that, let's delve deeper into the film.

Story: You cannot describe the film's story without giving away a few of the spoilers. The film is about India's most famous magician Bobo (played by Emraan Hashmi) and how his life takes a turn for the unknown thanks to the menacing interference of a Daayan (witch) who has connections to his childhood. Giving away who plays the daayan would be a disservice I would not like to commit to everyone. Let's just say that the three women in Bobo's life – Tamara (Huma Qureshi), Lisa (Kalki Koechlin) and Diana (Konkona Sen Sharma), all have an important part to play in the proceedings on the screen.

The screenplay is interspersed with flashbacks and hallucinations and even dreams. Thankfully enough, all those storytelling elements merge seamlessly into the story and this makes for a pretty lucid film for majority of the film. The screenplay falters when the writers (Kannan Iyer and Mukul Sharma) try to bring in every possible angle into the film that they can. It results in a rather disjointed few minutes when you expect it to flow freely at such a crucial point in the film. Nonetheless, the writers deserve credit for treating the subject in a largely logical manner and not resorting to cliches like involving religion, taantrik and other drivel like that. An amusing fact is the co-writer Mukul Sharma who is a man of science (he was a Maths columnist) has written this unscientific film.

Ek Thi Daayan Movie Review

Direction and Miscellaneous: Much through the first half of the film, it becomes hard to believe that this is Kannan Iyer's debut as a feature film diretor. He deftly handles the film's supernatural aspects and gets fine performances from all (yes, ALL) of the actors. The aesthetics of the film are classy and it should have remained that way till the end. Kannan deals the wrong hand when it comes to the ending and goes into commercial mode. The climax is plain lazy and resorts to the cliches which made the film look promisingly different for the previous 15 reels.

The cinematography by Saurabh Goswami creates a spooky ambience which is what a film of this genre required. The creative imagery is particularly visible when two child actors high five each other when their torchlights. The sets lend this film a high brow creepy mood and the lighting further accentuates with the non-generic sets and cinematography. The visual effects done by Prana Studios are surprisingly first rate.

Music and Background Score: The music as is expected from a Vishal Bharadway soundtrack is different. Nobody will go in to see the film expecting a generic Emraan Hashmi soundtrack and those expectations work in it's favour. Although, the songs are perfectly alright, you tend to wonder after the film if Kannan could have done away with the songs altogether. Clinto Cerejo has been making a mark with his background scores lately and here again he delivers an appropriately spooky soundtrack.

Acting: Emraan Hashmi's career has taken an 180 turnaround lately with him choosing offbeat and slight less commercial films. In 'Ek Thi Daayan' he does a splendid job playing the disturbed Bobo whose past comes back to menace him. The image change that started with 'Shanghai' continues here. Among the three female actors, Konkona Sen Sharma steals the show. She plays Diana with the required zeal and her mannerisms can unsettle the faint of heart. Her presence makes the film a lot better. Huma Qureshi plays Tamara pretty well. Her relationship with Bobo has just the right amount of earnest urbane equation which was required. Kalki plays the most unusual character of the film (Lisa) with a freightening quality. She excels in her part. The child actor Vishal Tiwari who plays the child Bobo is one of the best things about this film. He is top notch. Pawan Malhotra and Rajatava Dutta are so very good in their respective roles. None of the actors are miscast in Ek Thi Daayan and that itself raises the film's quality.

Conclusion: Inspite of the hiccups in the second half and the intrepid climax, the film is well worth a watch for the different style of telling a story about witchcraft and folklore. But, what is frustrating about the film is that it could have been so much more than what it turned out be. The flaws are subdued by the great performances and the spooky cinematography. Don't let your expectations zoom up too much and you might like 'Ek Thi Daayan'. Go for it.

Rating:

Review by Zayden

Movie Review by One India

Ek Thi Daayan Movie Review: It's hell scary!


Even today, a certain section of our society strongly believe in the existence of blackmagic, tantras and voodoo. After movies like Raaz 3 and Talaash, here's the latest flick by director Kannan Iyer, Ek Thi Daayan, that is an impressively horrifying tale of a daayan (witch), in the most realistic manner. Ek Thi Daayan, that hits the theatres today, features Emraan Hashmi, Kalki Koechlin, Huma Qureshi and Konkana Sen Sharma in the leads.

Story
The movie revolves around the character Bobo (Emraan Hashmi), India's leading magician. But unknown to even his girlfriend Tamara (Huma Qureshi), Bobo's life is falling apart. His constant hallucinations leave him with no option but to seek psychiatric help.
Going through regression hypnosis, a terrifying story about his childhood surfaces involving a sinister power called Daayan who has not only destroyed his family but also promised to return to haunt Bobo. He chooses to ignore it and move on with his life. Just when his career and love life is at full throttle, enters the irresistible Lisa Dutt (Kalki Koechlin).
Bobo is convinced that Lisa is the daayan. But is she, really? Or is he just losing his mind? Ek Thi Daayan has some terrifying, spine chilling moments. There are high, gripping moments in the film, especially the first half, it's hell scary.

Performances
Our very own serial kisser Emraan Hashmi gets into the skin of his character and plays a convincing magician. Huma looks stunning and poised, while Konkana Sen Sharma is just dynamic and remarkable. She stands out as the best amongst all. Kalki disappoints us big time, but can't help but blame her loosely-written character.

Verdict
Ek Thi Daayan is a nightmare, hell scary and will leave giving goose-bumps. Honestly, one of the scariest movies I've ever watched so far. Do not give a miss to this!

I am not going to read the reviews to save myself from being spoiled. Can someone tell me what are the reviews like? Are they mostly positive or negative or mixed or what?

Every1 on twitter is saying that the 1st half is like a VB movie and the 2nd half is like a balaji movie 😆

Originally posted by: Kal El

I am not going to read the reviews to save myself from being spoiled. Can someone tell me what are the reviews like? Are they mostly positive or negative or mixed or what?

Its mainly positive with 2/3 average but not any bad reviews so far