In 2017, Gruham was sighted as a resurgence of the vintage Siddharth into the film industry. Though the movie did not keep up to the expectations of the audience, yet it did not leave them hanging or sore. Gruham in Telugu, Aval in Tamil and The House Next Door in Hindi, is a horror film, co-written and directed by Milind Rau. The film was simultaneously shot in three languages, starring Siddharth and Andrea Jeremiah in the lead roles, with Siddharth also working on the film as a co-producer and co-writer.
Gruham is set in the foothills of Himalayas and looks anything but romantic. The hills and the houses are beautiful yet eerie, holding within them a bitter secret. We get a hint of it in the grainy opening sequence featuring a Chinese mother and child in British occupied India of the 1930s. The story picks up a few quirks of the horror genre — bad past and a haunted household — but narrates it from the point of view of men of science. What happens in the Paul household and troubles his daughter Jenny (newcomer Anisha Victor is terrific) adds up to an interesting psychological thriller.
Its tropes and some scenes defy conventions but its story is largely formulaic. It’s because of the merits that the film becomes worth a watch. It’s because of its flip side that it seems to hard sell itself for a good part of the second half. The tropes that make it special are interesting. For once, ghosts affect not one but two houses, including the neighbourhood. For another, there are well-meaning ghosts that are at loggerheads with an evil-spirited ghost. And we are yet to describe the film’s awesome visuals and decent performances (more on this later).
What makes the “pure horror” a tedious watch is that it takes its sweet time to involve one of the major characters in its game-changing event (that comes in the finale). For a good part, this character is a mere tourist (albeit very involved with the place he is visiting) till the climax. By and by, the story meanders into the familiar territory of solar eclipses, human sacrifice and ‘Conjuring’ like demonic ghosts. The flashback of the ghosts is a big let-down.
Sid is all style and energy in the first half, especially the countless smooching and make outs with Andrea. Andrea lately has been doing the roles that suit her persona and she is perfect as Lakshmi, the modern wife, who loves and is quite assured even after knowing that Jenny has feelings for Krish. For her role, with multiple kisses and rather explicit lovemaking scenes, she has gone farther than any conventional heroine in South Indian cinema by existing standards.
The characters have depth, even those that feature in brief roles like the maid and the Chinese actors. Krish (Siddharth) and Lakshmi (Andrea) share a secure, mature relationship that reflects in the manner with which she reacts to Jenny’s infatuation with her husband. A lot is revealed about Jenny when the psychiatrist inspects her room. She’s more than a troubled adolescent and stays with you after the film is over. Long after the film, we were looking back at clues scattered through the story as it builds up to the big reveal at the climax.
Anisha Victor as the troubled teenaged girl has not only given a riveting performance but also has gone through a lot of physical exertion to nail her role. Avinash Raghudevan looks every bit the exorcist but his underwritten role. Seasoned actors Atul Kulkarni and Suresh as the psychiatrist are flawless while the rest of the cast is on par. Vishnu Govind and his team as sound designers have done a terrific job of keeping the audiences on their toes. Technically the film is excellent, transporting the viewer to the cold climate in which the story happens and the art director also deserves a pat on the back.
Songs by Girish are lilting and Vishnu Govind along with Rahamathulla scores once again on an excellent background score to go with his sound effects. Cinematography by Shreyas Krishna and editing by Lawrence Kishore is top class. The new director Milind Rau has focused on creating atmosphere — the Himalayan Mountains, some romantic scenes, the girl having a crush on hero, some scores aided by terrific sound design and moody cinematography. So till the interval, the viewer would give a thumbs up to this movie. Post-interval too the director keeps the suspense element but the guessing of the twist depends on the viewer’s understanding of this genre. The final portions are not perfect.
Milind Rau and Siddharth’s screenplay seems heavily inspired by the likes of ‘The Ring’ and ‘Conjuring’ but the film is technically sound and the director has made an impressive debut that is long overdue. The horror movie has a message about the girl child, but the Chinese angle does not gel with this story properly. Gruham’ is visually pleasing and technically cut above the rest. The performances are true-blue. Overall, ‘Gruham’ is a decent horror drama that gets it right mostly.
