Step in a new direction

Chhorii director Furia hopes Bollywood wakes up to horror films’ potential to drive home social messages

With Chhorii, director Vishal Furia has revisited a story he knows intimately. The Nushrratt Bharuccha-starrer, centred on a pregnant woman, is inspired by Furia’s 2017 movie, Lapachhapi. The Marathi film went beyond chills and thrills to tackle age-old societal practices — something that, he says, resonated strongly with the audience. “Back then, it had got amazing response from the female audience. That’s when I thought, why not take it [to a wider audience]?” That set the ball rolling on the Hindi remake, which dropped on Amazon Prime Video yesterday. “A lot has changed in these five years — be it technically, or even the platform. My earlier film was restricted to Maharashtra; Chhorii is getting pan-India reach,” says the director.

Vishal Furia

Bollywood has recently begun looking at horror movies in a new light. While many filmmakers are jumping on the horror-comedy bandwagon, Furia feels the genre has remained largely untapped. “Many filmmakers want to do justice to this genre. They want to tell honest stories, without combining it with sex and songs. Many stories can be made if the genre gets a boost.”

Also Read: Vishal Furia: Felt great to give something back to people

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