Kaali Khuhi

Tejas Nair

Another Netflix film that is technically brilliant (other recent one is Bulbbul (2020)) with a better sound design than most Indian films but which lacks substance. It crafts a suspenseful story at the cost of putting its viewers to sleep, to whom the impeccable production value or crescendoing background score is not enough. It is hard to keep track or make sense of things in Kaali Khuhi (The Black Well) and by the time you do, it goes off with a whimper. At the end, it reduces itself as an atmospheric suspense show sampling and combining folktales and social evil and hardly has any effect on the viewers. It's a wasted attempt (ncluding the talent) at best with a confusing plot and several unanswered questions. These may be solved in a second watch but Kaali Khuhi is not confident enough to demand a first. Only for serious horror fans. Grade D. TN.