Rating:
3.5/5
Star
Cast:
Shraddha
Kapoor,
Rajkummar
Rao,
Pankaj
Tripathi,
Kriti
Sanon,
Nora
Fatehi
Director:
Amar
Kaushik
Stree
Movie
Public
REVIEW:
Shraddha
Kapoor
|
Rajkummar
Rao
|
Pankaj
Tripathi
|
FilmiBeat
'O
Stree,
Kal
Aana'-
the
walls
of
the
houses
in
the
quaint
town
of
Chanderi
have
these
words
written
in
red
ink
made
from
the
blood
of
bats
and
cow
urine.
Sounds
spooky,
doesn't
it?
But,
Rajkummar
Rao-Shraddha
Kapoor
starrer
Stree
has
lots
more
to
offer
other
than
just
chills.
Right
from
the
first
frame
itself,
the
film
sets
a
tense
atmosphere
where
you
find
yourself
speculating
about
what's
going
to
unfold
on
the
screen
next.
Based
on
a
'ridiculously'
true
phenomenon,
Stree's
hero
is
Vicky
(Rajkummar
Rao),
a
gifted
tailor
who
believes
that
his
life
is
not
just
restricted
to
sews
and
stitches.
Labelled
as
the
'Manish
Malhotra'
of
Chanderi,
our
man
doesn't
need
measuring
tapes
to
size
up
his
client's
vital
statistics.
Meanwhile,
the
urban
legend
of
Stree
grips
the
town.
Folklore
has
it
that
she's
a
witch
who
lures
men
at
night
during
a
four-day
Hindu
annual
festival
and
whisks
them
away,
leaving
behind
only
clothes.
The
only
way
for
men
to
save
themselves
from
the
widely
feared
spirit
is
by
scribbling
the
message,
'O
Stree
Kal
Aana'
on
the
walls
of
their
houses.
But
then,
god
forbid,
if
they
ever
come
across
her,
they
shouldn't
turn
behind
when
she
calls
from
behind
or
else,
they
are
doomed!
To
add
more
to
it,
it's
love
at
first
'eyesight'
for
Vicky
when
he
comes
across
a
mysterious
girl
(Shraddha
Kapoor).
As
events
unfold,
Vicky's
best
mates
(Aparshakti
Khurrana
and
Abhishek
Banerjee)
are
convinced
that
Stree
is
none
other
than
Vicky's
mystery
girl
who
visits
Chanderi
every
year
only
during
those
four
days
of
terror.
But
is
there
more
to
it
than
meets
the
eye?
Combining
horror
and
comedy
in
a
film
isn't
a
child's
play,
but
director
Amar
Kaushik
blends
both
these
elements
in
perfect
proportions
to
make
Stree
an
interesting
watch.
When
it
comes
to
the
fright
department,
some
of
the
'jump
scares' catches
you
unaware.
Special
mention
for
Sumit
Arora's
rib-tickling
dialogues,
which
pack
a
punch.
On
the
flipside,
the
film
has
a
sprinkle
of
dull
moments
at
a
place
or
two,
but
that
doesn't
play
a
major
spoilsport.
And
now,
coming
to
the
most
important
part,
the
climax
-
sorry,
no
spoilers
here,
but
all
I
can
say
is
that
it
leaves
you
on
a
guessing
note.
Different
people,
different
interpretation!
For
those
who
ain't
aware,
Stree
is
loosely
inspired
from
a
popular
folk
legend
called
'Nale
Ba'.
It
is
said
that
a
witch
terrorised
the
streets
of
Bangalore
in
the
'90s,
long
before
the
city
became
India's
Silicon
Valley.
The
only
way
to
get
rid
of
her
was
to
call
out
from
inside
one's
home,
'Nale
Ba',
which
means
'come
tomorrow'
in
Kannada.
Speaking
about
the
performances,
Rajkummar
Rao
once
again
proves
why
he's
one
of
the
best
talents
we
have
in
the
industry.
With
his
razor-sharp
comic
timing,
he
whips
up
a
delicious
fare
that's
hard
to
resist.
Shraddha
Kapoor
brings
in
a
sense
of
mystery,
though
I
felt
her
character
could
have
been
sketched
out
more
to
give
a
better
clarity.
Aparshakti
Khurrana
and
Abhishek
Banerjee,
as
Vicky's
besties,
put
up
a
commendable
act
to
add
more
to
the
humour.
Pankaj
Tripathi
with
his
hilarious
one-liners
makes
you
laugh
till
it
hurts.
Be
it
the
alleys
from
the
eyes
of
Stree
or
the
palpable
moments,
Amalendu
Chaudhary's
camera
work
never
fails
to
impress.
Hemanti
Sarkar
does
a
fine
job
at
the
editing
table.
The
songs
with
some
quirky
lyrics
blend
in
well
with
the
narrative.
Along
with
the
laughs
and
scares,
Stree
also
delivers
a
strong
message
without
spelling
it
aloud
and
that's
where
the
film
stands
out
the
most.
In
one
of
the
scenes,
while
speaking
his
heart
out
to
Shraddha,
Rajkummar
says,
"Mor
jab
saawan
ke
mausam
mein
jhoom
uthata
hain,
toh
sab
log
usse
dekhar
mantra
mugdha
ho
jaate
hain,
jaise
hum
aapko
dekhkar
mantramugdha.'
The
actor's
charming
act
does
exactly
that
to
you.
I
am
going
with
3.5
stars.