The horror genre in Hindi cinema is slowly and steadily coming back to life from the grave. After Anushka Sharma's Pari (2018), audiences will get a taste of the evil in Stree, which stars Shraddha Kapoor, Rajkummar Rao and Pankaj Tripathi.
The makers first released an intriguing poster and that has now been followed by the unleashing of a frightening teaser.
The film is directed by Amar Kaushik, who had earlier made the much-loved short film Aaba and is now making his first feature, with a script penned by Raj Nidimoru & Krishna DK, whom he had assisted on the cult zombie comedy Go Goa Gone (2013).
Stree is produced by Dinesh Vijan's Maddock Films and Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK.
The teaser says the film is based on a ‘ridiculously’ true phenomenon. If that is indeed so, Stree straightaway has a curiosity factor to it.
The story appears to be set in a lane in a small town with humble housing lining both sides. The male voiceover, possibly a watchman, calls out: “Oi stree, kal aana, yahan koi mard nahin [Oh lady, come tomorrow, there is no man here].” The text is also seen painted in red on the walls of the homes.
So who is this lady? What does she seek? Is it a lovelorn spirit? The lights in all the houses go off and the camera movement signals the arrival of something nasty. A few seconds later, you see the shadow of a woman on the wall with her feet in mid-air. Boy, does that silhouette look frightening!
What is interesting is the tagline of 'mard ko dard hoga'. That is not just a warning to all males. The line is a riposte to the popular dialogue, "Mard ko dard nahin hota [A real man does not feel pain]," mouthed by Amitabh Bachchan in Manmohan Desai's entertainer Mard (1985).
Beware all men, this Stree is coming for you! And from the looks of it, not to make you happy.
Amar Kaushik and the makers have created a gripping, frightening teaser. What makes it scarier is the deathly background score.
This is a film that fans of the horror genre will be longing to see. Stree is set to be released on 31 August. Interestingly, Shraddha Kapoor’s Batti Gul Meter Chalu, too, is set to be released on the same day. But with Stree taking this date, it is unlikely that Kapoor will be competing with herself.
Stree also has Aparshakti Khurana and Vijay Raaz in pivotal roles. Watch the frightening teaser of Stree below: