Bhool Bhulaiyaa (transl. Labyrinth) is a 2007 Indian Hindi-language psychological comedy horror film directed by Priyadarshan from a screenplay by Neeraj Vora and produced by T Series. It is a remake of the 1993 Malayalam-language film Manichitrathazhu.[3] The film stars Akshay Kumar, Vidya Balan, Shiney Ahuja, and Ameesha Patel, alongside Paresh Rawal, Rajpal Yadav, Manoj Joshi, Asrani and Vikram Gokhale.[4] The film score and songs were composed by Ranjit Barot and Pritam, respectively.
| Bhool Bhulaiyaa | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Priyadarshan |
| Screenplay by | Neeraj Vora |
| Dialogues by |
|
| Story by | Madhu Muttam |
| Based on | Manichitrathazhu by Fazil |
| Produced by | Bhushan Kumar Krishan Kumar |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Tirru |
| Edited by | N. Gopalakrishnan Arun Kumar Aravind |
| Music by | Songs: Pritam Score: Ranjit Barot |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Balaji Motion Pictures Eros International |
Release date |
|
Running time | 154 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Hindi |
| Budget | ₹32 crore[1] |
| Box office | ₹82.84 crore[2][1] |
Produced on a budget of ₹32 crore, the film became the eighth-highest grossing Hindi film of 2007.[5] It received mixed reviews from critics.[6] Over the years, the film has attained a cult status across the audience.[7][8][9][10] The film spawned a standalone sequel titled Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 (2022) with a new principal cast.[11][12] The third film in the series, Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3, with Vidya reprising her role, released on Diwali 2024.
Plot
editBadrinarayan "Badri" Chaturvedi heads a former royal family of Varanasi whose ancestral palace is believed to be haunted by the ghost of Manjulika, an Odissi dancer from Bengal. Siddharth, son of Badri's elder brother and the current successor of the royal dynasty, and his archeologist wife Avni return to the palace from the United States after a whirlwind romance. Their marriage breaks the heart of Siddharth's childhood friend and Badri's adopted daughter, Radha, who was and is in love with him.
Avni develops an interest in the legend of Manjulika. Decades ago, the Chaturvedis' ancestor, Maharaja Vibhuti Narayan, was infatuated with Manjulika, who was a dancer in his court from Bengal. However, she loved Shashidhar, who was her co-dancer. Angry and frustrated, the king publicly beheaded Shashidhar on the night of Durgashtami and imprisoned Manjulika in order to forcefully marry her. A heartbroken Manjulika swore vengeance towards any successor of the royal family before hanging herself. The king mysteriously died, and powerful sorcerers and high priests were summoned to seal away Manjulika's spirit on the third floor of the palace. Avni gets a duplicate key from Batukshankar's daughter, Nandini, and opens the door on the third floor, thereby breaking the confinement of Manjulika's spirit. As a result, unnatural events start taking place thereafter, including an apparition of a woman that frightens everyone in the palace. Suspicion falls on Radha, who is somehow always at the scene of every incident.
Siddharth suspects Radha has become mentally unstable after her heartbreak. He brings his friend, psychiatrist Aditya Shrivastava, to treat her. Aditya's unconventional ways lead the household to think he is a fool. An attempt to kill Siddharth by poisoning his tea is foiled by Aditya. One night, Aditya hears the sound of a ghungroo and a voice singing in Bengali coming from Manjulika's room. Posing as King Vibhuti Narayan, he converses with Manjulika, who vows revenge on the next Durgashtami.
During the engagement of Nandini to poet Sharad Pradhan, Avni accuses Sharad of sexually harassing her. Sharad vehemently denies this, and Aditya explains to an angry Siddharth that he is telling the truth. In reality, Avni has dissociative identity disorder and associates herself with Manjulika. Aditya had become suspicious after Avni's behavior and visited her hometown to gather information about her. She associates Siddharth with the evil King Vibhuti Narayan and believes Sharad to be Shashidhar, for he resides in the house Shashidhar used to live in.
Badri brings renowned exorcist Yagyaprakash Bharti. To everyone's surprise, Aditya was Yagyaprakash's disciple a long time ago. Aditya intends to cure Avni using an unconventional method of psychiatry. Siddharth believes Aditya after witnessing Avni transition to Manjulika. Aditya explains that DID is a lifelong condition, but Avni might be cured if they satisfy Manjulika's purpose for existing: killing King Vibhuti Narayan.
