Bhool Bhulaiyaa'

Runtime: 158min 26secs
Language: Hindi (with English subtitles).
Directed by: Priyadarshan

Screenplay by: Neeraj Vora

Plot Outline:
When US based Siddharth (Shiney Ahuja) and his newly wed wife Avni (Vidya Balan) decide on coming home, they are welcomed with open arms by the large extended family, but what the family resists is Siddharth's insistence on staying in his royal ancestral mansion during his stay, and with good reason. Legend tells that this very mansion holds a history in its realm, a deadly secret that has repeatedly destroyed the family for generations.

The scientifically inclined Siddharth pays no heed and starts staying at the palatial mansion with Avni who is equally modern in her thinking... But soon enough the couple is forced to rethink their decision... Unforeseen happenings, mysterious elements, horrific indications and life threatening incidents swarm their path. Suddenly it becomes a situation that urgently had to be dealt with before it got too late.

Siddharth instinctively finds the solution in his dynamic Doctor friend Aditya (Akshay Kumar). When Dr. Aditya finds his way into the mansion, he is a man on a mission. He just had to find the cause of all the upheaval before the effects caused more harm than could be imagined... Where did the answer lie??? The Scientific world or the Mystical one??? The puzzle had to be solved... It is not long before Dr Aditya discovers that nothing is what it seems and what seems, is not... and that the devastating reality was enough to shatter all truths.

Overall Impressions:
What comes as a surprise is that though it is a Priyadarshan film and has Akshay Kumar, it's not a laugh riot. He's decided to expand his horizons with ths one. Well, if you're setting a story whereby the events venture into the realm of supernatural, what better place to set it than a place where the belief still holds.

After you get past the introductions of the characters and their blind faith in the curse that surrounds the mansion, the story gets rolling pretty swiftly. The events unfold such that the stories and curse around the mansion seem to be manifesting themselves. Everybody is in agreement that the outcome is not going to be good. At this juncture we also have our doubts on a number of the family menbers. When things start escalating and getting bloody the doctor is called in.

When Akshay Kumar enters the scene at interval point, the film becomes diverted solely to the investigation. What is handled very well here is that, as things progress and a conclusion is reached, this resolution leaves scope for both logic and myth to be upheld. Though the logical explanation is given more weight, the film doesn't go out of it's way to piss off the believers. In that respect it kinda reminded me of the X-Files.

An interesting look into a tale of a haunted mansion. Worth a see.