The Vvaan Force Of The Forrest Review: Sidharth Malhotra Movie Verdict

The Vvaan: Force Of The Forrest Movie Review: Sidharth Malhotra and Tamannaah Bhatia step into a world of forbidden forests, ancient folklore, faith and supernatural forces in Deepak Kumar Mishra’s ambitious fantasy thriller. The film has an intriguing premise and some striking imagery, but an uneven screenplay prevents it from becoming the gripping folklore experience its setup promises.

Rating: 2.5/5

Director: Deepak Kumar Mishra
Writer: Arunabh Kumar
Cast: Sidharth Malhotra, Tamannaah Bhatia, Sunil Grover, Maniesh Paul, Shweta Tiwari, Anup Soni, Avtar Gill, Milind Gunaji, Sulabha Arya
Genre: Fantasy, Mystery, Thriller, Action
Language: Hindi
Release Date: September 25, 2026
Runtime: Around 2 hours 15 minutes-plus, depending on the listed version
Theatrical Release: Yes

The Vvaan: Force Of The Forrest Review: What Is The Movie About?

The Vvaan: Force Of The Forrest begins with a fascinating idea: what happens when a rational man who does not believe in supernatural forces is forced to confront something that refuses to fit into his understanding of the world?

Sidharth Malhotra plays Rishi, a civil engineer living in Mumbai who returns to his ancestral village in Bihar. His intention is relatively straightforward — deal with his inherited property and move on.

But the village is surrounded by an ancient forest that the locals regard with fear and reverence.

At the centre of the folklore is Van Devi, a mysterious divine presence associated with the forest. The locals believe that the forest is protected by forces that should not be disturbed.

Rishi, however, approaches the story from a rational perspective.

That conflict between science and faith, urban thinking and rural belief, greed and nature, and rationality and mythology forms the foundation of The Vvaan.

And this is where the movie is at its most interesting.

The problem is that the film eventually tries to do too much with that foundation.

The Vvaan Movie Review: A Promising Idea That Needed A Tighter Screenplay

There is no shortage of interesting ingredients here.

You have:

An ancient forest
Indian folklore
A mysterious goddess
A forbidden location
Bihar as the cultural setting
Chhath Puja
A rational protagonist
Supernatural forces
Environmental themes
Family drama
Romance
Mystery
Action
Faith versus disbelief

On paper, that sounds like an excellent recipe for a Hindi folk-horror or supernatural fantasy film.

And the opening portion does create curiosity.

The mythology surrounding the forest gives the film an identity. Rather than simply importing a generic Western-style supernatural monster into an Indian setting, The Vvaan attempts to build its story around local folklore and cultural beliefs.

That was one of the reasons the film looked promising even before release.

The teaser had already highlighted the movie’s visual world, including forests, ritualistic imagery, goddess iconography and an ominous supernatural presence.

Unfortunately, the screenplay becomes increasingly crowded.

The film keeps introducing new ideas when the central mythology itself could have carried much of the narrative.

That makes the second half considerably less controlled than the setup.

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Sidharth Malhotra in The Vvaan: Does He Fit the Role?

Sidharth Malhotra plays Rishi as a man caught between what he believes and what he experiences.

That internal conflict is important because Rishi isn’t introduced as someone who immediately accepts the supernatural explanation.

He questions things.

He doubts the villagers.

He approaches situations logically.

And that gives the character a natural dramatic arc.

Sidharth is required to move from scepticism towards confronting something that cannot easily be explained through logic.

The performance works best when the character is dealing with the emotional and psychological consequences of returning to his roots.

However, the screenplay doesn’t always give him enough material to make Rishi’s transformation as convincing as it could have been.

Several critics have similarly pointed to the film’s promising premise being weakened by execution and uneven writing. Times of India described the folklore concept as promising but criticised the writing, while Pinkvilla also highlighted the strong beginning before finding problems in the second half.

Tamannaah Bhatia in The Vvaan: Performance and Chemistry

Tamannaah Bhatia plays Mamta, Rishi’s wife.