On Durgashtami, everyone witnesses Avni assume Manjulika's identity, dressed as her and dancing to Manjulika and Shashidhar's song. Yagyaprakash makes Manjulika promise to leave if she kills the King. She envisions Siddharth as the King, and Yagyaprakash and Aditya trick her into thinking she is killing him when in fact she is slaying a dummy. Avni is cured after the orchestrated "murder," believing Manjulika has taken her revenge.
The family, now pleased with Aditya, thank him for his help. Aditya, who has come to like Radha, tells her that he will send his parents if she is interested in marrying him.
Cast
edit- Akshay Kumar as Dr. Aditya "Adi" Shrivastav
- Vidya Balan in dual roles as Avni S. Chaturvedi and Manjulika
- Shiney Ahuja as Siddharth Chaturvedi and Raja Vibhuti Narayan
- Ameesha Patel as Radha Chaturvedi
- Paresh Rawal as Batukshankar Upadhyay
- Manoj Joshi as Badrinarayan "Badri" Chaturvedi
- Rajpal Yadav as Chhote Pandit
- Asrani as Murari
- Vikram Gokhale as Acharya Yagyaprakash Bharti
- Rasika Joshi as Janki Batukshankar Upadhyay (née Chaturvedi)
- Tarina Patel as Nandini Sharad Pradhan (née Upadhyay)
- Vineeth as Professor Sharad Pradhan and Shashidhar
- Kaveri Jha as Girja Upadhyay
- Jimit Trivedi as Chandu Chaturvedi
- Baby Farida as Avni's Grandmother
- Ashmita as Manjulika's double
Music
editScore
editThe film score was composed and produced by Ranjit Barot.The famous song Labon Ko was sung by KK
Songs
edit| Bhool Bhulaiyaa | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by | ||||
| Released | 12 July 2007 | |||
| Recorded | 2007 | |||
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack | |||
| Length | 56:00 | |||
| Label | T-Series | |||
| Producer | Pritam | |||
| Pritam chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Bollywood Hungama |    link |
| Rediff | link |
The songs featured in the film composed by Pritam, were released in July 2007. The title song, commonly known as "Hare Ram Hare Krishna Hare Ram", was sung by Neeraj Shridhar in the 1st part as well as 2nd part.[13] According to the Indian trade website Box Office India, with around 12,00,000 units sold, this film's soundtrack album was the year's eighth highest-selling.[14]
The title song "Bhool Bhulaiyaa" is lifted from Korean band JtL's song "My Lecon".[15]
All lyrics are written by Sameer and Sayeed Quadri
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Singers | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Bhool Bhulaiyaa" | Sameer | Neeraj Shridhar, Bob | 05:12 |
| 2. | "Labon Ko Labon Pe" | Sayeed Quadri | K.K. | 05:44 |
| 3. | "Pyaar Ka Sajda" | Sameer | K.K. | 05:12 |
| 4. | "Ami Je Tomar/Mere Dholna Sun" | Sameer | Shreya Ghoshal, M. G. Sreekumar | 06:47 |
| 5. | "Let's Rock Soniye" | Sameer | Shaan, Tulsi Kumar | 04:27 |
| 6. | "Sakiya Re Sakiya" | Sameer | Tulsi Kumar | 04:57 |
| 7. | "Bhool Bhulaiyaa – Remix" | Sameer | Neeraj Shridhar and Dj A-Myth | 05:07 |
| 8. | "Allah Hafiz Keh Raha" | Sameer | K.K. | 04:34 |
| 9. | "Let's Rock Soniye – Remix" | Sameer | Shaan, Tulsi Kumar and Pritam | 04:28 |
| 10. | "Pyaar Ka Sajda – Remix" | Sameer | K.K. and DJ Suketu (Arranged by AKS) | 05:22 |
| 11. | "Labon Ko Labon Pe – Remix" | Sayeed Quadri | K.K., DJ Kiran, DJ G and Earl | 05:17 |
| Total length: | 52:65 | |||
Release
editThe film was worldwide released on 12 October 2007. The DVD of the movie was released by Eros Home Media. The distribution rights of the movie were acquired to Disney India. The television premiere of the movie was occurred on Star Plus on 15 February 2008. The film was first made streaming available on Netflix on 15 September 2019. Later the film was removed from Netflix on 22 July 2020. On 3 March 2022 the film was made streaming available on Disney+ Hotstar.[citation needed]
Box office
