Roohi Movie Review: Despite chills and thrills galore, Roohi falls short on the smarts

Rajkummar Rao and Janhvi Kapoor in a still from Roohi

Roohi
U/A; Horror/Comedy
Director: Hardik Mehta
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Janhvi Kapoor, Varun Sharma
Rating: '''

Roohi marks the return of Hindi films on the big screen after a year of lockdown and significantly curtailed theatre occupancy due to post-pandemic social distancing rules. With some semblance of normalcy returning to the world, the magic of movies makes a solid comeback too. But one has to admit that 2020 has fundamentally changed our content viewing culture. So it won't be unfair to expect better of our films, would it?

Given that Roohi has been pitched as an outing from the same universe as the spectacular Stree (2018), is headlined by Rajkummar Rao and helmed by Hardik Mehta, who delivered the heartwarming Kaamyaab last year, expectations evidently run high here. It's, thus, possible that the audience could be a victim of their own hopes. Simply put, Roohi isn't as sharp as Stree. It's consistently funny, with reins of humour in the hands of the dependable Varun Sharma. But the social layering of the film, which Stree executed wonderfully, is considerably underplayed. Despite chills and thrills galore, Roohi falls short on the smarts.

Watch the Roohi Trailer

Janhvi Kapoor stars as Roohi, a young girl possessed by Mudiaperi (a witch who possesses young brides), who gets abducted by Kattani and Bhanwra (Sharma and Rao). The split half, that of a witch (justified medically as a split personality disorder), is Afza.

The film is set in the fictitious town Bagadpur that is first shown through the eyes of a foreign journalist to impress upon the audience the blasphemy of the tradition of pakad shaadi prevalent in the town. An agency run by local goon - Guniya Shakil (Manav Vij), on contract, conducts kidnapping of a young girl on the behest of suitors. Rao and Sharma work for Guniya and regularly run errands for them, including a kidnapping here and there. In one scene, the girl is lured by fine clothes and gold jewellery after being abducted. The fact we see her partaking comfortably in her wedding dos right in the next scene feels just as problematic as the fact that the film doesn't do enough to flag it off.

Writers Mrighdeep Singh Lamba (of Fukrey fame) and Gautam Mehra keep the one-liners coming in and Rao and Sharma play this banter to perfection. Kapoor is effectively doe-eyed, imbuing Roohi with innocence and charm. Afza, however, is more a work of VFX than her acting chops. The two scenes in the film where the characters merge, she delivers impeccably.

The script has far too many inconsistencies that no amount of good acting and great direction can iron out. Primarily, we know too little about Roohi's life except for the fact that she is a reticent girl who doesn't get treated very well by her extended family. The witch inside her emboldens Roohi, gives her the fighting spirit that's completely missing in her. The meet-cute scenes that's meant to spark off the chemistry between Kapoor and Rao doesn't land. Sharma falling for the witch-counterpart is even more bizarre. The actors perform these endearing bits with such sweet sincerity that you eventually buy into it.

The hocus-pocus at play here is a lot to digest. The climax justifies some of it, especially the last scene where a woman finally takes charge of her life as Roohi and Afza find their happily ever after. There's some inspired writing and good direction at play as the loose ends of the film tie up, sending out a strong message about female rage and rebellion. There's boundless promise in the premise and I keenly await a sequel to know more about what happens to Roohi and Afza next. In a world where women have plenty to rage about, we could do with some help from them. I just hope the next time the writers give this lethal force of nature ‘Roohi-Afza' something worthwhile and concrete to rage about.