After Zombivli, Munjya director Aditya Sarpotdar brings us another movie in the horror comedy universe: Kakuda, now streaming on Zee5. This movie is set in a cursed village named Ratodi, where every Tuesday at exactly 7:15 PM, a devilish creature known as Kakuda haunts the villagers. To avoid his wrath, the villagers must bravely open the small inset doors to welcome him. If someone forgets to do this, they develop a hunchback and die 13 days later. Despite trying various spiritual charms and spells, nothing seems to work, and the villagers live in constant fear of Kakuda. The story takes a twist when Kakuda targets Sunny, a sweet shop owner, right after he gets married. The big question is: does Sunny end up like the others, or does he manage to survive? Given how tough it is to lift a curse like this, you’ll have to read the cast and character guide to see how they handle it.
Spoilers Ahead
Sunny
Saqib Saleem, also known as Sunny, was the sweet shop owner in the village of Ratodi. He didn’t know how to speak English because he was uneducated, but he knew one thing for sure: he loved Indira deeply. So much so that he took the risk of eloping with her when he realized her parents might not approve of their relationship because he couldn’t read English. The problem was that their wedding day was on a Tuesday at 5 PM, which was a big issue because the devilish Kakuda would come knocking at 7:15 PM. Sunny thought maybe his father could stay home to open the door for Kakuda, but his father had to leave the village for a religious trip that day. So, Sunny knew he had to get married and return home as fast as he could. Sunny tried to make it back in time, but his bike broke down, and he got delayed. By the time he reached home and tried to open the door, it was too late. Kakuda had already attacked him, and he developed a hunchback. The whole village gathered and trusted in the rituals, curses, and superstitions to help Sunny find peace. Even though Sunny listened to his wife and went through surgery, which was initially successful and gave him hope, the next day, a new hunchback grew on his newly operated back. He realized Kakuda wouldn’t leave him alone and that he would soon die. Then one day, David Jacobs, a ghost hunter, came into their lives. Together, he and Indira worked tirelessly to save Sunny from his fate. Despite being scared and frightened by Kakuda’s attacks, Sunny also felt incredibly insecure when he saw his wife and the ghost hunter working closely together. He thought David might be a better fit for Indira since he would soon be dead anyway. In his despair, he even tried to commit suicide. But eventually, Sunny regained trust in his wife. Together, they defeated the infamous Kakuda by becoming the guinea pig for David’s experiment. Their love and determination overcame the curse, which shows that even in the face of supernatural terror, hope and trust can lead to victory.
Indira
Sonakshi Sinha, as Indira, was charming as ever. She played a small village girl who was hopelessly in love with Sunny. When their parents did not approve of them getting married, they ran away. But little did she know that after just one day of marriage, she might become a widow as Kakuda attacked her husband, Sunny. Indira wasn’t one to be scared of ghosts. She believed that such things didn’t exist and that science could cure everything. So, she took her husband to Delhi for treatment, which initially worked. But when another hunchback grew on Sunny’s back, she was horrified when she realized that the villagers might be right after all—Sunny might indeed end up dying within 13 days. Even though she didn’t believe in ghost hunting, Indira was willing to take a chance on these superstitions for her husband’s sake. She sought help from David Jacobs. Together, they went to great lengths by researching the devilish creature and its past to understand the reality of the situation and how to defeat it. Working closely with David led to rumors of an affair, which hurt Indira deeply. Her own husband became suspicious, and the villagers banned her from the village. But she never stopped loving Sunny, despite everything. Indira’s determination was everything. She continued her mission to defeat Kakuda by taking David’s help and also that of his sister, Gomati. In the end, she was successful, proving her love and strength in the face of all odds.
