BOTTOM LINE
A Formulaic, Toothless Horror Saga
PLATFORM
ZEE5
RUNTIME
140 Minutes (7 Episodes)
What Is the Show About?
Inspector Vishnu and his team relocate a damaged police station to a haunted Inspection Bungalow. Experiencing unsettling events, they’re joined by a paranormal researcher, Mythili, who helps them solve a part of the mystery. Unforeseen twists, a villain’s arrival, and a new body lead them onto a dangerous path, ultimately revealing Mythili’s true identity and purpose.
Performances
None of the performances makes much impact; most of the actors go about their job as if it were an obligation. Shabareesh Varma is occasionally amusing as Vishnu, and Saju Sreedhar fares slightly better and fits his part reasonably well. Aadhya Prasad’s role as Mythili lacks meat and is a forced attempt to lighten the proceedings. Senthil Krishna makes a mark as Balamurali in a brief appearance; Jayan Cherthala, in the shoes of the MLA, is strictly okay
Analysis
While Malayalam cinema is currently enjoying widespread national acclaim among film enthusiasts, Inspection Bungalow shows that the OTT industry is far behind in finding its footing in quality storytelling. Directed by Saiju SS, the show, starring Shabareesh Varma, Saju Sreedhar, and Aadhya Prasad, is a template horror-drama set against a police station backdrop.
The plot centres on a supposedly haunted village property, where locals experience a series of eerie events following the mass suicide of a cop, Balamurali, and his family. The god-fearing officer Vishnu works at a dilapidated police station, who, after multiple complaints, is reluctantly transferred with his team to the very same haunted site, much to their dismay.
Struggling to manage the scared team and anxious locals, Vishnu and Parameswaran initially call in an exorcist and perform spiritual rituals. Soon, a street-smart paranormal researcher, Mythili, arrives. She cleverly manages to secure a stay in the police station, offering her assistance to Vishnu and his team as they try to unravel the original mystery surrounding Balamurali’s tragic death.
The story unfolds as a routine investigation-cum-horror saga, as the officers uncover the conspiracy around multiple deaths. An accused Santhu is killed under mysterious circumstances, whose blame falls on Balamurali, while another man, Kuruvilla, too is dead for his refusal to accept a deal. How far do the spirits go to seek redemption? What is Mythili’s true identity? This is the show’s crux.
The only significant change the creators bring to a regular horror drama is the use of the police station as a haunted site, where humour is infused through a superstitious, timid SI, who nearly converts his workplace into a religious site. The oddity of officers catching ghastly criminals but being scared of ghosts was perhaps envisaged as its USP.
However, there is no real mystery to the haunted site’s backstory or Balamurali’s death. The clues are all out in the open, and the officers are asked to do the bare minimum. The presence of Mythili in the police station, and the supposed revelation of her true identity are a joke on the audience. The climax is a mere formality: culprits are killed with the help of spirits, and normalcy is ensured.
Inspection Bungalow makes no effort to thrill, surprise, or entertain its target audience, rehashing a time-tested trope without building any meaningful drama or characters. The writing is extremely lazy, using references from multiple films; there’s nothing original in it. The director does little to bring the village backdrop alive. In most situations, you’re just waiting and watching paint dry.
If there’s any silver lining, it’s the decision to split the story across seven 20-minute episodes. So, before an episode even tries to create an impact, it concludes. Everything about it is so formulaic and done-to-death, but it also finishes quickly. The performances are insipid, and the production quality is so-so. Inspection Bungalow is forgettable by all means.
Music and Other Departments?
Thanks to the frivolous story, the technical aspects too don’t make much of an impression. Denson Dominic’s background score is abysmal and functional at best. The cinematography, by Sudheer Surendran, is among the worthier contributions. The editing is quite mechanical, not allowing much time for the story to generate any momentum. The writing, well, is the case of everything going haywire – starting with a promising idea, not knowing what to do with it.
Highlights?
The police station backdrop
Some ‘local’ humour in parts
Drawbacks?
Formulaic story, poor execution
Dull narration, mechanical performances
Did I Enjoy It?
Not at all
Will You Recommend It?
If you want to have a better memory of the Malayalam industry, avoid it
Inspection Bungalow OTT Series Review by M9
