‘Roohi’ is that ha-ha horror that ‘Stree’ tried to be

Producer Dinesh Vijan loves the comedy-horror space. Which is why he has returned to it again in Roohi, earlier titled Roohani Afzani, and even earlier titled Roohi Afza. I guess the chills got better and better with each title change.

The trailer has a sturdy confident feel to it, as though its team, director Hardik Mehta, producer Vijan and Rajkummar Rao (common to both Stree and Roohi) actually believed in the eerie mumbo jumbo. They do project a fair amount of glee into the gore in the trailer. And yes, Janhvi Kapoor makes a cute ghostly spirit, bulging eyes, neck rotating 360-degrees and all.

I did get the feeling that Roohi is a bit thin on plot. But then I may be wrong. Besides, how much of a plot did Stree have?

What I found disturbing was Rajkummar Rao’s lisp. Are we back to trying to get laughs out of a physical disability? Varun Sharma most definitely provides some genuine laughs in the trailer. He asks Janhvi (and the chudail inside her) whether she will have non-vegetarian or vegetarian food. When Janhvi in her timid voice answers ‘vegetarian’, Varun reminds her not to be selfish. “Think about the one inside you. She’s definitely non-vegetarian,” he says.

Then there is the DDLJ moment when Varun asks Jhanvi to palat. And Jahnvi’s head does a complete spin without the rest of her body turning. All the three main actors Rao, Kapoor and Sharma seem to have fun with the fear fest. Mumbo jumbo can be fun if kept on the preposterous plane. I think Roohi gets the point. Now, if only the film lives up to the promise made by the trailer.