Her character provides an important emotional connection to Rishi and the larger story.

The chemistry between Sidharth and Tamannaah is one of the film’s more accessible elements. Pinkvilla specifically noted that their chemistry works within the fantasy-adventure framework.

Tamannaah also gets moments where the film moves away from spectacle and focuses on its human side.

However, like several supporting characters, Mamta could have benefited from greater development.

The film occasionally appears more interested in moving towards its supernatural mythology than allowing its characters enough time to breathe.

The Vvaan Supporting Cast: Sunil Grover and Maniesh Paul

The supporting cast includes some familiar faces, including Sunil Grover, Maniesh Paul, Shweta Tiwari and Anup Soni.

Maniesh Paul provides some lighter moments in a film that otherwise spends considerable time dealing with mythology, fear and supernatural mystery.

Sunil Grover brings a different energy to the proceedings.

The supporting performances aren’t necessarily the biggest problem with The Vvaan. The bigger issue is that the screenplay sometimes struggles to decide how much space each character should occupy.

As a result, some characters feel important for a while before the narrative moves on to another storyline.

The Biggest Strength of The Vvaan: Its Folklore and Atmosphere

This is where The Vvaan has genuine potential.

Indian cinema has increasingly shown that folklore can create powerful cinematic worlds when the mythology is treated as part of the culture rather than simply as a plot device.

The Vvaan attempts exactly that.

The forest isn’t merely a location.

It becomes part of the story.

The idea of a forbidden forest protected by an ancient divine force gives the film an eerie foundation.

The teaser had already established a visually rich atmosphere involving forests, mist, ritualistic lighting, goddess imagery and traditional motifs.

Inside the film, that atmosphere remains one of the reasons to experience it on the big screen.

The production clearly wants the audience to feel that the forest has a presence of its own.

And at several points, it succeeds.

The Vvaan and Indian Folklore: Where the Movie Stands Out

The most interesting aspect of The Vvaan is its attempt to connect supernatural storytelling with Indian folklore.

The Van Devi mythology gives the story a distinctly Indian identity.

The Bihar setting and references to local traditions further strengthen that identity.

This is important because the film could easily have become another generic supernatural thriller.

Instead, it tries to make the mythology part of the emotional and cultural fabric of the story.

That ambition deserves credit.

But ambition and execution are two different things.

The film has the ingredients for something memorable. The screenplay doesn’t always know how to bring all those ingredients together.

The Vvaan Review: Is It Scary?

If you are going to The Vvaan expecting a pure horror film, it is important to adjust your expectations.

This is better described as a fantasy mystery thriller with folk-horror elements than a conventional horror movie.

The fear comes primarily from:

The forbidden forest
The unknown
Ancient mythology
Supernatural manifestations
Local beliefs
The idea of nature fighting back
The uncertainty surrounding Van Devi

The film is more interested in building a supernatural world than constantly delivering jump scares.

That approach could have worked extremely well with a more restrained screenplay.

Instead, the film sometimes becomes visually loud when the story would have benefited from silence and mystery.

The Vvaan Second Half: Where Things Start To Lose Control

This is arguably the biggest problem with the movie.

The first half establishes a question:

What exactly is happening inside this forest?

That is enough to keep the audience invested.

But as the story progresses, more elements are added.

The narrative becomes increasingly complicated and the emotional core starts getting buried underneath mythology, exposition and conflict.

Times of India called the film a promising folklore tale that is undermined by uneven writing. Mid-day similarly described the premise as promising but argued that an overcrowded screenplay buries the central story.

That criticism gets to the heart of the problem.

The Vvaan doesn’t suffer because it lacks ideas.

It suffers because it has too many ideas competing for attention.

The Vvaan Climax: Does It Work?

Without giving away major spoilers, the climax attempts to bring together the film’s mythology, characters and central conflict.

There is scale.

There is action.

There is supernatural spectacle.

But the emotional payoff isn’t always as strong as the setup suggests it should be.

