What do you think makes a cult movie? What factors are responsible for some movies becoming cult classics while others don’t?
The answer lies in the way audiences see movies. Cult classics aren’t necessarily critically acclaimed blockbusters, but typically represent rather eccentric, unusual movies that have unique aesthetics and unexpected stories. People tend to view cult classics in different ways: they might be movies that didn’t perform well initially, but built up a massive fan following over the years, or their popularity may have spread through positive word-of-mouth, social media traction or just by gaining a devoted fan following.
Tumbbad (2018) is the perfect example of a cult classic because it’s a combination of all the above. The movie was made on an initial budget of ₹15 crore (around £12 million) and went on to make ₹53.5 crore (around £42 million) upon release in 2018. One of the first Indian mythological/folk horror movies ever made, audiences were initially unsure of how to react to it. However, its stunning visual cinematography, gripping story and overall atmosphere eventually made it a cult classic, so much that it was later re-released in cinemas in 2024. But what makes Tumbbad so special?
Ask yourself: what image comes to mind when you think of ‘Bollywood’ movies? Chances are Tumbbad won’t fit into that. Indian horror films are a really rare, niche, underrated and underappreciated aspect of Indian cinema, even though the stories they tell and the messages they convey are some of the most important. In Tumbbad’s case, there are portrayals of familial pressure, greed and the lengths people go to accrue wealth and status. A mythological horror movie, directed by Rahi Anil Barve and Anand Gandhi, it visualises the pitfalls of greed by creating atmosphere in a way unlike anything I’ve seen before.
The movie starts by explaining the myth of the ‘Goddess of Prosperity’, the symbol of unlimited gold and food. She gave birth to 160 million Gods, however she loved her oldest child, Hastar, the most. Hastar was extremely greedy and wanted all his mother’s treasures. While he managed to get the gold, before he could acquire the food, the other Gods (his own siblings) attacked him and shattered him into pieces. The Goddess of Prosperity then saved her oldest child under the condition that he would never be worshipped and would remain forgotten forever.
Our story begins when the people of Tumbbad decide to build a shrine for Hastar and begin to pray to him. ‘It is said that since that day God’s rage has caused it to incessantly rain in Tumbbad’ as punishment for their sins. Why are they praying to a God who was almost killed because of his greed? Because the people in Tumbbad display that very same level of greed, as we see throughout the movie. They believe ‘Hastar’s curse’ is a boon for them, a source of unlimited wealth.
It’s easy to see why Tumbbad became such a cult phenomenon so quickly. Jacob Trussell from ‘Film School Rejects’ said Tumbbad was ‘Indian folk horror at its finest’, and the reason that that’s such a monumental achievement is that horror is one of the least ‘evolved’ genres in Indian cinema, with folk horror even more neglected. Tumbbad is an India-Sweden co-production and eerily reminiscent of Midsommar (2019), a Swedish horror movie, and, ironically, the only other famous folk horror film that I know of.
Without spoilers, set in British colonial India, every frame in Tumbbad is a masterpiece. Writer-director Rahi completed the first draft of the movie in 1997 when he was just 18 years old. Then, from 2009 to 2010, he went on to create a 700-page storyboard for his vision, the movie itself taking over 6 years to finally complete.
Tumbbad didn’t receive a huge budget, but it did stay true to its subject matter. The temple used in the movie is a replica of the Krishna Temple in Mahabaleshwar and the movie is primarily shot in a broken-down, decaying mansion which is also known as a ‘wada’. Wadas are multi-level houses that are usually associated with prosperity due to their size, stone walls, tiled roofs and courtyards. This is the perfect backdrop for the movie, as the decomposition of a once posh mansion mirrors the degradation of the family’s financial situation, leading to the greed which underlines every aspect of their lives.
For its lack of budget, the film’s visual tone is unmatched, not only because of its stunning visuals and setting (which focus on rural Maharashtrian architecture), but also due to its use of light, shadow and rain. The film was shot over 4 monsoons to emphasise the gloominess of incessant rain, equated with God’s wrath. The continuous rain is a driving force in the movie because it affects the mood and cinematography, underscoring how buildings and people are crumbling and rotting under a constant barrage of water. I really loved this aspect because it shows that you don’t need massive financial backing to weave an effective story; traditional Maharashtrian architecture enhances the narrative while establishing the time and setting as colonial India, constant rain just another tool to manipulate mood through light and shadow. The film’s most effective scene was in fact shot with the light from a single oil lamp.
I think this is one of the main reasons for Tumbbad’s cult status, expertly highlighting the moral and physical decay of the place. Physically, most scenes are shot in utter darkness with the sole exception of a single source of light (usually, a flickering candle). This is done so well that the movie achieves a claustrophobic feel, creating a sense of creeping dread. This sense of uneasiness and gloom is what the creators want in order to drive home the moral decay of the characters.
Morally, greed is the only motivation all characters share in the movie, every action taken in a bid to increase their wealth and capital. While the story is mythological, its moral is universal: don’t be greedy. Greed is one of the seven deadly sins, and the movie will show you why; it leads to the destruction of relationships, families and people. Ultimately, according to the creators, that’s where true horror lies.
Whether you enjoy Tumbbad or not will depend on your view of horror movies. If you go in expecting jumpscares, ghosts and gore, that’s not what you’re going to get. Tumbbad is a meditative mythological/folk horror movie so to enjoy it you need to allow yourself to be immersed in the myth, the atmosphere and story it weaves.
The movie is so beautifully shot that in addition to being the first ever Indian movie to premiere in the ‘Semaine de la Critique’ (‘Critics’ Week’) section of the 75th Venice International Film Festival in 2018, it also won the best film at the ‘Scream Fest Film Festival’ and got screened at the Brooklyn Horror Film Festival. For these reasons, I believe it deserves all the awards and accolades.
I grew up watching Indian horror movies and yet nothing has come close to what Tumbbad manages to accomplish. It’s a really lofty experiment since no Indian horror before had decided to venture into mythological folklore to such an extent, and that, to me, is why Tumbbad rightly deserves its ‘cult’ status now and forever.