Thai Film Festival In Calcutta
Kolkata welcomes its first-ever Thai Film Festival on April 25–26, 2025, at Cinépolis, Acropolis Mall. Titled Frightening the Soul, this free-entry supernatural cinema showcase features Thai horror favourites like Shutter, The Undertaker, and Home for Rent, promising a spine-tingling cultural exchange.
Hold onto your popcorn and clutch your shawls a little tighter, dear Kolkatans – for something wickedly wonderful is brewing in the city’s cinematic cauldron. The City of Joy is about to turn into the City of Jitters, and not just because of the traffic on Park Street.
In a move that’s as bold as ordering phuchka with extra tok from a street vendor in your best kurta, the Royal Thai Consulate-General in Kolkata has dropped a ghostly bombshell – Kolkata is set to host its first-ever Thai Film Festival, and it’s coming armed with spooks, spirits, and a dash of spiritual sass.
Miss Siriporn Tantipanyathep, the ever-charming Consul-General of Thailand in Kolkata, was positively beaming when she announced the news:
“We are beyond excited to bring Thai horror cinema to Kolkata…As the first-ever Thai Film Festival in the city, this event marks a historic milestone in fostering Thailand–India cultural exchange.”
Now, we’ve all heard of cross-cultural diplomacy, but this one comes wrapped in chills and cloaked in the supernatural. Titled ‘Frightening the Soul: Thailand’s Mutelu Supernatural Film Festival in Kolkata’, it promises more goosebumps than a midnight dip in the Hooghly.
The ghostly gala takes place on 25 and 26 April at the swanky Cinépolis in Acropolis Mall – which, incidentally, might now require a priest and a pinch of holy water post-screenings. The line-up is enough to make any horror buff squeal with glee (or perhaps genuine terror):
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The Undertaker – a laugh-out-loud comedy-horror which is basically what you’d get if Mr. Bean ran a crematorium steeped in Thai rituals.
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Shutter – the OG fright-fest that made people terrified of Polaroids. It’s a cult classic and not for the faint of heart or dodgy knees.
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Home for Rent – a psychological thriller so unsettling, you’ll question your landlord, your flatmate and your toaster.
The whole shebang kicks off with a special screening of Shutter on Friday, April 25, followed by three free public screenings on Saturday, April 26. Yes, you read that right. Free. Gratis. No strings, no secret curses – just show up with your nerves of steel and perhaps a lucky charm or two.
And if you’re wondering what “Mutelu” means – it refers to the Thai belief in luck, charms, spirits, rituals and just the right amount of woo-woo. Think of it as our very own jadu-tona, but with saffron robes and sacred amulets.
So whether you’re a ghost chaser, a spiritual cynic, or just someone who enjoys an air-conditioned cinema hall during peak summer – do yourself a favour and pop by. Who knows, you might just leave a little more enlightened. Or haunted.
Tea and sympathy available post-screening. BYO rosary beads.
What: Frightening the Soul – Thailand’s Mutelu Supernatural Film Festival
Where: Cinépolis, Acropolis Mall, Kolkata
When: April 25 (Friday) and April 26 (Saturday), 2025
Tickets: Free. First come, first served. Ghosts enter free – if they promise not to hover.
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