David
Riteish Deshmukh, as David, was incredible—funny, courageous, and a master of ghost hunting. He was shown as someone who was tired of freeing the spirits of female witches because they always ended up falling in love with him. So, exorcising Kakuda from the village felt like a fresh challenge for him. He knew it wouldn’t be easy, but he didn’t care. With his equipment, he started hunting for the ghost of Kakuda and used his automatic painting technique, which helped him take over Kakuda’s soul. This technique ultimately helped him understand what Kakuda wanted. David visited Guggu Wrestler’s house, found skeletons in his well, and went to an old circus owner named Goyal to learn about Kakuda’s past. He discovered that the key to defeating the monster was to cut off its right leg, because that leg held Kakuda’s power. With help from Gomati and Indira, the twin sisters, David summoned the spirit of Kakuda. Together, they managed to cut off Kakuda’s right leg, which finally took away the devil’s power and defeated it. His mission was successful. Even though there were rumors about him having an affair with Indira, the truth was far from it. David actually fell in love with her sister, Gomati. Maybe their relationship would grow over time because, as he said, he wasn’t afraid of ghosts but of humans. Perhaps his love for humankind will grow eventually after being with Gomati in the future.
Gomati
Sonakshi Sinha also played Gomati, Indira’s twin sister, and her story was quite sad. Poor Gomati used to be locked in her room from the outside because she had a tendency to sleepwalk. She would get out of the house every night and be found in the middle of the streets each morning. This started a rumor that she was having illicit affairs with the men in town, which brought shame upon her and led to her being locked up. Gomati was the first one to help Indira discover that Kakuda’s house had been burned, and that’s why he was taking revenge by haunting the villagers. When she was taken over by Kakuda’s soul, she revealed the entire past of Kakuda and his reasons for terrifying and killing the villagers. With her help, they finally defeated the monster. Gomati could somehow relate to the monster because she, too, had been wronged by society time after time. But at least this time, she was able to free a monstrous soul and help get rid of its devilish past. And eventually, she, who was thought herself to be impossible to love because of her “disease,” found love in David. Despite her struggle with sleepwalking, he saw her heart and accepted her without hesitation.
Kakuda
Kakuda was the infamous devil in town who terrified the villagers repeatedly. The villagers couldn’t afford to take the risk of not opening their doors at 7:15 PM to welcome him, as otherwise, he would kill them. But why did he follow this strange ritual? As David and others delved into his past, they discovered the true story of Kakuda. His real name was Gullak, and he was actually a dwarf who used to play tricks in the circus. Gullak had a magical ability—his right leg could cure anyone’s back pain in minutes. He healed almost everyone in the village, and the villagers loved him, except for one person—Guggu the wrestler. Guggu, who could also cure pain, felt threatened by Gullak and thought he was jeopardizing his business with his tricks. So, Guggu decided to frame him by accusing him of having an illicit affair with Ganga, a widow and mother to a little boy named Shibu.
Gullak had always healed only men, but this time, he made an exception to help Ganga because she was in terrible pain. He didn’t realize it was a trap. As soon as he entered her home, the villagers accused and tormented him. They burned his house down, even killed Shibu and Ganga, and hid their skeletons in Guggu’s well. Gullak went from one house to another, knocking on every door for help, but no one opened to save him. Ultimately, he had to leave town and take shelter under a scarecrow. Without food and water, he lived in secret for 13 days until he couldn’t survive anymore and died. That’s why he now haunts people on that very day, Tuesday, at 7:15 PM, to remind the villagers of the torment he faced when they didn’t open their doors for him. Out of fear, they had to comply now, and those who didn’t were killed by him on thirteen days’ notice. However, because his right leg held all his power, Indira, David and the others managed to cut it off and defeat him. But can those who are already dead be killed again? They can be defeated, but not entirely gone, right? Maybe he wasn’t dead after all. In the end, even after they thought they had defeated the monster, we see that Kakuda came back to haunt the villagers again. Will he continue his wrath for killing? We will never know. But we can assume that his spirit might have been finally freed from the torment. However, this time in the future, he might seek revenge not for himself but for Shibu and his mother Ganga too.