From fright to family fun: Stree 2 and the coming of age of horror in India

Long relegated to sporadic offerings restricted to adult audiences, horror as a movie genre has finally come into its own this year. Three big hits—Shaitaan, Munjya and Stree 2—riding a mix of comedy, cultural nuances, strong visual effects and relatable content, have drawn in families and the young in droves, and firmly established the popularity of the genre in Indian cinema.

At last count, Stree 2 had earned ₹515.05 crore in domestic box office collections, according to data from trade website Bollywood Hungama, making it one of the biggest Hindi language hits of all time. The movie was made on a budget of ₹60-70 crore, according to trade experts.

Read this | Why Bollywood's big guns are a damp squib in south

Munjya, backed by Maddock Films, also the makers of Stree 2, made ₹107.48 crore (budget ₹30 crore) when released in June despite featuring no familiar faces. Ajay Devgn-starrer Shaitaan had clocked ₹149.49 crore (budget ₹60-65 crore) in March.

What has changed?

Earlier, horror films made by the Ramsay brothers or the likes of Raaz and Haunted did find draw among audiences, but trade experts believe the genre hadn’t received a truly commercial spin and had remained restricted to adult, or male viewers.

What has changed now is that the fusion of horror with comedy, among several other significant shifts, has drawn in children and family viewers. Experts believe the stage is now set for bigger films and a whole new cinematic universe going forward.

“The evolution of the horror genre into horror comedies has made it more accessible to a broader audience, including those who might have been hesitant to watch traditional horror films,” said Devang Sampat, managing director, Cinepolis India.

Ashish Saksena, chief operating officer, cinemas, BookMyShow said, “The new wave of horror films is more refined, with compelling scripts, relatable themes and a cinematic quality that resonates with a diverse range of viewers.”

What has also changed, as Sampat pointed out, is that the quality of storytelling, special effects, and production values have improved significantly, making these films more engaging.

“The ability of these films to blend cultural elements with universal horror tropes has resonated well with Indian audiences, creating a unique and appealing cinematic experience,” Sampat said.

Saksena added that these films have set themselves apart by weaving in humour, social commentary and strong character development, making horror a whole lot more accessible and engaging to a broader audience including kids and families alike.

“This novel style has made the horror genre more approachable, attracting not only traditional horror enthusiasts but also younger viewers, urban audiences and even those who usually steer clear of horror films,” he said.

South was there first

To be sure, the evolution of hardcore horror films into family-friendly horror comedies was already a big trend down south, explained Amit Sharma, managing director of Miraj Entertainment, a company that operates multiplex theatres.

More here | Tamil film producers' body calls for halt to shoots as business slumps

For instance, Raghava Lawrence’s Tamil language horror comedy series including Muni (2007), Muni 2: Kanchana (2011), Muni 3: Kanchana 2: Ganga (2015) and Muni 4: Kanchana 3 (2019) were massive hits not just in cinemas but also when dubbed in Hindi for satellite television.

The future of horror

Saksena believes we are only at the beginning of the horror success story.

“We’re on the brink of a horror revolution in Indian cinema, where new films are set to not only captivate audiences across the nation but also draw attention internationally as recent successes are likely to attract more investment, leading to top-quality productions that will bring even larger sets of audiences to theatres,” he said.

The coming lineup appears to back up Saksena’s view.

According to media industry insiders, while Maddock Films will continue to build on the horror comedy universe with upcoming instalments of Stree, Munjya and Bhediya, the company is expected to roll out a fresh addition to the franchise titled Vampires of Vijay Nagar starring Ayushmann Khurrana in the coming months.

Also read | Content creators worry over limited options with likely JioCinema-Hotstar merger

Meanwhile, the third instalment of Bhool Bhulaiyaa, another popular horror-comedy franchise, is also slated for release later this year. The first of the sequence was released in 2007, and was one of the ‘original’ Hindi horror-comedy hits, raking in ₹80 crore in box office collections. The second instalment, Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 had made ₹185.92 crore (on a budget of ₹70 crore) in 2022.

May the ‘nightmare’ continue.