The third iteration of Bhool Bhulaiyaa came out on the 1st of November. Like the other two, the film's main focus rests on a the ghost of Manjulika. Not exactly a sequel, each film within this franchise is a parallel version of the same ghost with the same name, with the same motivation - revenge. Except, the third film has given us a new angle, subverting both genre and audience expectations.

If you couldn't guess, this blog is about to be spoliery!

Bhool Bhulaiyaa 1 and 2 both end with (relatively) violent endings. The ghost gets her revenge of sorts, and is freed. But the third one doesn't follow in the same pattern. It ends with forgiveness. Manjulika is freed not because of revenge, but because of an apology.

All three films are consistent in that Manjulika is not actually an evil spirit, blindly angry against the world. I make the joke a lot that she is misunderstood, and its true! Her salvation comes from someone taking the time to understand her - at least in the second and third films. The theme of entrapment is rampant in these films, whether that is a spirit trapped in another person's body (disguised as dissociative identity disorder), being wrongfully imprisoned for centuries in the place of another, or, in the case of the third film, being born in the wrong body.

The twist at the end of the third film, that Manjulika is not a woman (at least not a cis woman) is one of the first and most open depictions of transgender identity I've personally seen in a mainstream Bollywood film. As a queer person myself, I couldn't help but be moved by it (this is not to say that all queer people need to feel the same way). I went from giggling about how silly the film was, to tensing and bracing myself for more harmful discourse about genderqueer identity. For the first time in this franchise, I thought the ending of the film would make out Manjulika to the the villain. I'm so thankful that this wasn't the case, and that she got the absolvement she deserves.

The character design alone is different in this film. It feels more supernatural, more abject. The ghost that we see isn’t just a woman with black veins over her face, but a completely disfigured face. Burned with the remnants of the fire that killed her lingering on the body. It is far more visceral, and that is the horror of being stuck in a body that isn’t yours.

This version of Manjulika experiences both internal and external forms of entrapment. Entrapment in the form of being genderqueer, entrapment in being forced to be king, and entrapment as a spirit. Previously known as Debendranath while he was alive, he was a prince who loved to dance and sing and wear jewellery and women's clothes. I remember being in the theatre when this was revealed and just hearing a resigned "so he's gay?" from somewhere around me. Nothing is confirmed in the film, but to me, this is clear coding of a transgender character - especially because he gets to be known as a woman in the afterlife. His death was a direct result of his queerness, and it is so important to me that he finds peace in the afterlife through his sisters acknowledging the harm they brought upon him.

The handling of a queer narrative is incredibly surface level, don't get me wrong, but as a mainstream Bollywood film, it certainly subverts many aspects of its own genre through this. While there is a romance subplot between Ruhaan and Kashvi, it is almost entirely forgotten about in the last third of the film in favor of highlighting the relationship between Manjulika and his sisters. I think its really refreshing to see a Bollywood film be so aware of itself. While the film could be significantly shorter, it is an entertaining watch, with a twist that did actually make me emotional. That's difficult to do for a comedy horror!

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