Shaitaan (2024 film)

Shaitaan
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Vikas Bahl
Written by	Aamil Keeyan Khan
Story by	Krishnadev Yagnik
Based on	Vash (2023) by Krishnadev Yagnik
Produced by	Vikas Bahl Jyoti Deshpande Ajay Devgn Abhishek Pathak Kumar Mangat Pathak
Starring	Ajay Devgn R. Madhavan Jyothika Janki Bodiwala Anngad Raaj
Cinematography	Sudhakar Reddy Yakkanti
Edited by	Sandeep Francis
Music by	Amit Trivedi
Production companies	Jio Studios Devgn Films Panorama Studios
Distributed by	Pen Marudhar Entertainment
Release date	8 March 2024 (2024-03-08)
Running time	132 minutes[1]
Country	India
Language	Hindi
Budget	est.₹60−65 crore[2][3]
Box office	est. ₹208.4 crore[4]

Shaitaan (transl. Devil) is a 2024 Indian Hindi-language supernatural horror film directed by Vikas Bahl and produced by Devgn Films, Jio Studios and Panorama Studios.^[5] The film stars Ajay Devgn, R. Madhavan, Jyothika, Janki Bodiwala and Anngad Raaj.^[6][7] The music was composed by Amit Trivedi, while the cinematography and editing were handled by Sudhakar Reddy Yakkanti and Sandeep Francis. The story revolves around a family whose lives are disrupted when their eldest daughter falls under the spell of black magic cast by a stranger. The family then endeavors to stop the possession and uncover the stranger's motives.

The film was officially announced in May 2023 with the title confirmed in January 2024. Principal photography began in June 2023 and ended in September 2023, proceeding in India and London. It is a remake of the 2023 Gujarati film Vash.^[8]

Shaitaan was theatrically released on 8 March 2024, coinciding with Maha Shivaratri. It received mostly positive reviews from critics with praise directed towards the performances and screenplay. It was a commercial success, grossing over ₹208 crore (US$26 million) worldwide and became the fourth highest grossing Indian film of 2024.^[4][9]

Plot

Kabir Rishi, a chartered accountant, and his wife Jyoti reside in Dehradun, Uttarakhand with their kids Janhvi and Dhruv. They schedule a vacation at their farmhouse in a remote hill station. Midway, they stop by a roadside eatery and acquaint themselves with an enigmatic mid-aged man, who introduces himself as Vanraj Kashyap. Janhvi undergoes an incomprehensible change after gulping down a Laddu given by Vanraj and craves to do everything he asks for. Before they depart, Vanraj gives Janhvi a packet of biscuits to eat after reaching the farmhouse and she takes them before joining her family at the swimming pool.

Subsequently, Vanraj inexplicably arrives at the farmhouse and citing that his phone's battery has died, he asks them to let him stay over till it gets charged. Though Kabir agrees, Jyoti remains suspicious, wondering how he has gotten to know the farmhouse's location. Vanraj and Janhvi engage in a conversation and she discloses about her boyfriend when Dhruv interrupts and insists on playing with Janhvi; Vanraj instructs her to frighten him. Janhvi gets on a swing with her brother and swings swiftly, petrifying Dhruv. Kabir and Jyoti reprimand Janhvi for her mischievous deed while Vanraj interferes too much in their personal discussion, infuriating Kabir, who tells him to leave. When Vanraj vehemently refuses, Kabir starts dragging him out but Janhvi, upon being asked by Vanraj to resist her father, stops Kabir violently and declares that Vanraj will not go anywhere; she even breaks up with her boyfriend at Vanraj's behest, stunning her parents. Vanraj reveals to Kabir and Jyoti that he has hypnotised Janhvi through black magic and states that she will obey every command of his and asks them to give her away to him. When they deny, Vanraj dictates Janhvi to laugh, then cry, to break all the mobile phones, eat teapowder, slap Kabir and bang her brother's head on the staircase; she complies to all the instructions, leaving Kabir and Jyoti shattered.

Having received a phone call from Jyoti through a cellphone she has kept hidden, two police officials arrive at the farmhouse to check upon the family. Nevertheless, Vanraj instructs Janhvi to explode the gas cylinder in the kitchen if her parents disclose the truth to the police, prompting Kabir and Jyoti to cover it up in the police's presence. They hide Dhruv, who is profusely bleeding, in the bedroom and lie to the police that the phone calls were made to them by Dhruv for fun. The police leave upon corroborating no suspicious activity. Kabir offers to give all the money he has to Vanraj in exchange for sparing Janhvi and he agrees; after Vanraj exits with the money, Kabir and Jyoti realize that he hasn't yet freed Janhvi from the spell and rush outdoors to see him setting the money on fire. Declaring that he is not submissive to materialistic things and aims to achieve something superior on that fateful night, he reenters their farmhouse and orders Janhvi to slap herself and then to dance continuously, exhausting her. He instructs her to slit Jyoti's throat with a knife when she tries to comfort her, prompting her to back off. He goes to sleep, commanding Janhvi to guard him. Janhvi involuntarily urinates in her shorts and Jyoti abundantly pleads with Vanraj to let her clean Janhvi up and change her pants but Vanraj orders her to do the latter only.

Kabir and Jyoti manage to subdue Janhvi and pounce on Vanraj but the latter orders Janhvi to keep laughing and threatens Kabir that even if he is killed, Janhvi will keep on laughing till she dies. This compels Kabir to spare him but Vanraj, thereupon, instructs Janhvi to kill Dhruv. She goes after Dhruv and repels her parents' attempts in desisting her and throws him off the terrace, almost fatally wounding him. Vanraj then pressurises Kabir and Jyoti to give Janhvi away and takes her away; unbeknownst to him, Kabir follows them to his lair, having fixed a tracker in his cellphone's settings while Jyoti takes Dhruv to a hospital. Vanraj has kept 100 other girls in his lair and prepares to sacrifice them by making them jump into a huge pyre to acquire something superhuman. Kabir intrudes on the ritual, cuts Vanraj's tongue off and throws it into the pyre; when the girls try to assault him, he plays an edited recording of Vanraj's words to them, in which he declares their freedom, which is actually uttered in another context. Thus, all the girls escape Vanraj's control and return to their normal selves. Kabir's family reconciles at the hospital. All the other girls safely head to their homes with the police's help. The police assure Kabir that they'll catch Vanraj soon, but he's still running.

A year later, Kabir heads to an isolated place where he has held Vanraj captive and gives him a dead rat to eat. He tells Vanraj that a father can go to any extent to protect his family and exits the place, ignoring Vanraj's plea, who can no longer speak.

Cast

• Ajay Devgn as Kabir Rishi
• Jyothika as Jyoti Rishi, Kabir's wife
• R. Madhavan as Vanraj Kashyap
• Janki Bodiwala as Jahnvi Rishi, Kabir and Jyoti's daughter
• Anngad Raaj as Dhruv Rishi, Kabir & Jyoti's son

Production

The film is a remake of the Gujarati horror film Vash (2023) and was announced in May 2023, while the title Shaitaan was announced in January 2024 through teaser.^[10][11] Ajay Devgn and R. Madhavan were cast for the principal roles along with Jyothika, Anngad Raaj and Janki Bodiwala; the latter reprises her role from the original film.^[7] This film marked the first time Madhavan and Jyothika collaborated since their 2001 film Dumm Dumm Dumm and 2003 film Priyamaana Thozhi. The film also marks Jyothika's return to Bollywood after 24 years.

The film was shot in London, Mumbai and Mussoorie with filming taking place from June 2023 to September 2023.^[12]

Soundtrack

The music of the film is composed by Amit Trivedi and lyrics are written by Kumaar. The first single titled "Khushiyaan Bator Lo" was released on 15 February 2024.^[13] The second single titled "Aisa Main Shaitaan" was released on 29 February 2024.^[14] The third single "Shaitaan Theme" was released on 8 March 2024 during release. The fourth single "Papa Tu Hai Naa" was released on 2 April 2024 after release.

Release

Release Date

Shaitaan was theatrically released on 8 March 2024, coinciding with Maha Shivaratri.

Box office

As of 31 March 2024, Shaitaan has grossed ₹175.88 crore (US$22 million) in India, with a further ₹32.52 crore (US$4.1 million) in overseas, for a worldwide total of ₹208.4 crore (US$26 million).^[4]

Reception

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 43% of 14 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.3/10.^[15]

Bollywood Hungama gave 4/5 stars and wrote "Shaitaan is a nail-biting thriller laced with superlative performances and clapworthy climax that keeps you engaged".^[16] Dhaval Roy of The Times of India gave the film 3.5/5 and wrote "Even though Shaitaan’s narrative stumbles at times, the masterful use of atmosphere and top-notch acting elevate it into an unsettling experience worth having".^[17]

Sana Farzeen of India Today gave the film 2.5/5 and wrote "Shaitaan falls short, probably cursed by a weak script and the pressure of helming a remake".^[18] Lachmi Deb Roy of Firstpost rated 2.5 out of 5 and opined "Shaitaan could have been a good supernatural thriller, which we haven’t seen much in Hindi cinema of late, but it turned out to be a complete mess in the process of depicting the war of good vs evil. It’s a poorly made remake and the story is just not believable. Making the hero win at the end makes the film just too predictable".^[19] Saibal Chatterjee of NDTV gave the film 1.5/5 and wrote "Jyothika is the only one in the cast who is able to rise a bit above the sheer absurdity of the proceedings. The two male characters and the actors playing them don't stand a chance".^[20]

References

External links

• Shaitaan at IMDb