When a Franchise Should’ve Stayed Buried
Some reboots breathe new life into a franchise. Raaz: Reboot, on the other hand, exhales heavily, trips over its own clichés, and falls face-first into a pile of expired horror tropes. Written and directed by Vikram Bhatt — a man who once made decently atmospheric horror films but now seems content making cinematic PowerPoint presentations about ghosts — this fourth Raaz installment is less “reboot” and more “flatline.”
The original Raaz (2002) was a shameless but entertaining copy of What Lies Beneath, complete with moody forests, shrieking violins, and Emraan Hashmi-levels of melodrama before Emraan Hashmi was even involved. Fourteen years later, Raaz: Reboot promises to revive that old haunted magic. Instead, it delivers a supernatural snooze fest so lifeless it might as well be the ghost it’s trying to scare you with.
The Plot: Déjà Boo
The film opens in Romania — because apparently, nothing says “Indian horror” like freezing weather, Eastern European accents, and a fog machine running overtime. Rehaan (Gaurav Arora) and Shaina (Kriti Kharbanda) move into a picturesque mansion so obviously haunted it might as well have “Welcome, Idiots” written on the front gate.
Within five minutes, doors creak, chandeliers sway, and Shaina begins to see things. Naturally, Rehaan doesn’t believe her. He’s got “a secret,” which in horror movie language means, “I did something incredibly stupid in the past, and now ghosts are invoicing me for it.”
Soon, Shaina’s life spirals into a carnival of bad CGI and worse acting. She’s possessed, terrified, and — most tragically — forced to deliver dialogue like, “It’s not me, Rehaan… it’s him!”
Turns out, “him” is Aditya (Emraan Hashmi, looking like he signed the contract while possessed himself), Shaina’s ex-boyfriend who Rehaan accidentally killed four years ago during a heated argument about insider trading. Yes, insider trading. Because nothing screams horror classic like stock market drama and moral guilt.
Now Aditya’s back from the dead, haunting Rehaan and possessing Shaina for revenge. The moral of the story? Never date anyone in a Vikram Bhatt film; they either cheat on you, haunt you, or give you flashbacks so long you forget what decade it is.
The Cast: Scared Acting, Scary Acting
Kriti Kharbanda, in her debut role, spends most of the film alternating between looking confused, crying prettily, and screaming into cold Romanian air. She’s not bad — just tragically under-directed. Every time the camera zooms in for an emotional breakdown, you can practically hear Bhatt whispering, “Cry harder, but make it look sexy.”
Gaurav Arora as Rehaan might be the least convincing husband in horror history. He reacts to his wife’s paranormal suffering with the emotional range of a malfunctioning toaster. When Shaina screams, he looks mildly inconvenienced, like someone just canceled his Wi-Fi.
And then there’s Emraan Hashmi — the self-proclaimed “serial kisser” of Bollywood, now promoted to “serial killer with feelings.” He enters the film halfway through, delivering tortured monologues about love, betrayal, and murder with the intensity of a man reading IKEA assembly instructions.
Hashmi’s ghost is supposed to be terrifying, but the only scary thing about him is his hairstyle. His spectral menace never rises above “mildly annoyed ex-boyfriend,” and even when he possesses Shaina, the scariest thing he does is make her wear better lipstick.
The Horror: Ghosts by Microsoft Paint
Vikram Bhatt has made so many horror films that you’d expect he’d have mastered at least one scary sequence by now. Instead, Raaz: Reboot feels like a PowerPoint presentation titled How Not to Direct Horror 101.
Jump scares arrive on schedule like government emails — loud, pointless, and completely predictable. The film mistakes volume for fear, as if turning the sound up to 11 will drown out the audience’s yawns.
The CGI is particularly tragic. The ghosts look like they’ve been rendered on a first-generation PlayStation. The climactic exorcism scene — complete with glowing eyes, wind machines, and Sanskrit chanting — could be mistaken for an ad for cheap contact lenses.
Even the haunted mansion, shot beautifully in Romania, feels wasted. The cinematography occasionally shines (literally, thanks to all the ice), but the atmosphere collapses under the weight of recycled visual clichés: shadowy corridors, flickering bulbs, and mirrors that refuse to behave.
The Music: Raaz: Rebooted, But the Playlist’s Still from 2004
If there’s one thing the Raaz franchise has historically done well, it’s the music. Unfortunately, this time even the soundtrack sounds like it’s phoning in from beyond the grave.
The songs appear at random, like uninvited guests at a funeral. You’ll be knee-deep in a supposed horror scene when, suddenly, Emraan Hashmi starts lip-syncing to a romantic ballad surrounded by fog. It’s as if the movie can’t decide whether it wants to terrify you or sell you a Valentine’s Day playlist.
By the time the third song kicks in, you’ll find yourself praying for the demon to possess the sound engineer instead.
The Script: Secrets, Screaming, and Stupidity
The film’s tagline should’ve been: “Everyone Has a Secret, but No One Has Common Sense.”
The dialogue oscillates between soap opera melodrama and philosophy fit for greeting cards. Gems like, “Love is eternal, even in death,” are delivered with such seriousness you half expect the actors to demand applause afterward.
The pacing is glacial — ironic for a film set in Romania’s snow. Every scene drags on, padded with exposition and flashbacks. If you removed all the slow-motion shots, Raaz: Reboot would probably run under an hour.
By the time the final act arrives, featuring an exorcism performed by a blind student named Trilok (because why not?), you’ve already checked your watch, your pulse, and possibly your sanity.
Themes (If You Can Call Them That)
There’s an attempt at exploring guilt, love, and redemption, but it’s buried under melodrama and bad editing. The “reboot” in the title implies a modern reimagining — instead, it’s the same old Raaz recipe reheated in a Romanian microwave.
Vikram Bhatt tries to inject spirituality into the plot, but the religious angle feels tacked on, as if the ghost’s real weakness wasn’t divine power but sheer boredom.
Even the symbolic ending — with the ice melting to represent the couple’s renewed love — lands like a joke. After two hours of supernatural torture, the audience doesn’t care if the ice melts, the lake freezes, or everyone drowns in it.
Performances That Deserve an Exorcism
If acting were an Olympic sport, Raaz: Reboot wouldn’t win medals — but it would break records for synchronized overacting.
Kriti Kharbanda tries valiantly, but her “possessed face” often looks like she’s trying to remember if she left the stove on. Gaurav Arora appears so emotionally detached you start wondering if he’s the real ghost. And Emraan Hashmi, bless him, performs every scene like he’s perpetually unsure which genre he’s in.
The Real Horror: Franchise Fatigue
By the fourth Raaz film, the only secret left is why anyone thought another one was necessary. The franchise that once promised gothic thrills and sensual chills has devolved into an accidental parody of itself.
Vikram Bhatt’s direction feels automated, as if he’s pressing “Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V” on every jump scare and calling it a day. Even Romania’s majestic landscapes can’t save a story this hollow.
Final Thoughts: Raaz: Reboot or Raaz: Regret?
Raaz: Reboot isn’t so much a horror movie as it is an endurance test — a séance conducted over bad Wi-Fi. It’s a film where nothing is frightening except the realization that you paid to watch it.
The only thing truly haunting here is the ghost of better Bollywood horror — films that understood tension, atmosphere, and restraint.
If the franchise ever attempts another installment, let’s hope it stays true to its name and remains a secret.
Final Rating: ★☆☆☆☆
Mood: Haunted by Regret
Best Watched With: Earplugs, caffeine, and a priest willing to perform an exorcism on your television.
