After watching the Jaaved Jaffery-starrer Bollywood horror film LUPT, most of us would be disappointed with the fact that there is no genuine effort to come up with an original story that can generate scare on its own.
If we leave aside films like “Tumbbad” and “Pari”, both released in 2018 — Hindi filmmakers have so far failed to make decent horror movies. LUPT is one of those horror films that are very much predictable and almost nothing to scare.
The film follows a wealthy businessman Harsh, played by Jaffery, who has no time for his family. He suffers from insomnia for which his doctor friend suggests taking a break from his work.
Harsh, his wife, and their daughter and son leave for a vacation to Manali. On their way, they took an alternative route to avoid traffic because of an accident that blocks the road, but this is where things go wrong as paranormal things begin to happen around them.
We see there is a baby stroller kept in the middle of the road, a plastic doll, and a dark and dense forest playing the lead that the actors are supposed to drive the narrative. In an ideal scenario or story, these props and settings could have been explored well. But no, here the makers are clueless about the overall direction of the narrative.
Acting-wise, we have two well-known actors in the name of Jaaved Jaffery and Vijay Raaz (both are known for their comic timings), but somehow the script has nothing for them to lead. The dialogues are forgettable which leaves no scope for the actors to play. Hence there is no suspense, no emotion, and not enough scare to build up a nice revenge drama.
Overall, LUPT is one of those films that can simply be made for an episode-long horror series or a part of the horror anthology, certainly not worth for a feature film. Lastly, we would like to see when Indian filmmakers start looking at its cultural reference (which is full of rich stories) than Hollywood films to make a good horror film.
Starring: Jaaved Jaaferi, Vijay Raaz, Niki Walia, Meenakshi Dixit, Karan Aanand, Rishab Chadha, Kasturi Banerjee, Rajeev Bhardwaj, Rishina Kandhari, Kiearra Soni and Rayees Mohiuddin.
Directed and Written by Prabhuraj
Release Date/Year: November 2, 2018
LUPT is now streaming on Netflix. If you’re a big fan of horror films and want something to watch, you may give it a try and share your feedback with us in the comment section below. Also, just to mention here is that I watched the film because of actors like Jaaved Jaaferi and Vijay Raaz. They are no doubt amazing actors and I love to watch them for their versatility.
Where to watch Lupt (2018)
