When a supernatural thriller is released, one expects plenty of chills and thrills. Hindi film Shaitaan, which is a remake of the Gujarati film Vash, has director Vikas Bahl at the helm. Interestingly, this is the third film in which Ajay Devgn plays a dad who is trying to protect his loved one but this time around, he is up against the talented R Madhavan.
At the heart of the story is a couple – Kabir (Ajay Devgn) and Jyoti (Jyotika) – who are trying to bring up their kids – daughter Jhanvi (Janki Bodiwala) and son Dhruv (Anngad Raaj) – in the best way they can in this modern, woke world. They head out to their holiday farmhouse in Dehradun for a break and they end up with an unexpected and uninvited visitor on their doorstep.
Vanraaj (R Madhavan) seems to be the average Joe but things take a turn when they discover he practices black magic and has used his powers to possess Jhanvi. She becomes a puppet in his hands so how does Kabir remove his daughter from this demon’s clutches? There are plenty of twists and turns that follow which keep you on the edge of your seat as you follow the family’s journey in this horror story.
While the first half proceeds at a brisk pace, you start to feel the lag in the second.
There are some moments of elevation in this supernatural thriller and you feel some chills but the climax becomes predictable and there are some elements the director could have just done away with. Given it is Ajay Devgn’s co-production, obviously his character is made to be the hero but R Madhavan is truly the hero of this film for the audience.
His performance is outstanding as Vanraaj and had his character been given some more leverage, this movie would have been taken up a notch.
Jyotika’s performance is par for the course, while Janki Bodiwala stands out as does Anngad Raaj. Despite its small flaws, Shaitaan is appealing for the most part.