Cast: Tripti Dimri, Avinash Tiwary, Rahul Bose, Paoli Dam, Parambrata Chatterjee

Director: Anvita Dutt

Ratings: ***1/2

Bulbbul is a directorial debut of Anvita Dutt who is a lyricist and dialogue writer of critically acclaimed movies like Lipstick Under My Burkha, Queen, Veere Di Wedding, Heyy Baby and many more. A production venture of Anushka Sharma, the movie is set in the 19th century during the Zamindar rule.

The film is set in the late 1800s where a little girl Bulbbul (Tripti Damri), who loves scary stories grows up to be a beautiful and bubbly young woman who gets married to a rich zamindar Indranil (Rahul Bose). But the twist is, Bulbbul thinks she is married to Indranil's brother Satya, the younger brother of Indranil. From the first day, Bulbbul and Satya gel up very well and talk about fairytales, demon-women and witches that fascinate Bulbbul a lot.


The film is about the dark and deep secrets of the big haveli of Bulbbul's family and the murders that start happening in the village after her marriage. People start believing that a witch is brutally killing everyone. The whole story revolves around these horrific & mysterious murders, the demoness and why she is killing people. What is Bulbbul's role in all this forms the crux of this horror-thriller.

The movie keeps the audience engaged from the beginning but as the screenplay moves ahead it gradually becomes predictable. Still, it keeps on the edge of the seat most of the time. This periodic horror drama is beautifully directed by Anvita Dutt although the script could have been bit stronger.

The cinematography is breathtaking and the glow of the red blood moon and hues of colours used by the cinematographer Siddharth Diwan are brilliant, it makes the screen come alive and the story more dramatic. Especially the night sequences are gorgeous and add a different and unique flavour in the movie. ‌

Tripti Dimri as Bulbbul has made her mark with her performance as she looks cute, gorgeous, helpless, mysterious, bold and confident. Her screen presence is very sharp and she carries every emotion on-screen in a balanced way.


Avinash Tiwary who was not nominated for his performance in 'Laila Majnu', proves his mettle once again with excellence. His character is full of emotions and questions and he portrays it with full precision and brilliance.

Paoli Dam as Bondini has multiple layers in her character as she is clever, cunning, smart, gorgeous and wants to be a supreme power. The actress looks remarkable steady in her character. Rahul Bose has a small screen presence as Indranil but his character is intriguing with a twist.

Parambrata Chatterjee has also done a great job here and his character serves as a beckon of light in a story which is a whirlwind of darkness.

The music given by Amit Trivedi is good as it keeps the essence of Bengal in a perfect manner. It goes well around with the beautiful locations and makes the screenplay more impactful giving you the touch of late 1900s when poems of Rabindranath Tagore were in cogue.

Overall, Bulbbul is a commendable attempt by Anvita Dutt with a social message in dramatic representation. In a short duration of time, the message Bulbbul aims to convey comes across very well to the audiences with a lot of thrill. It's a must-watch for its screenplay and great performances.