Some of the tension built during the earlier portions gets diluted by the way the final confrontation unfolds.

For a movie that spends so much time establishing the mystery of the forest, the climax needed to feel inevitable and emotionally satisfying.

Instead, parts of it feel more mechanically constructed.

That is one reason the movie may leave viewers discussing the concept more enthusiastically than the execution.

The Vvaan vs Tumbbad and Kantara: Is It Similar?

This comparison was almost inevitable even before release.

Why?

Because Tumbbad and Kantara demonstrated that Indian folklore, mythology, regional culture and supernatural storytelling can create internationally appealing cinema.

The Vvaan operates in a similar broad territory.

But the films are not the same.

Tumbbad is built around a tightly controlled mythology and a deeply specific thematic world.

Kantara draws heavily from regional tradition, spirituality and cultural identity.

The Vvaan takes a more mainstream Hindi fantasy-thriller route.

The comparison is therefore useful mainly for understanding the genre rather than declaring one film superior to another.

The Indian Express also noted the broader resurgence of folklore-driven cinema and referenced films such as Tumbbad, Bramayugam and Kantara when discussing the context around The Vvaan.

The Vvaan Music and Background Score

The background music plays an important role in establishing the supernatural atmosphere.

Traditional chants and devotional elements are used to create a sense of mystery around the forest and Van Devi.

The music works particularly well when it is used subtly.

There is also a recent copyright-related development worth noting for readers following the film’s production story: the makers acquired synchronization rights for musician Sargam Vaish’s version of “Aigiri Nandini” after he alleged that his recording had been used without permission in the trailer. Vaish subsequently said that the source of the leak remained unknown.

That issue is separate from the film’s creative merits, but it is part of the movie’s recent release-related news cycle.

The Vvaan Cinematography and Visual Effects

Visually, this is one of the more ambitious aspects of the movie.

The forest is photographed as a character rather than simply a backdrop.

Darkness, mist, ritual imagery and supernatural elements are repeatedly used to create a mysterious environment.

The teaser had already attracted attention for its visual design, including deep forest imagery, crimson lighting, tiger symbolism and goddess iconography.

The theatrical format therefore makes sense for the movie.

The scale and atmosphere are easier to appreciate on a large screen than on a small mobile display.

The Vvaan: Force Of The Forrest Review — What Works

There are several things worth appreciating:

The concept:
A rational urban man confronting an ancient supernatural belief system is an inherently compelling premise.

The setting:
Using Bihar, village culture, Chhath and local folklore gives the story a distinct identity.

The mythology:
Van Devi and the forbidden forest provide an intriguing supernatural foundation.

The atmosphere:
The movie has a strong visual identity, particularly when it leans into mystery.

Sidharth and Tamannaah:
Their pairing gives the emotional side of the story some grounding.

The ambition:
The film clearly attempts something larger than a conventional Bollywood thriller.

The Vvaan: Force Of The Forrest Review — What Doesn’t Work

The weaknesses are primarily related to storytelling.

Uneven screenplay:
The central idea is stronger than the execution.

Overcrowding:
Too many subplots and ideas compete for attention.

Second-half pacing:
The narrative becomes less focused as it moves towards the climax.

Character development:
Several characters could have been explored more deeply.

Supernatural payoff:
The mystery surrounding the forest is more compelling than some of the eventual explanations.

Tone:
The film sometimes struggles to balance mythology, horror, family drama, romance, comedy and mainstream action.

Is The Vvaan: Force Of The Forrest Worth Watching?

That depends largely on what you expect from the movie.

If you enjoy Indian folklore, supernatural mysteries, fantasy adventures, mythology-driven cinema and visually atmospheric Hindi films, there is enough here to make The Vvaan interesting.

If you’re expecting a tightly constructed folk-horror film with the narrative precision of the genre’s strongest recent examples, the uneven screenplay may disappoint.

For me, the most frustrating thing about The Vvaan is not that the concept doesn’t work.

It is that the concept works well enough to make you imagine the better movie that could have been made from it.

