Like the first the film has people sitting around telling horror stories. Here there are 5 children who take shelter in a old and eerie looking mansion. There is a old lady in the mansion who starts telling 6 "scary" tales to scare the children...while listening to the stories something starts happening to the children one by one...
Story 1: Manoj is a film buff who decides to go catch the late show DARNA MANAA HAI. Despite countless warnings from his mother he still decides to take the shortcut through the graveyard and along the way does some offensive things like piss in the graveyard and also kick mud over a tombstone. On his way back he walks back through the same graveyard and it turns out to be one helluva walk as when he comes out the other end he's die dof a cardiac arrest. This story itself is OK but it is Pahwas hilarious performance which makes it come alive. The sequences right upto his final walk to the cinema are well canned and extremely comical at times. The manner in which Varma is able to poke fun at his own films is funny but one wishes that this episode was left as a comic one rather than a scary one as the concluding reels of the episode seem lame and the viewer is left feeling disappointed. Sajid Khan does a average job and with something a lot meatier he could shine(specially in a comedy). 5/10
Story 2: An old chemistry professor(Amitabh Bachchan) believes there is someone in his house. One of his students(Ritiesh Deshmukh) comes over to study and slowly Bachchan starts to get more and more edgy as the "invisible" man keeps running to different parts of the room. Bachchan tries to convince Ritiesh that the man is real, but Ritiesh believes that he is going mad and and advises him to see a psychiatrist..that is until the invisible man finally appears in the mirror. Personally I found this one a delight to watch just for the performances of Amitabh Bachchan and Ritiesh Deshmukh. The story definetly has a few scary parts(the only time I jumped in the entire movie) and it definetly builds up tension well. However given this story was directed by RGV himself one feels that he should've chosen a much better story. The end of the story with the "shcok twist" doesn't scare nor amuse. 7/10
Story 3: On one dark and rainy night a stranger(Arjun Rampal) knocks on the door of a secluded bungalow. He needs to use the phone as his car has broken down. The house is owned by a married couple(Bipasha Basu and Makrand Deshpande) who are slightly weird and keep trying to scare Arjun. Arjun tells them he doesn't believe in ghosts and spirits and thats when Makrand brings out a Ouja board and decides to call a ghost......the ghost does arrive---but he refuses to go back! In terms of a story this part is well done and it definetly has its moments. Prawaal Raman does a good job at directing and manages to keep the viewer on their edge as you don't know what to expect next. The pace does drop a little at times only to pick up again very fast. Arjun Rampal and Bipasha Basu are superb in their roles however Makrand Deshpande is annoying. 7/10
Story 4: A Maharashtrian couple(Suniel Shetty/Sonali Kulkarni) are visited by a strange insurance salesman who refuses to leave. The story itself is good and the performances by Rajpal and Suniel are interesting enough yet one wonders what this story is doing in a film like this? There is nothing scary at all and the tale is more of a thriller if anything. Vivek Shah disappoints with his debut. 4/10
Story 5: A top film-maker(Anil Kapoor) decides to quit making his sugar coated love stories and decides to make a horror film to be "different"(an obvious and very funny dig at Karan Johar ofcourse). He decides to go to his Khandala where he can write in peace. Along the way he picks up a beautiful hitch hicker(Mallika Sherawat) who upon reaching Anils house reveals that she is a ghost! The story here had potential and keeps the viewers interest alive right upto the conclusion at which point the viewer feels disappointed with its outcome! Jijy Phillip who impressed with MY WIFES MURDER could've done a lot more here but sadly fails to cease the opportunity! Kapoor and Mallika both perform their parts extremely well. 6/10
Story 6: On a dark rainy night a young man is driving to see his girlfriend. Along the way he runs into woman who leaves him totally freaked out. The next morning he wakes up to find himself locked up for murder and accused of killing a man. He claims that he is totally innocent and can't remember the previous night but the cop(Zakir Hussain) won't hear a word of it and thinks he is just fibbing. The mother of the boy murdered comes to the police station and one by one skeletons start coming out of the closet! Easily the best track in the entire movie this is one that manages to scare, is brilliantly directed, flawlessley acted and one that stays with the viewer as well. JD Chakravarthy (played Satya in SATYA) does a fantastic job at directing and gets the mood and ambience of the story perfectly as well as the characters, Randeep Hoonda is a total KNOCKOUT in his performance and delivers what is in my books a flawless performance. He proved himself in "D" and once again even in such a short spate of time completely bowls the viewer over with his talent. He is extremely convincing as someone who is posessed. Zakir Hussain too is great in his part. Rasika is brilliant in her part too. This is one tale you won't forget! 9/10
The main story of the enterprise with the 5 children and the old lady acts as the backbone of the movie(just like the whole tales around the campfire did in DARNA MANAA HAI). And this story falls completely flat! Director Manish Gupta(who has written SARKAR, JAMES, D) makes a lacklustre debut as a director and just fails to merge this story in well. The sequences aren't scary and the entire story had so much room for plot development but feels totally rushed.
Technically the film is brilliant and each story bears its own individual stamp! The background score by Amir Mohile is wicked and just what is expected from this genre. The two theme songs AAKE DARR and KHABARDARR fail to impress. Nisha Kothari tries her best to do a Urmila and although she loosk STUNNING-the song itself has no entertainment value. Mohit Ahlawat does NOT suit a item number at all(A SRK he is not) and just makes a dork out of himself.
On the whole DARNA ZAROORI HAI fails to do whats it primarily meant to do---scare the viewer! Most of the stories don't work and one just feels given the canvas and scope that RGV had here he could've achieved a LOT more. However if you're a fan of the RGV and his brand of cinema you will be amused at the least!
Final Rating: * * *
