MAHAKAAL (1993)

• Director: Shyam Ramsay & Tulsi Ramsay
• Featured gimmick: Remakesploitation!
• Cast: Karan Shah, Archana Puran Singh, Johny Lever 
• Film: 138mins | India | Subtitles | 2 Intermissions
• Event: 20:00 – 23:15 [18+] Please note earlier start time

Cult film night BAR TRASH continues our 13th sensational season — SCREAM FOR YOUR LIVES! — with the latest in our successful Bollyhorror film nights, MAHAKAAL (1993).

One way to promote your film is to base it on another, already successful one, or to copy that film entirely… The global cinematic phenomenon of low-budget ripoffs and remakes is lovingly known as ‘remakesploitation’, and is often associated with the genre film industries of Turkey, Mexico, and India, which is where we return for the Ramsay brothers’ eerily familiar MAHAKAAL (1993).

See if you can guess the original American title from this film’s plot: Anita begins to have horrible nightmares where a ghastly monster with an iron glove and blades for fingers torments her in her sleep. Once awake, she finds that injuries suffered in her dreams have manifested into the physical world… It’s not long before people around her are picked off one by one by this hideously disfigured supernatural being. Can anyone — or anything — stop the carnage?

… Got it? Of course, one of the joys of any film from the Ramsay House of Horror is that the cocktail of cinematic ingredients doesn’t end there, blending more Western sci-fi and horror classics with the signature mayhem of South Asian horror: practical makeup and gore effects, musical interludes, bawdy comedy, and a Michael Jackson impersonator.

Token Homo will be serving MAHAKAAL with FREE chai and samosas in the second of two intervals, recreating the vibe of the UK’s South Asian Film Clubs of the 1950s, ‘60s and ‘70s when audiences would dress up, socialise, eat samosas, and talk throughout the film (and sometimes back at the screen!).

Polite notice: We are projecting MAHAKAAL in Hindi with English subtitles from a 2K scan of the original 35mm camera negatives, completely uncut and uncensored. The original materials show signs of significant damage in places — please approach the film with love, wonder and empathy.

/// BAR TRASH is a celebration of cult and curious cinema, hosted by queer film fanatic Token Homo and friends. Films are served with introductions, intermissions, prize giveaways, and subtitles / captions where possible. Tickets from £3.50 + fees. Adults 18+ only. Follow @tokenhomo on Instagram for updates. ///