Film

Pari

Name: Pari
Genre: Horror, Mystery
Released: 2018
Cast: Anushka Sharma, Parambrata Chatterjee, Rajat Kapoor, Ritabhari Chakraborty, Mansi Multani

Supernatural mystery

Pari is a Bengali-language horror film that builds dread through intimate spaces and the decay of family bonds. It's a slow-burn mystery that uses the uncanny-ness of one woman's presence to destabilise a comfortable home. For viewers who prize atmosphere over jump-scares and don't need everything explained.

TMDb rating

3.2

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like slow-burn horror built on unease and a mystery that keeps tightening around one house, where dread matters more than jump scares.

Skip it if you need clear answers early or get restless with a long, quiet build; at over two hours, its pacing can feel stretched for a story this lean.

What it asks of you: Over its two-plus hours it lingers in one household, letting scenes breathe and suspicion simmer before it commits to scares, so attention pays off more than quick reactions.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

The Wailing2016

A Korean mystery-horror that similarly withholds answers while mounting a suffocating sense of wrongness. Masterful atmosphere, genuine ambiguity, and a final revelation that recontextualises everything.

But Runs nearly three hours and refuses to clarify its own ending. If you need closure, this will frustrate you.

Badlapur2015

Another Anushka Sharma film that proves her commitment to unsettling, morally complicated material. Dark, deeply personal revenge story with tremendous control of tone throughout.

But Heavy subject matter and deliberately bleak. No redemption, no catharsis—just the weight of obsession.

Bhool Bhulaiyaa2007

Indian horror that balances genuine scares with darkly comic moments. The mystery unfolds with real craft, and the twist lands hard. Kartik Aaryan's performance alone makes it hypnotic.

But The middle section slips into broad comedy that some will find tonally jarring. Also significantly longer than necessary.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Pari

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Mulholland Drive2001

Both films understand that the deepest horror comes from the dissolution of narrative certainty—you cannot trust what you're being shown, and that uncertainty *is* the point.

David Lynch's Los Angeles nightmare operates on the same logic as Pari—what we think we're watching completely inverts halfway through. Same commitment to sustained unease and the terror of not understanding what's happening to you.

But Deliberately cryptic and demands active interpretation. Many viewers leave convinced they've wasted their time because there's no 'correct' reading.

A Tale of Two Sisters2003

Korean horror-mystery that understands how to use domestic spaces as a source of profound unease. Deliberately fractured narrative that rewards attention and invites reinterpretation.

But The plot only coheres if you're watching carefully. Ambiguous and strange in ways some viewers will find infuriating rather than intriguing.

The Orphanage2007

Spanish ghost story that finds terror in the gaps between what we see and what we're told. Gorgeous cinematography wrapped around a genuinely devastating final act.

But Relies heavily on atmosphere rather than action. If you prefer overt scares to creeping dread, this will feel slow.

Tumbbad2018

Marathi-language horror that builds a mythology through visual language alone. Opulent, strange, genuinely imaginative—the kind of film that rewards multiple viewings.

But Deliberately paced and sometimes obscure in its storytelling. Plot clarity is not the priority; mood is everything.

The Housemaid2010

Thai horror that weaponises domesticity. Creeping unease as normalcy deteriorates, and a villain who's sympathetic without being forgivable. Beautifully constructed.

But The final act becomes more overtly theatrical. Some viewers find the tonal shift disappointing after such careful restraint.

Raat1992

Hindi horror from the early '90s that uses a single haunted night to devastating effect. Lean, focused, and genuinely unsettling—a reminder that real scares don't need modern tech.

But Age shows in some technical aspects. The pacing feels glacial to modern audiences accustomed to faster cutting.

Raees2017

Shah Rukh Khan crime thriller with real moral complexity and stunning cinematography. Explores how ordinary people become extraordinary criminals, and the cost of that transformation.

But Runs over two hours and occasionally indulges in Bollywood convention when the story doesn't demand it.

A Separation2011

Both films weaponise the intimate domestic space and the lies we tell within it. Both understand that the scariest thing isn't a ghost—it's the person sleeping next to you.

Asghar Farhadi's precision-built drama about a marriage collapse. Like Pari, it treats the home as a battleground and uses one person's mysterious behaviour to detonate everyone's carefully constructed assumptions.

But It's a talky, legal procedural wrapped in family drama. Zero supernatural elements—some viewers expect horror when they see the title.

Possession1981

Both understand possession—literal or psychological—as an eruption of truth that destroys the domestic illusion. Both treat the inhabited body as a text to be read for hidden meaning.

Andrzej Żuławski's Polish sci-fi horror about a marriage collapsing into literal monstrosity. Bizarre, visceral, aggressively strange—and absolutely committed to the idea that psychological horror and supernatural horror are the same thing.

But Surrealist and deliberately antagonistic to narrative clarity. Graphic body horror and sexual violence. Not for viewers seeking comfort or coherence.