Bhanwar Review – Tedious Story, Dragged Down By Flawed Plot

BOTTOM LINE: Tedious Story, Dragged Down By Flawed Plot

Rating: 2.5/10

Platform: ZEE5

Genre: Sci-fi thriller

SkinNSwear: A few intimate scenes

What Is the Story About?

Bhanwar is based on the concept of time travel, juxtaposed with a tale of suspense and crime. Ranvir and Kanika Makhija (Karanvir Bohra and Priya Banerjee) are a young couple that has embezzled a huge sum of money from the bank, and is now on the run. They buy a lavish apartment from a shady broker, Sam (Teejay Sidhu, better half of Karanvir Bohra) at half the price. The apartment is supposed to be their haven from the law, but within minutes of settling into it, they realise that there’s something seriously wrong with the house – apparently, it is haunted.   

As they delve deeper into the quagmire presented by the haunted house, the couple comes face to face with a horrifying reality. Bhanwar, made entirely under lockdown, makes use of multiple concepts — time travel, hauntings, summoning spirits with Ouija boards — to stitch together a complex story within eight fifteen-minute episodes. Does it succeed in making it intriguing enough to hold viewers’ attention? Read on to find out! 

Performances?

Karanvir Bohra puts up a spirited performance as Ranvir Makhija. He hogs the frames with his effortless screen presence and acting prowess. Priya Banerjee is passable as Kanika Makhija. The only other actor that impresses just a teeny weeny bit in Bhanwar is Mantra, playing rogue cop Rodriguez. His sheer screen presence is enough to sway sentiments in his favour. Wish he would show more wisdom in picking projects. Teejay Sidhu is forgettable as Sam. Payal Sodhi is an unnecessary addition to the cast as Joe. 

Analysis

While Bhanwar is a good attempt on the part of Karanvir Bohra at exercising his creativity (he’s the creator-director of the series), what lets the show down is the tediousness of the story. The lockdown pigeonholes the narrative into compartmentalised restriction. It hence becomes a task to execute a complex story with minimum tools, space and manpower. As a result, Bhanwar seems to simply go through the motions of carving out a narrative with the sole purpose of reaching a reasonable eight episodes.   

Repetitive plot devices, niggling loopholes in the flow of the story, a mish-mash of genres and a misguided attempt at creating intrigue out of nothing drag the show down. The only positive aspect of Bhanwar are the ultra-short episodes. Any longer and it would have become a dispensable watch. The short runtime at least manages to keep one invested in the series, and you’re keen to see how it ends up.   

That said, Bhanwar is a brave venture, one that could have been made better with a bit more polish and panache, and less of loopholes in the story. 

Music and Other Departments?

Raju Gowli does a good job of the cinematography, given the narrow field of opportunity. Likewise, Prashant Singh Rathore’s editing is spot on, as far as the technical aspects of the show go.   

The background music of Bhanwar is jarring, but we guess, it goes with the territory of the horror and supernatural genre.

Highlights?

The ultra-short episodes   

Technical aspects are reasonably good 

Drawbacks?

Jerky flow   

Repetitive plot points   

Loopholes in the plot   

Tedious storyline

Did I Enjoy It?

Not so much

Will You Recommend It?

No

Bhanwar Review by Binged Bureau