PremiumChoo Mantar out on OTT: Sharan-led horror comedy now available to stream
Directed by Karvva fame Navaneeth, Choo Mantar follows a treasure hunt in a haunted mansion. Released in theatres for Sankranti, the film is now on OTT
Last Updated: 04.15 PM, Mar 28, 2025
When Sharan announced a collaboration with two-film old Navaneeth, and said that they would be making a horror comedy together, it piqued interest among audiences. Navaneeth was, after all, better known for making the hit horror film Karvva, but his films were not high on comedy. And while Sharan is open to experimenting with different genres as long as there is enough humour for his core audience, how Navaneeth would adapt to that and marry both filmmaking sensibilities is what audiences were keen to see.
The final product, Choo Mantar, released for Sankranti this year, and was, interestingly, more about supernatural elements and jump scares, than eliciting laughs. In fact, comedy was left to Chikkanna in the few instances that the film adopted a lighter tone. And yet, this mix worked for audiences and Choo Mantar had a decent theatrical outing. After a 50-day run in theatres, during which it is said to have made in the range of Rs 5-6 crore, the film is now on OTT. As of March 28, 2025, Choo Mantar is streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
The biggest draw of Navaneeth’s film was that they married it with another popular franchise – the Apthamitra series – and even implied that Sharan’s guru about all things paranormal was Dr Vijay (the late Dr Vishnuvardhana). The plot, meanwhile, follows multiple timelines, with Sharan as exorcism expert Dynamo being called in to tackle the supernatural occurrences at Morgan House, a supposedly haunted mansion that an NRI family inherits and makes their home. While Dynamo figures out the history of the mansion and who’s been possessed, he is unable to take care of this business.
Also read: Best Sharan-led comedies to watch on OTT
Years later, it is the turn of his son, Gowtham (also Sharan), to revisit Morgan house, albeit under the pretext of another mission – to uncover a hidden treasure – and get to the bottom of the mystery of the mansion. Choo Mantar also stars Chikkanna, Aditi Prabhudeva, Meghana Gaonkar, Prabhu Mundkur, Dharma, Gurukiran, Rajani Bharadwaj, Vijay Chendoor, among others.