When the announcement was made about a new horror film titled Jaani Dushman: Darr Ke Aage Maut Hai, starring Bhumi Pednekar in the lead role, the first thought that came to mind was the two films previously associated with this name: Jaani Dushman (1979) and Jaani Dushman: Ek Anokhi Kahani (2002). Both films were directed by Rajkumar Kohli but are known for entirely different reasons, which we shall get to in a bit.
The poster of the upcoming Jaani Dushman (JD) shows a corpse-like hand, with what appears to be a red saree draped around it, reaching out towards a woman sleeping in a bed. The supposed entity and the red saree are reminiscent of the first JD, in which a monster kidnaps and murders women dressed in red bridal attire. The horror flick was a blockbuster and featured a star-studded cast comprising Sunil Dutt, Sanjeev Kumar, Jeetendra, Shatrughan Sinha, Vinod Mehra, Amrish Puri, Reena Roy, Rekha, Neetu Singh, Bindiya Goswami and many more. Shot primarily in the hill stations of Jammu, the film featured a total of 11 brides who faced danger. It became so popular that, in certain villages, people reportedly began marrying their daughters in orange or pink instead of red. The monster was a shape-shifting demon portrayed by different actors, including Raza Murad, Amrish Puri and Sanjeev Kumar.
A meme fest
Twenty-three years after the blockbuster, Kohli's other offering, Jaani Dushman: Ek Anokhi Kahani, hit the silver screens. It had been several years in the making. Once again, he managed to bring together the who's who of the film industry at the time, including Sunny Deol, Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty, Arshad Warsi, Sonu Nigam, Aftab Shivdasani and others. The female lead was Manisha Koirala, while the male lead was the director's son, Armaan Kohli.
This time, however, the movie went on to become... a meme for the ages. Touted as a fantasy action thriller, its illogical scenes contributed to its downfall.
Plagiarised Hollywood scenes were aplenty, particularly those borrowed from The Terminator and The Matrix. There are too many illogical gems to recount, but here are a few: a human Sunny Deol overpowering a snake demon; Armaan turning into a cobra; and Armaan, an ancient snake god, transforming into a motorcycle while running. In a flashback sequence, he is seen romancing Manisha (both were ichadhari snakes in their previous lives) while dressed in snake costumes that were probably borrowed from a school fancy-dress store. The duo dances to some bizarre choreography against a backdrop of antediluvian screensavers.
The new JD's Hollywood connection
Enough about the past, though. The upcoming JD is certainly a horror film, but not much is currently known about its storyline. The Arshad Syed-directed film is scheduled for release in 2027. Veteran British stunt coordinator Peter Pedrero, known for his work on The Conjuring, Game of Thrones, Harry Potter and The Expendables, has also been roped in.
Going by the previous instalment and the tagline, 'Darr Ke Aage Maut Hai', one could speculate that this might be a horror-comedy. However, we will have to wait a little longer to know for sure.
