The box office has found an unlikely hero in recent weeks: horror. The genre has steadily found acceptance, almost becoming a guarantee of success.
The biggest example is Obsession, the low-budget supernatural thriller that has emerged as a global phenomenon. The Hollywood film, apart from an unprecedented global run, has also enjoyed a strong run in India, collecting more than ₹84 crore gross and marching towards the ₹100-crore mark.
Joining it is Backrooms, adapted from the viral internet phenomenon. The film created buzz and eventually opened well here.
And then came Vikram Bhatt’s Haunted 3D: Echoes of the Past. Starring Mimoh Chakraborty in the leading role, it opened better than the other seven films it released alongside in theatres, and continues to find support. Clearly, the audience is in the mood to be scared. Vikram, unfazed by the criticism for going overboard with the usage of AI shots and mediocre VFX work in Haunted, has already announced a new horror flick: 1920 Cold Winter.
Trade analyst Taran Adarsh says, “Ramsay Brothers gave so many horror hits back in the day, I remember Do Gaz Zameen Ke Neeche clearly. Horror as a genre has always fascinated Indian viewers. I am not saying every horror film can be a success, but we have forgotten to tap the market beyond the Metros. Haunted tapped that well. And eventually it all boils down to the box office. Obsession kya kamaal ka business kar rahi hai. It’s a low cost film. ‘Yeh filmein kaun dekhega’- yeh audience ke saamne mat bolna, because they can spring a big surprise.”
Is it because horror offers something increasingly rare in the streaming age: a communal theatrical experience? Jump scares and atmospheric sound design often work best in a packed cinema hall, enhancing the genre for a theatrical viewing.
Also read: Exclusive | Mimoh Chakraborty reacts to Haunted 3D Echoes of the Past’s heavy use of AI being trolled: No film’s perfect
Mimoh, who stars in Haunted, echoes the same sentiment when he tells us, “The horror itself is the star attraction. It’s like an adrenaline rush, it’s dopamine. You know that you are in a very secure space when you go into a theatre. It’s a dark room filled with strangers. So psychologically your brain is getting the rush, but it also knows it’s in a safe space. It’s the best of both worlds. That’s why horror works so much, and That’s why we love roller coasters so much. We know that we are safe, but it’s terrifying at the same time. Horror will always work.”
Hindi cinema’s relationship with horror, however, remains more complicated. While the genre has delivered major successes in recent years through horror-comedies such as Stree 2: Sarkate Ka Aatank and Munjya, straight horror films have often struggled to find consistent acceptance. Bhoot Part One: The Haunted Ship (2020) was envisioned as a horror franchise, but the low box office results sealed it’s fate. Shaitaan (2024) was a rare pure horror offering amidst a slew of horror comedies. The cults still belong to the early 2000s: Vikram Bhatt’s Raaz and Ram Gopal Varma’s Bhoot.
Trade expert Atul Mohan, commenting on why Bollywood shies away from going all out in making pure horror films, says, “The reason why Hollywood films like The Conjuring, The Nun work so much in India is also because their production values are higher. Money is spent on making the film look serious and professional. Here, people want to add more to horror, like comedy, romance. Not enough money is spent on enhancing the horror elements.” As for not a lot of A-list stars attempting the genre, he adds, “Because they know the supernatural entity will be treated as the lead of the film, not them.”
The recent box-office trend suggests that Indian audiences are not rejecting horror. If anything, they are actively seeking it out. The challenge for Hindi filmmakers is creating horror films that can generate the same credibility that Hollywood’s scare factories have spent decades building.