Kakuda Movie Review: Comedy and horror both get lost in this horror-comedy; Sonakshi, Saqib, Riteish try best save the sinking boat

Kakuda Movie Review: From 'Bhool Bhulaiyaa' to 'Go Goa Gone', whenever comedy gets mixed with horror, the audience has always liked it. However, for many years this door seemed closed but with 2018's Stree, Maddock Films brought back the genre of horror-comedy in India. Moreover, when big-budget films like Bade Miyan Chote Miyan and Maidaan struggled at the box office, another repugnance movie Munjya became a super-duper hit. Now the makers are back with another horror-comedy film Kakuda which has been released on Zee5 today. 

Story

Starring Sonakshi Sinha, Ritesh Deshmukh and Saqib Saleem in lead roles, Kakuda is based on an old folklore about a ghost called by the same name. Ritesh plays the role of a ghost hunter, who has freed 127 witches, 72 vampires, 37 ghosts and 3 jinns in his illustrious career. The film begins with a village named Ratauli, whose residents are troubled because of a ghost named Kakuda. The spirit rises on a particular day and at a particular time of the week, and just demands respect from its people. The ones who fail to do so are presented with uncertain deaths within 13 days. Moreover, the only thing to do to give respect to Kakuda is to open the small door of your house for him at a particular time. 

Things turn serious when one day Sunny ( played by Saqib Saleem) forgets to add to the respect of Kakuda and becomes his victim. His wife Indira (played by Sonakshi Sinha) looks for a ghost hunter ( played by Riteish Deshmukh) to save him. To know whether he's able to save Sunny and the villagers, you should watch the film streaming now on Zee5. 

Direction

The film has been directed by Aditya Sarpotdar, who made hit horror comedies like Munjya and Zombivli. However, the filmmaker has failed to bring the tightness of Munjya in this film. Throughout the film, the director and writers Avinash Dwivedi, and Chirag Garg seem to be trying to copy Stree and Bhediya. The script is actually the weakest part of Kakuda and clearly needed improvisation. At places, Kakuda also seems to be a spoof of Stree. There are many other shortcomings in the film, such as situational comedy is not seen anywhere. You might just keep sitting and waiting to laugh.  Overall, the makers of this film could have easily elevated the storyline as they picked a promising theme but they failed to live up to the expectations.

Acting

The film is a horror comedy, so it needed actors who could bear aloft the scenes with needed effortlessness. It's kind to say that Saqib, Sonakshi and Ritesh have been able to pull that off as well, only if the script would have done them right. Ritesh Deshmukh's body language and dialogue delivery are worth of appreciation. There was nothing in the script that could have helped Sonakshi Sinha to do something. Therefore, she has just done her job. Saqib Saleem's hard work is visible, but he is seen only trying. Moreover, Asif Khan of Panchayat fame is a revelation in this film. He's too good. In terms of acting, everyone has done as much of their part as the script allowed them to.

Verdict

When you know that an Indian horror film is based on old folklore, it becomes obvious to pay heed to the story. Films like Tumbbad and Munjya in recent years have also added a lot of expectation on this front. But then Kakuda does not elevate the excitement. After a while, this nearly two-hour film becomes so boring that one wonders why it was made so long. If half an hour of the film had been reduced, then perhaps the film could have been worth watching. Neither the ghost created with the help of VFX and special effects can scare you, nor the scary music playing in the background is impactful. However, the film has its high points, and children may like this film because there are things to make them laugh. The film may not be the best horror-comedy, but it is fun and enjoyable. Being a one time watch, Kakuda deserves 2.5 stars.