Review of the Varun Dhawan-led film Bhediya: It’s full of humour and uniqueness
The Amar Kaushik-directed film Bhediya is an engaging experience with tense but humorous dialogue and brilliant scripting. Varun Dhawan, Kriti Sanon, Abhishek Bannerjee, and Deepak Dobriyal are among the actors who appear in Bhediya.
If you thought Amar Kaushik’s Stree was one of the smartest and funniest horror comedies, his newest film, Bhediya, just raises the bar. The Varun Dhawan and Kriti Sanon-starring film Bhediya offers plenty of opportunities to laugh and howl throughout, from good comedy and a unique concept to strong VFX and a solid screenplay.
Bhaskar (Varun Dhawan), a road construction contractor, travels to Arunachal Pradesh with the intention of building a route through the deep Ziro forest. He is joined by his Northeastern friend Jomin and his cousin Janardhan, also known as JD (Abhishek Bannerjee) (Paalin Kabak). The most significant incident is Bhasker being bitten by a wolf as the trio begins their mission to persuade the tribal people to give up their land and permit road development. He soon begins to resemble the beast, at which point the folktale about the shape-shifting wolf known as “vishaanu” kicks up and the plot thickens and becomes more engrossing.
Varun Dhawan is in great shape and controls every frame. He has literally gone outside the box by experimenting in a different genre and looking so good doing it. His sequences in which he changes from a man to a wolf are both beautiful and terrifying, and his ripped muscles and chiselled torso will give you the chills. He is excellent in both serious and comedic settings. Although Kriti Sanon gives a respectable performance, I believe her character could have benefited from additional depth and a more prominent position in the story. However, you enjoy her on screen during whatever screen time she receives. With his impeccable comic timing, Abhishek Bannerjee is both wonderful and hilarious, and he never misses the bus.You’re left speechless by his Hindi accent and the way he delivers his words (he does, after all, get the greatest lines). As Varun’s Northeastern friend Jomin, debutante Paalin Kabak is quite enlivening, and his camaraderie with both Varun and Abhishek is spot-on. Deepak Dobriyal does a terrific job as Panda, particularly with the accent and body language of the Northeast.
With the exception of the comedy, the first half is about ordinary, but the second half is when all the action happens. Even there, the pacing occasionally slows down and some sequences seem needlessly drawn out, but Varun’s scenes as a wolf and Abhishek’s comedic timing have you laughing the majority of the time.
Kaushik’s direction once more delivers an immersive experience and gets the greatest performance out of his performers. He is skilled at fusing the two genres of horror and comedy, which is a difficult task that he masters. The dialogue is deep, profound, and incredibly humorous. Full marks go to Niren Bhatt’s story and deft writing for a fantastic build-up, the big reveal, and a pretty humorous finale that leaves you wanting more. Mentioning movies like Jaani Dushman, in which Amrish Puri transforms into a lethal monster, or Junoon, in which Rahul Roy transforms into a tiger, has a significant recall value. Even the well-known Shehnaaz Gill line, “Kya karu main, marr jaun? How are your feelings, Meri?This was met with raucous applause and laughter. There are some offensive lines that I thought might have been cut, especially the toilet humour, and an entire sequence can turn you off.
Here, Jishnu Bhattacharjee’s cinematography deserves special recognition for the way it depicts the Arunachal Pradesh’s deep and dense Ziro forests. The visual appeal of Bhediya fully captures the splendour of Northeast India’s landscapes. It is breathtaking and masterfully filmed as Kriti takes Varun into the woods to discover its natural beauty. The special effects and computer-generated imagery are breathtaking and on par with some of the best ones seen in Indian film.
I was particularly pleased by how Bhediya conveys a crucial lesson about man-animal conflict without ever becoming preachy. Not only that, but there is a very interesting discussion about the stereotype that people from the Northeast are “Chinese” and “outsiders,” which fits so naturally into the narrative and gets you thinking. In one scene, Jomin chastises the audience for expecting all individuals from the Northeast to be Kung-Fu experts by generalising them as “Jackie Chan and Bruce Lee ka bachha.” When he asserts, “Being weak at speaking Hindi doesn’t make me any less of an Indian,” he makes a powerful point. Adroitly placed humour also lightens the mood in these ostensibly violent passages.
Although Sachin-music Jigar’s is passable, not every song is memorable. The upbeat music in Jungle Mein Kaand gets you moving, and the unique rap in Baaki Sab Theek makes it fascinating. The background music is spot-on and makes a statement during the jump-scare scenes.
The atmosphere it creates and the messages it conveys make Bhediya, which has a lot of stunning features, worthwhile to watch on a huge screen. Of course, a memorable viewing experience would include some excellent performances and humorous banter.