FILM REVIEW: KAKUDA

Evaluation: 'Kakuda' offers an odd story that is hard to follow. Ghost movies frequently embrace silliness, but Aditya Sarpotdar's "Kakuda," which was co-written by Avinash Dwivedi and Chirag Garg, defies logic to unprecedented degrees. The spirit of Kakuda, a dwarf clown, haunts the little Mathuran village of Ratodi. Every Tuesday, the males in the village are preyed upon by Kakuda's spirit. His curse can only be broken by keeping a tiny door in their houses ajar. There are lethal repercussions for noncompliance.

So far, Sunny (Saqib Saleem) and his father have been able to avoid the curse, but everything changes on a fateful Tuesday. Sunny returns home late on the evening of his wedding to Indira (Sonakshi Sinha) and is cursed by Kakuda. He has a hump on his back and is destined to die on the thirteenth day. Indira, who rejects superstitions, decides to take matters into her own hands and enlists the help of Victor, a ghost hunter (Riteish Deshmukh). But will Sunny escape an early death thanks to Victor's ghost-busting techniques?

Sunny's life is never in danger because Kakuda's execution and treatment are handled in such an immature manner. None of the characters feel scared or concerned about Sarpotdar. In addition to being absurd and fanciful, the plot lacks coherence. Although the plot of the narrative is similar to that of "Stree," it lacks the humor and sophistication necessary to make the notion work. We are unable to empathize with any of the characters or find their potentially fatal situation particularly compelling due to the poor writing.

The comedy is essentially nonexistent, and the humor comes across as forced. With the exception of a few remarks made by Sunny's closest buddy Kilvish (Aasif Khan), none of the jokes are funny, and the audience doesn't even laugh at any of them. The primary antagonist of the movie is its lone redeemable quality. There's a sinister mystery behind Kakuda's look. Every time Kakuda calls, Sarpotdar is able to evoke a creepy ambience. Though they are meant to be afraid of him, the characters' confused emotions make it difficult for us to believe that anything is really happening. Although Kakuda's reasons and biography have some complexity, they are not very compelling.

Even with the poorly written movie, Sonakshi Sinha gives a respectable performance. The only one that makes any sense is her character. Despite Saqib Saleem's character's impending death in the story, it's difficult to feel sympathy for him. Riteish Deshmukh is relegated to the role of a caricatured ghostbuster, complete with several tattoos and dark circles under his eyes. His skill as an actor is squandered in a badly written character.

All in all, 'Kakuda' is not frightening or entertaining. This alone is a compelling argument against seeing this corny horror comedy.