Munjiya Movie Review: Where Comedy Meets Chilling Folklore

     Image Source: The Filmibeat

When I saw the trailer for the first time I was engrossed and wanted to watch it at the earliest. But unfortunately, I was not able to watch it on the big screen. So when the movie was released on Hotstar I decided to watch it at once. And to be honest the movie was all a fun rollercoaster with a thrilling experience. This movie comes from the Maddock universe where a fusion of both comedy and horror plays into the screen.

Let's take a look into the journey of Munjiya where you laugh and scream all at once. The story starts in the backdrop of 1952 when a Brahmin boy falls in love with a girl named Munni despite his family's disapproval. Driven by the love for Munni he performs a dangerous ritual where he tries to sacrifice his sister's life. In the tragic turn of events, he loses his life and is buried under the same tree where the ritual is performed. The Marathi culture is introduced in the film very subtly without creating an imbalance in the plot.

The story continues in Pune where Bittu (Abhay Verma) a cosmetology student lives with his mother Pammi (Mona Singh) and grandmother Gita (Suhas Joshi). Bittu is in love with Bela (Sharvari ) and yet unable to express his feelings for her. With the visit to the ancestral village for his cousin Rukku's  (Bhagyashree Limaye) marriage past secrets start to unravel and the truth of Munjiya is out. The chilling truth becomes the reason for Bittu losing his grandmother in front of his eyes.

Munjiya is out of Chetukwadi and is set to marry Munni with the help of Bittu. As soon as his eyes are set on Bela he decides to marry her instead of his old love. To save his love, Bittu with the help of his friend Spielberg (Taran Singh) tries to find a way to appease Munjiya. Seeking help from an exorcist(Sathyaraj)Bittu gets ready for the intense showdown where all hell breaks loose. Well, the story does seem to end well but the love continues to flow freely without any haven.

The performances of each character in the film are nothing more than extraordinary with the perfect blend of laugh and fright. Abhay is perfect as a shy and handsome character who shines as Bittu when tough circumstances occur in the film. Mona Singh as Pammi is effortlessly brilliant with all the traits of the perfect Punjabi mom. Suhas Mam plays the caring grandmother who loves Bittu and tries to protect him from evil. Sathyaraj who plays the exorcist is quite funny and brings enough comedy during all those horror minds. Not to forget Taran Singh who plays the best friend of Bittu. He is the perfect character who tries to keep Bittu on his toes.

The film's music has already caught the eyes of the audience. Songs like "Taras Ni Aya Tujhko" and "Tainu Khabar Nahi" are the perfect mix of both party and soulful romantic numbers intertwined according to the situation. The background score of the movie adds to the spookiness of the film making it a delightful horror.

When talking about this film you need to appreciate the execution and direction of Aditya Sarpotdar who has taken the audience on a beautiful journey with a gripping storyline with a perfect amount of thrills. Screenwriter Niran Bhatt along with Yogesh Chandekar has brought a narrative that has been equally enjoyed not only by Gen Z but also by all ages. Produced by Dinesh Vijayan and Amar Kaushik has successfully captured the hearts with the perfect amount of screams and laughs infused together.

Munjiya offers a spine-chilling journey into folklore with the right amount of humor infused in it. So when the song Taras starts to play there is a revelation of how Munjiya intertwines together with Bhediya and Stree Universe. So if you are ready to dive into some thrills along with a chuckle then switch to Hotstar and watch Munjiya now.