Director: Aditya Sarpotdar, Writer: Niren Bhatt, Suresh Mathew, Arun Falara, Cast: Ayushmann Khurrana, Rashmika Mandanna, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Paresh Rawal, Sathyaraj, Fasial Malik, Geeta Aggarwal, Rachit Singh, Duration: 149 Minutes, Rating: 4.

Thamma is big-screen fun at its purest — a daring mix of folklore, family, fantasy, and fanfare of a full-blown franchise. With this new movie in the Maddock horror-verse, director Aditya Sarpotdar is taking Indian genre cinema to a whole new level. It’s all sorts of strange, clever, and wildly creative — yet, very relatable. While Stree was scary and subversive and Bhediya went into the wilds, Thamma conquers the territory by merging horror with love and, thus, leaving a cinematic experience that is totally different.

The story revolves around the forest of myths where the past is still alive and the ancient guardians are awakening. Not Thamma by any means, but it still manages to conjure up a bizarre fantasy universe complete with its own laws, curses, and consequences. Compared to other supernatural thrillers, this one is basically an emotional comedy with a dose of humor and the human instinct to save those whom we love even if it costs our lives. It doesn’t become scary but rather keeps its faith. The movie is funny but not farcical. It is also emotional without being overly dramatic.

One of the main characters is journalist protagonist Khurrana from a small town. His incidental supernatural experience leads to a series of events that is not in his capacity to grasp the enormity of it. In the first half, he is simply lovable and relatable but later on he becomes quite intense. Mandanna delivers an emotional performance that is also very down-to-earth. She has the fire as well as the delicate side of her nature and does not go for the usual stereotypical trope of horror comedy being over-the-top.

The continuing part is just an explosive work of art — it features fight, change of characters, and a breathtaking fight between Alok and Bhediya (Varun Dhawan). Special effects are of great quality and the confrontation between these two forces is signaling their underlying relationship which will definitely influence this cinematic universe storyline in the future. Such a moment of grandeur is the kind of moment in which you wish to applaud in a jam-packed hall, and subsequently, you are left with more questions than answers. How are these two characters related? I promise; the answer will be beyond your imagination.

On the subject of universe-building, the movie is full of Easter eggs and a few character recalls, but one highlights: the comeback of Sar Kata, the frightening character from Stree, who ominously appears, signaling the massive danger that lies ahead for the Maddock horror-verse. To be honest, the connection between Stree 2 and Thamma is quite strong, and by the time you get to the end, it’s only evident that it’s something huge that is on its way. The seeds of a mega-crossover have been dropped.

The acting, in general, is great. Paresh Rawal offers a great comic relief performance as the sarcastic and sharp-witted father while Nawazuddin Siddiqui dominates the movie with his intense and dark presence. The upward movement of his character feels like the dawn of something bigger and maybe a major factor in the future war of good vs. evil in this ever-expanding universe.

Following that is the comeback of Sathyaraj as Elvis, the idiosyncratic paranormal expert who got the nickname Hand of God. However, this time, he is not only here for the laughs — his arrival subtly changes the bigger picture. In a significant moment, Elvis points to a vital connection between Alok’s freshly changed Betaal and Bhediya, the one who was last seen grappling with Sar Kata in Stree 2. It’s a clever, low-key link that signals the coming events and the Maddock universe fans will instantly get the excitement of the bigger plot unfolding.

Moreover, the talked-about Nora Fatehi cameo is not only a glam reel but also an addition to the lore. Her unveiling provides a wonderful emotional connection to Stree and is a massive high point for long-time fans of the universe. Being a kind of fan service, it rewards attention and gives a totally different perspective to everything that we thought we knew about this world. Is she the one who opens the door to its secrets or something else?

Before the release, the buzz was mostly about item numbers and flashy visuals. However, Thamma, turn, defies the expectation. In the typical Maddock manner, every song in this movie has its function-character revelation, story advancement, or myth deepening. There are no unnecessary diversions, no hollow spectacles, only the narrative-driven songs that keep the emotional part of the story going. It is a very important revamp of the Bollywood horror formula and the result is great.

Mumbai: A 26-year-old man, identified as Harshal Parma, was brutally beaten to death by a group of people in Mumbai’s Goregaon area after they allegedly mistook him for a thief. The shocking incident occurred late on Monday night.

According to police officials, Parma’s hands and legs were tied before he was subjected to a severe beating. He sustained critical injuries during the assault and later succumbed to his wounds. Preliminary investigations suggest that the mob suspected him of attempting theft, though no conclusive evidence has been found to support this claim.

The Goregaon police acted swiftly and registered a case in connection with the assault. Four suspects have been arrested in the case, identified as Salman Mohammad Khan, Isamullah Khan, Gautam and Rajiv Gupta.

The accused have been booked under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code, including charges of murder and unlawful assembly. Police officials stated that further investigation is underway.

Meanwhile, in a separate incident, the Borivali Railway Police arrested a 28-year-old man for allegedly molesting a woman at Borivali railway station in the early hours of October 19. The woman, whose mother had recently passed away in Nagpur, was waiting at platform number three around 1.30 am when the accused, reportedly under the influence of alcohol, approached and touched her inappropriately.

The woman immediately reported the incident to the railway police, who apprehended the accused soon after. A case has been registered under Section 74 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which deals with assault or use of criminal force with intent to outrage a woman’s modesty.

The accused, who works as a video editor for a production house, was produced in court and has been remanded to judicial custody. He is currently lodged in Thane jail. The police have withheld his identity as the investigation continues.

Mumbai: The sessions court has refused to grant bail to Abhimanyu Bhoan, former CEO of scam-riddled New India Co-operative Bank, observing that huge amounts of funds to the tune of Rs122 crore were siphoned systematically and nothing could be seized and recovered till date.

Bhoan was arrested by the Mumbai police in the last week of February for his role in the bank’s collapse. While seeking bail, Bhoan pleaded that he was falsely implicated in the case, merely based on the statement of co-accused (general manager) Hitesh Mehta. The sessions judge, RK Deshpande, noted, “As per the prosecution, two of the nine co-accused are absconding till date.

In such a scenario, if the applicant is released on bail… the possibility of tampering with the investigation and threatening the witnesses (who prima facie appear to be related with the bank) cannot be ruled out.” The court noted that Bhoan, at the time the alleged fraud surfaced, was working as the CEO of the bank’s Prabhadevi branch, and the prime accused Hitesh Mehta was working under his supervision. “Prima facie, as the bank’s CEO, he (Bhoan) handled each and every cash transaction and was well aware about the cash in hand in the bank,” the court further noted.

Referring to Bhoan’s brain mapping reports, the court said it is revealed that he received funds to the tune of Rs1 crore from Mehta. The court further said, “From the contents of the chargesheet, prima facie it’s a systematic, well planned conspiracy played by the applicant along with other co-accused in order to grab Rs122 crore, which is totally public money…” The court said that such types of acts are not expected from a bank official in a responsible position.

The court said that “an economic offence was committed with cool calculation and deliberate design, and an eye on personal profit regardless of its impact on the community”. It said, “A disregard for the interest of the community can be manifested only at the cost of forfeiting its trust and faith… (we need) to administer justice in an even handed manner, without fear of criticism from quarters that view white collar crimes with a permissive eye, unmindful of the damage done to the national economy and national interest.”