The forest, Van Devi mythology and conflict between rationality and faith provide a strong foundation.

The screenplay simply doesn’t extract everything possible from that foundation.

The Vvaan Movie Review Rating

The Vvaan: Force Of The Forrest — 2.5/5

The rating reflects the film’s balance of ambition and execution: an interesting folklore-driven concept, strong atmosphere and an appealing central conflict, but an uneven screenplay and increasingly cluttered second half.

Final Verdict: The Vvaan Is More Interesting Than Its Execution

The Vvaan: Force Of The Forrest arrives at an interesting moment for Indian cinema.

Audiences have demonstrated that there is an appetite for stories rooted in Indian mythology, folklore and regional traditions.

The film clearly wants to participate in that movement.

Its best moments are atmospheric and intriguing. The forbidden forest is an effective setting, the Van Devi mythology provides a distinct identity, and the conflict between rational thinking and ancient belief gives the protagonist an interesting journey.

But the movie keeps adding layers instead of trusting its strongest idea.

The result is a fantasy thriller that starts with genuine mystery but gradually loses some of its narrative control.

The Vvaan is worth considering for viewers who enjoy Indian folklore, supernatural fantasy and mythology-driven cinema, but expectations should be calibrated. The film’s biggest strength is its world; its biggest weakness is the screenplay trying to put too much into that world.

The Vvaan: Force Of The Forrest FAQs

What is The Vvaan: Force Of The Forrest about?

The film follows Rishi, a rational man who returns to his ancestral village in Bihar and becomes involved in an ancient folklore surrounding Van Devi and a forbidden forest. The story explores faith, greed, nature, mythology and supernatural forces.

Who is the lead actor in The Vvaan?

Sidharth Malhotra plays the central character Rishi. Tamannaah Bhatia plays his wife Mamta. The supporting cast includes Sunil Grover, Maniesh Paul, Shweta Tiwari and Anup Soni.

Who directed The Vvaan: Force Of The Forrest?

The film is directed by Deepak Kumar Mishra, who is known for his work in the Indian television and streaming space.

Who wrote The Vvaan?

The screenplay is credited to Arunabh Kumar.

When was The Vvaan released?

The Vvaan: Force Of The Forrest was released theatrically on September 25, 2026.

What genre is The Vvaan?

The movie combines fantasy, mystery, thriller and action elements, with a strong folk-horror and mythology-driven component.

Is The Vvaan a horror movie?

It contains folk-horror and supernatural elements, but it is more accurately described as a fantasy mystery thriller with horror influences rather than a conventional jump-scare horror film.

Is The Vvaan based on a true story?

The film is presented as a fictional story built around folklore and mythology. Claims about specific real-world supernatural events should not be treated as factual accounts.

Is The Vvaan similar to Tumbbad?

Both films explore Indian folklore and supernatural mythology, but The Vvaan has its own story, characters and setting. The Vvaan is set around a forbidden forest and Van Devi folklore in Bihar.

Is The Vvaan worth watching in theatres?

Viewers interested in Indian folklore, supernatural mysteries, fantasy adventure and mythology may find the theatrical experience worthwhile, particularly for the film’s atmosphere and visual scale.

Editorial Note

This review separates the film’s documented production and release information from critical interpretation. Plot details are kept relatively spoiler-free so readers can decide whether they want to experience the story themselves. Release information and cast details have been cross-checked against current film listings and published reviews available around the September 25, 2026 theatrical release.

Prashant

Hi, I’m Prashant Jain — a film enthusiast and critic who lives and breathes cinema. From big-screen releases to the latest drops on OTT, I watch extensively and review honestly, without hype or bias.
I believe a good review should go beyond just “good” or “bad.” It should help you understand what works, what doesn’t, and whether a film is truly worth your time. My reviews focus on storytelling, performances, direction, and overall impact — all through the lens of a genuine viewer.
I regularly cover new movie releases and trending web series across OTT, bringing clear, no-nonsense insights for audiences who want real opinions, not paid praise.
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