Baramulla Review: Manav Kaul’s Haunting Ode to Loss, Memory, and Exile
Manav Kaul delivers one of his most powerful performances in Baramulla, a Netflix film that explores horror beyond ghosts — focusing instead on grief, memory, and the pain of exile. Set in the Kashmir Valley, the film offers a chilling meditation on loss and belonging.
Baramulla transcends traditional horror. It rejects jump scares and shadows, presenting a deeper terror: the agony of separation, losing one’s identity, and being uprooted from the land that once sheltered you.
At first glance, Kaul's new film might seem like a horror thriller. However, it quickly reveals itself as a profound reflection on grief, exile, and the lingering spirits of a lost homeland.
Plot Overview
The story, written by Aditya Dhar and directed by Aditya Suhas Jambhale, follows DSP Ridwaan Sayyed (played by Kaul), a determined officer investigating a string of disappearances in Baramulla, Kashmir. Children are vanishing mysteriously, leaving behind only their scissor-cut hair.
As Ridwaan digs deeper, the story shifts from a procedural investigation to a poignant exploration of unresolved historical wounds and the hidden sorrows of displaced people.
The Film's Greater Horror
“Baramulla is not spooky, it's far more unsettling than that. It doesn’t deal in jump scares or shadows, but in a greater horror – the horror of separation, of losing one's identity, of being uprooted from the soil that once took you in.”
The film skillfully builds tension not from supernatural elements but from the power of memory itself. It begins with a political and procedural tone, gradually turning inward toward pain, remembrance, and shocking revelations.
Creative Team
- Story: Aditya Dhar
- Director: Aditya Suhas Jambhale
- Lead Actor: Manav Kaul as DSP Ridwaan Sayyed
Author’s summary: Manav Kaul’s Baramulla is a deeply unsettling film that transforms a crime investigation into a profound exploration of grief, exile, and the scars of displacement in Kashmir.
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