editBhool Bhulaiyaa was declared a hit at the box office by Box Office India, netting ₹497 million (US$6.0 million) in India. It was the 6th highest-grossing Bollywood film of 2007.[16] It grossed ₹3,88,00,000 on its first day, while it grossed ₹23,50,00,000 in the first week. The total overseas gross was $3,910,000. The lifetime overseas breakup was $1,380,000 in UK, $1,130,000 in North America, $820,000 in UAE, $151,000 in Australia and $429,000 in other markets.[17]
The film collected ₹84 crore (US$10 million) worldwide.[18]
Awards
edit| Award | Category | Recipients and Nominees | Results |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anandalok Awards | Best Actress (Hindi) | Vidya Balan | Won |
| Filmfare Awards | Best Actress | Nominated | |
| Zee Cine Awards | Best Actress | Nominated | |
| International Indian Film Academy Awards | Best Director | Priyadarshan | Nominated |
| Best Actor | Akshay Kumar | ||
| Best Actress | Vidya Balan | ||
| Best Villain | |||
| Best Comedian | Paresh Rawal & Rajpal Yadav | ||
| Best Music Director | Pritam | ||
| Best Male Playback Singer | Neeraj Shridhar (for "Bhool Bhulaiyaa") | ||
| Best Female Playback Singer | Shreya Ghoshal (for "Mere Dholna") |
Sequels
editA standalone sequel starring, Kartik Aaryan, Tabu and Kiara Advani titled Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 was released on 20 May 2022.
The third installment titled "Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3" was officially announced with a teaser by T-Series on 1 March 2023. Directed by Anees Bazmee, Kartik Aaryan reprised his role as Rooh Baba, and the film also featured the return of Vidya Balan, who brought back her iconic character Monjulika from the 2007 release, along with Madhuri Dixit, and Triptii Dimri. The film was released on Diwali 2024.
References
edit- ^ a b "Bhool Bhulaiyaa - Movie - Box Office India".
- ^ "Bhool Bhulaiyaa Box Office Collection till Now - Box Collection". Bollywood Hungama. 12 October 2007. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
- ^ "We list down 5 Bollywood movies which found their inspiration down south". filmfare.com. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
- ^ "indiafm.com". Shooting in Australia. Archived from the original on 19 February 2007. Retrieved 17 February 2007.
- ^ "Bhool Bhulaiyaa - Movie - Box Office India".
- ^ https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/bhool_bhulaiyaa
- ^ "13 Years of Bhool Bhulaiyaa: 26 lesser-known facts about the cult horror-comedy". Cinema Express.
- ^ "From Bhool Bhulaiyaa to Shaun of the Dead, here are 10 great horror-comedy films to watch".
- ^ "13 Years of Bhool Bhulaiyaa: 26 lesser-known facts about the cult horror-comedy". Cinema Express. 2 October 2020.
- ^ "From Bhool Bhulaiyaa to Shaun of the Dead, here are 10 great horror-comedy films to watch".
- ^ "Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 — Here's how many Crores Kartik Aaryan, Kiara Advani, Tabu and others charged for the film". 20 May 2022.
- ^ "Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 fails to match the classic tag of Akshay Kumar starrer".
- ^ "Bhool Bhulaiyaa (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) by Pritam on Apple Music". iTunes. 5 September 2007. Retrieved 27 July 2017.
- ^ "Music Hits 2000–2009 (Figures in Units)". Box Office India. Archived from the original on 24 June 2010.
- ^ "Bollywood Songs Copied". 19 August 2014.
- ^ "Box Office 2007". Box Office India. 4 February 2012. Archived from the original on 14 October 2013. Retrieved 11 February 2012.
- ^ "Top Lifetime Grossers OVERSEAS (US $)". Box Office India. Archived from the original on 4 December 2013.
- ^ "Top Lifetime Grossers Worldwide (IND Rs)". Box Office India. Archived from the original on 21 October 2013.