The Vvaan was supposed to be an intriguing experiment: folklore, Chhath Puja, mythology, horror and comedy, backed by the makers of Panchayat and Gullak. Instead, early audience reactions suggest that the film has become a spectacular case of a promising idea being badly lost in execution.
Directed by Panchayat creator Deepak Kumar Mishra and starring Sidharth Malhotra and Tamannaah Bhatia, the film follows a Mumbai couple who return to a Bihar village, where a mysterious forest, an ancient belief in Van Devi and a road project collide.
And social media is having absolutely none of it. Viewers are complaining about everything from visible brand integrations, including Jio, Fortune, AcneStar and GasoFast, to the film’s apparently artificial-looking jungle heavy visuals with the green screen and AI-like folklore sequences. The jokes reportedly struggle to land, while Maniesh Paul’s comic track has divided viewers.
Sidharth and Tamannaah are also being criticised for performances that some viewers feel don’t convincingly fit the Bihar setting. The “serial” comparisons are particularly brutal, with several reactions likening the film to an expensive Ekta Kapoor television drama.
A few reviewers praised The Vvaan’s premise, some humour and cinematography. But they also called out the messy screenplay, weak villain track, illogical developments and haphazard climax. Many similarly described it as an uneven fantasy thriller that ultimately becomes a muddled mess.
Ironically, the film had already undergone reported reshoots and additional shooting to strengthen its climax and key sequences.
For TVF, that’s perhaps the most disappointing part. The lore apparently had potential. The filmmaking isn’t living up to it. Instead of immersive folklore horror, audiences are complaining about fake forests, songs interrupting serious moments, loud supporting tracks and a screenplay where the story gets buried beneath.
Expectations from TVF are understandably high in terms of this film. But The Vvaan currently looks like the rare case where the TVF name created more anticipation than the actual film could sustain.
