After hitting the jackpot with Munjya, director Aditya Sarpotdar is back with another folklore, Kakuda. The film, starring Sonakshi Sinha, Saqib Saleem, and Riteish Deshmukh in lead roles, will be released on July 12. Produced by Ronnie Screwvala, this horror comedy film will be available to watch on the OTT platform Zee5. With the rise of the folklore genre, the Indian audience seems to have been enjoying horror comedies. The trailer for the film created immense buzz and excitement, but does it meet expectations? Well, if you are planning to add this film to your weekend watch list, read on to know what you can expect from this horror comedy.
The Plot Of Kakuda
The story revolves around a small, deserted village called Ratodhi, where every house has two doors: one small door and one big door. The village is cursed, and horrific occurrences happen every Tuesday. But the catch is that the villagers need to keep the small door open for the ghost, Kakuda. Kakuda comes every Tuesday at exactly 7:15 p.m. to kick the villagers who have closed their doors. After being kicked by the ghost, the person gets a hump on their back. Furthermore, the person who keeps the door open receives a death notice and will welcome their death on the 13th day after being kicked by the ghost. Amidst this cursed village, there lies a beautiful love story between Indira and Sunny. After struggling to convince her father, Indira decides to run away and marry her boyfriend, Sunny. But their love story takes a drastic turn after Sunny fails to open the door on Tuesday and gets kicked by Kakuda.
After getting kicked by the ghost, Sunny has only 13 days left on Earth. However, Indira believes that all of this isn’t a curse but a disease that will get better after proper treatment. She plans to take Sunny to a renowned hospital in Delhi, hoping for her husband to get better. Her hopes fall apart as Sunny fails to recover. However, Indira meets a strange watchman at the hospital named Victor, who offers help to the latter. With her husband’s life in danger, Indira aims to find the solution and calls Victor, who’s a ghost hunter, to the cursed village of Ratodhi. Now, will Indira be successful in saving her husband’s life from the dangerous Kakuda? Get ready to witness a fight between a dwarf ghost and humans in this horror comedy.
Performances
Sonakshi Sinha As Indira: After receiving massive success with Heeramandi, expectations were on the rise with Sonakshi Sinha’s performance in Kakadu. Sonakshi Sinha is about to surprise you in this horror-comedy film. She plays the role of a girl next door who’s in love with Sunny. She switches nicely between her fearless and innocent image in the film. Her dialogue delivery was exceptional! Furthermore, the chemistry between Saqib Saleem and Sonakshi Sinha is worth watching. She lives up to the expectations and delivers a solid performance!
Saqib Saleem As Sunny: Saqib Saleem nailed the character of a scaredy cat. His chemistry with Sonakshi Sinha felt like a breath of fresh air. In the film, he plays the role of Sunny, who is a businessman, aka Halwai, who gets kicked by the ghost. Sunny is a typical good boy who’s sweet, obedient and loves his girlfriend a lot. His scenes where he struggles to communicate with Indira’s father in English are too funny. His on-screen presence was amazing! Saqib Saleem fits the bill with his good comic timing and sarcastic one-liners.
Riteish Deshmukh As Victor Jacobs: Riteish Deshmukh was the soul of the entire film. His comic timing was absolutely perfect and it made the movie exciting! Kudos to the stylist because his look in the movie is great. He’s a hot ghost hunter whose body is covered with tattoos, and he plays the funny guy in this dull horror comedy. He balances the movie with his serious expressions as the strange watchman and the cool ghost hunter who loves ghosts. We need Riteish Deshmukh to play such roles more often. It’s fair to say that Riteish Deshmukh stole the show with this one.
Supporting Cast
Apart from Ritiesh Deshmukh as Victor, Aasif Khan delivered a solid performance as Sunny’s best friend. Aasif Khan plays an integral part in the movie as his best friend, who gives everything to fight the ghost. His dialogues were hilarious, and to top it off, his expressions—he’s an excellent actor.
Verdict: Kakuda Gets Lost In The Shadows Of Munjya And Stree
To be honest, as a fan of the folklore genre, I had high expectations for this film. However, it was very obvious that the film is heavily inspired by the most-loved folklore, Stree, and couldn’t balance it out like the other film. Some moments created suspense, which later led to disappointment. The director failed to create another successful folktale like Munjya. The film could have been a fresh take on the genre however, it was all over the place. Furthermore, sometimes the comedy felt too stretched and unnecessary. Talking about the cinematography, it is visually stunning, with each frame crafted to enhance the mood and atmosphere of the film.
The use of lighting, different camera angles, and colour palettes creates a sense of suspense and mystery in the film. The film’s cinematography very well captures the eerie ambience of the small town. The cinematographer did a great job building up suspense and curiosity. The music in the film plays a crucial role in setting the tone and enhancing the horror elements as well as the funny moments. As far as the comedy is concerned, certain lines made me laugh so kudos to the actor’s comic timing. Overall, the storyline is weak and couldn’t do much with decent performance and eventually fails to leave an impact. So, if you want to experience a real horror comedy, you might have to skip this one.