Halloween 2024: How to get ready to get scared

A man adjusts a Halloween mask on a mannequin outside a party shop in Tardeo. Pic/Kirti Surve Parade

Curated by Devanshi Doshi, Divyasha Panda, Devashish Kamble, Nandini Varma

Party-Planning

Bring on the spook to your house, in a cost-effective way

>> Plan DIY activities for your guests, like making a mummy out of jugs. Use paper for wrapping; add googly eyes and lights to your creation

>> If it's an outdoor bash, use an inflatable tub, fill it with ice, and Halloween props like insects (not real!). Use this tub as an ice bucket for drinks. Use a fog machine to create drama.

>> Fill the venue with as many Halloween elements as possible. Decorate windows, ceilings, and corners of the main party area. Use a spider web made of yarn for the ceiling. Place a skeleton by the pot in the washroom to add fun.

>> Window decor is picking up for all sorts of themed parties. For Halloween, create a simple idea by leaving red or white palm prints across the window glass.

Lighting is key in

Simple Halloween party décor for children

Halloween parties. Invest in lights that add to the eerie effect. This, along with simple props like skeletons, balloons, spiders, and pumpkins are enough to throw a successful party. If you're unable to get the props, you can also play around with easily available stickers that read, caution or warning.

>> For children, skip the simple witch or vampire look. They are heavily into popular culture, and want their costumes to reflect the same. Let them pick their favourite characters. One such famous and easy-to-pull-off character is Red from Descendants.

Myrah Rohra and Reenaa Gupta, founders, @eventsbay

Shopping

Props, decor and costumes, these websites and brick-and-mortar stores cover it all

A battery-operated ghost doll

>> Ghostly glamour
From bright royal robes to classic Disney villain costumes and anime characters, this one-stop-shop is your ultimate go-to for the costumes you need to be your spookiest best this Halloween.
At Wanna Party, SV Patel Nagar, Andheri West.
Call 9582541493

>> Let's get witchy
With a variety of masquerade masks, classic witch cloaks, and wearable props, get the right amount of gore and fun to make your Halloween an absolute hit.
At Madcaps the party shop, Lokhandwala Complex, Andheri West.
Call 9920494956

A Maleficent headgear prop at the Kalbadevi store

>> Dog or a Beetle?
As Beetlejuice lips trend on social media, the gothic character is set to be recreated the most this season. For a playful twist on this trend, get your four-legged friend this Beetlejuice pet costume.
Log on to Impoosy on Amazon
Cost R4,448

>> A hell of a time
This party shop in Kalbadevi offers affordable, classic Halloween costumes, accessories like blood-stained nails and broken skulls, and props like Harry Potter's flying broom, and devil horns.
At The Hell Party Shop, Chandiwala Building, Zaveri Bazaar, Kalbadevi.
Call 9819495798

A dog in Beetlejuice attire. PIC COURTESY/Impoosy

Cries of fear
Without having much to do, this battery-operated vibrating ghost can be left in any corner of the house or at food tables to ambush your guests; it makes unnerving crying noises.
Log on to themomstore.in
Cost Rs 2,499 (available in black and white)

Add an eerie touch to your party with fun signs. PIC COURTESY/EVENTS BAY

A wicked gourd
From colour-changing jack-o-lanterns and LED festoons to funky bags for trick-or-treat and glasses for shots, this website is your go-to destination for all things pumpkins.
Log on to partywholesale.in
Cost Rs 55 onwards

Listen

Don't let a last-minute playlist scare the fun out of your Halloween party

Alice Cooper's spooky avatar. PIC COURTESY/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

>> Hallo, it's me: Let the Halloween vibe creep in as your mysterious guests settle in. Tune into soundtracks like John Carpenter's Halloween, Skeleton Rocks' Into the night, or Fraankenstein's Run for the perfect background score to your spooky ice-breakers.

>> Rock it out: Wake the party up with Swedish rock band Ghost's chilling discography or punk rockers Misfits' classics like Dig up her bones and Horror hotel. The brave ones can tune into one of Alice Cooper's live concert videos for a mind-blowing spectacle (spoiler alert: it includes a guillotine, broken necks and some bloody good action)

>> Pop a trick: Pull out crowd favourites for a sing-along session. Tune into Billie Eilish's album When We All Fall Asleep Where Do We Go, or Kim Petras' 2018 EP Turn Off The Light. If you're feeling retro, we suggest sneaking in a few Abel (formerly, The Weeknd) tunes or a full throwback to Michael Jackson's Thriller
or Donovan's Season of the witch.

>> Story time: No great Halloween party must end without a spooky story session. Pass the mic to the Desi Crime Podcast that dives head first into
true crime stories of vanishing families, paranormal sightings and serial killers.
AVAILABLE Spotify

Read

For those who like to ‘party' with the scariest finds, from mystery to eerie, to horror

>> A Murderous Plot by Sue Minix: THE townsfolk of Riddleton County are gearing up for Halloween in Sue Minix's latest detective fiction, A Murderous Plot (HarperCollins). Carved-pumpkins and DIY ghosts sit at the store entrances. The protagonist, Jen, a murder mystery writer, co-runs the town bookshop with her friend Lacey. While the latter sketches artwork to decorate the bookshop, Jen gets busy writing her new novel. When a fresh case arrives at the police, where her partner Eric works, Jen gets involved. The neighbouring resort owner Simeon Kirby has been killed. Jen had resented him for bringing tourists and development projects into town that threatened to ruin the small-town spirit. How deep will she go to find the truth?

Author Sue Minix

Minix draws readers into a whodunit through her arresting characters. Their conversations at Angus's restaurant, the Riddleton Park, and the bookstore, bring the town to life. In addition to the protagonist, we encounter Charlie, who assists at the bookstore, loves to dress up in costumes, and extracts crucial information about suspects from the Internet for Jen. There's also detective Havermeyer, who works with the police force, detests Jen's personality, and becomes a key player.

In her attempt to build Jen's world, Minix sometimes falters, sharing details that don't contribute to the mystery to warrant their existence. This leads to a slow narrative at the start. However, it picks up pace as she gathers more information from various people in the town, and we move closer to the case. Jen is not a detective; she isn't supposed to be at the crime scene. This choice by the author introduces a new perspective to a world of stories otherwise narrated by those who have the authority to investigate. Her position enables her access to conversations that one would conceal in the presence of a detective. Jen loves taking risks, which makes it a thrilling read.

Also read

>> Mouthful of Birds by Samantha Schweblin: The International Booker Prize nominee's collection of short stories plays with ideas of strangeness within reality. Unsettling situations can lead to eerie conclusions. A father watches his daughter eat live birds every day, a newly-wed bride is abandoned in the middle of the road for taking a long bathroom break, a stranded passenger waits to board a train at a station where trains never stop.

>> Japanese Ghost Stories by Lafcadio Hearn: Hearn's horror stories will interest readers who've enjoyed plunging into Japanese contemporary literature. A chilling collection with blind monks, tree spirits, haunted concubines, lonely towns, disembodied heads, among other things.

>> Bloodchild and Other Stories by Octavia Butler: These stories explore ideas of freedom and fear, and ask questions such as how much we are defined by our genetics and what genetic disorders can leave one feeling.

AVAILABLE Leading bookstores and e-stores