Seeking Authentic Bengali Taste of Horror: A Survey Through the Corners of Jekhane Bhooter Bhoy

The history of Bengal boasts of an affluent blend of culture and ethnic identity. The culture is richly endowed with a divergent array of equipment even for contemplation purpose as well, as vivid as the affair concerning Bengali ghosts. In Bengal, ghosts are termed as Bhoot, and for the other supernatural entities, the term is Pret. From Pret-Aatma to Kankal, it can be traced how the ethnicity of the culture has determined the classification of ghosts vehemently. Tales of frightening ghosts exist in Bengal, but the episodes of comic supernatural entities are present at significant intervals. The entire construction is proportionally balanced. The writers of Bengal have significantly delved deep into exploring the multitude of Bhoot and Pret in their apparent settings. From children’s stories of Bhoot and Pret to spine-chilling tales of horror, every facet of it has been taken care of. Many adaptations of these stories have been done onscreen. Sandip Ray carries the legacy of the renowned name Satyajit Ray. From inspecting his father’s work to investigating other writers, Sandip Ray’s storytelling onscreen has been a distinct one. One of his noted works includes Jekhane Bhooter Bhoy (2012). This film is an attempt at digging deep into Bengali horror, and is an anthology which consists of three different stories: two of which is written by Satyajit Ray and the last is by Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay. This paper will look into, and examine the distinctive notion of bhoot(s) in these three different stories, and its composite impact, as portrayed by Sandip Ray.