From the bigger-than-life spectacle to the savoury melodrama, Indian cinema has been successful in leaving its stamp on the world. While Indian blockbusters and romances are to varying degrees well-known to international audiences, the same can’t be said about the country’s output in the Horror genre. Here are top horror South Indian movie recommendations for you.
14. Pisaasu
The 2014 Film Pisaasu, which was directed by renowned Tamil filmmaker Mysskin, left a lasting impression on its audience with its original approach to the horror genre and its merging of it with sincere love elements. A young violinist named Siddharth, played by Naga, witnesses a gruesome event at the start of the film. After this encounter, odd things start happening at his house, and Siddharth finds himself on the verge of making a revelation that will rock him to his core.
13. Kumari
One of the most unforgettable horror films to come out of India recently is the 2022 Malayalam thriller Kumari. Leading lady Lekshmi, played by actress Aishwarya Lekshmi, is a vivacious young woman who is forcibly wed off to a remote country. Less by way of pointless plot developments and more by way of a gripping atmosphere that permeates each frame, it creates a wonderfully unforgettable movie.
12. Arundhati
Telugu-language movie Arundhati resembles the typical horror fare produced by South Indian regional cinema industries more than anything else. In Telugu films, Anushka Shetty is essentially the standard choice for leading ladies who are successful. The conflict between a distinguished heir of the Gadwal royal line and an evil sorcerer who wants her is at the centre of Arundhati, a chapter in the lore of an ancient royal clan.
11. Chaarulatha
If you haven’t seen the Thai movie Alone, on which Chaarulatha was based, you might find its premise disturbing. Priyamani plays conjoined twins Charu and Latha in the film, and they both fall in love with the same actor. One of the girls passes away before their mother can separate the two through surgery.
10. U Turn
U Turn, a 2016 Kannada-language supernatural thriller that has been remade an astounding seven times, is an intriguing supernatural thriller that may resemble Korean cross-genre thrillers. The story revolves around Shraddha Srinath’s character Rachana, an internship reporter who investigates a string of strange accidents at an exact flypast in her city.
9. Aranmanai
The storytelling in Aranmanai is fairly complex, and it is of the type that is typical of South Indian cinema—possibly even the best of it. The plot of this complex, culturally-rooted story incorporates atypical Indian beliefs, superstitions, and impulses.
8. Kanchana
The horror movie franchise Kanchana is by far the most well-liked to emerge from the local South Indian film industries. The Kanchana films often have a long running time packed with a lot of humorous jokes. Kanchana has become one of the most enduring film brands to emerge from India’s Tamil film industry because to an engaging blend of drama, humour, and horror.
7. Pizza
Vijay Sethupathi, who plays the major character of a pizza delivery man who becomes trapped in a house, had a breakthrough hit with the film. Pizza’s convoluted story confounds viewers with aspects of a supernatural mystery and a crime thriller, adding a shocking twist to an already alluring idea.
6. Jallikattu
The story of Jallikattu opens in a serene, peaceful village in Kerala, where everyone is talking about a huge wedding feast that will soon be held there. The entire village joins in the hunt for the animal because, in this small community, catching a runaway buffalo will earn its catchers a special prize. But when they succumb to greed along the road, the tranquil people experience a steady spread of anarchy.
5. Yavarum Nalam
Yavarum Nalam (which translates to “everyone is well”) is a horror thriller full of surprises that makes for a terrific casual watch. It was one of the notable Tamil-language films of 2009. Its plot has been compared to Japanese horror films, but without the excessive gore.
4. Bhinna
Bhinna is a milestone for the Kannada film industry because of its unique storyline and because it is the first original Kannada-language feature produced by an Indian streaming platform. In the major part, actress Paayal Radhakrishna plays Kaveri, an actress who firmly believes in the method acting approach and who is attempting to resolve challenging problems in her marriage.
3. Trunk
Rishika Sharma made her directorial debut with the 2018 Kannada film Trunk, which was praised for its realistic tone. Trunk settles on a tone of unadulterated dread. Rahul and Harini, played by Nihal Rajput and Vaishali Deepak, are a newlywed couple who experience paranormal events throughout their lives.
2. Kantara
One of such films was kantara, a titanic success for the Kannada cinema industry that peaked at number three on the box office for the year. Kantara, a film written, directed, and starring Rishab Shetty, brought awareness to the cultural phenomena known as Bhoota Kola, a ritual dance custom in which it is thought that local protector gods inhabit the bodies of its dancers.
1. Virupaksha
The 2023 film Virupaksha gives a more dramatic facet to the traditional South Indian horror motifs of black magic and armies fought on a supernatural front. The story opens in a small village where an innocent couple is accused of practising black magic. Twelve years later, the village is struck by a spate of strange fatalities, from weird crow maulings to gory suicides.
