GST – Ghosts In Trouble – movie review: Srujan Lokesh presents extended version of Majaa Talkies

GST (Ghosts in Trouble) movie story: Fortune ran out the door the moment Lucky (Srujan Lokesh) was born, or so believed his father, given that the once prosperous family lost everything and could never claw their way back. Lucky grew up with a father who loathed him and a mother who smothered him with love, so when she dies, presumably because of his fault, he sees no reason to go on with his life. Determined to end his misery, Lucky tries to commit suicide, but no matter what he did, he failed at every turn. Only to then realise that a bunch of friendly neighbourhood ghosts were keeping him alive for a very specific mission – give their souls the salvation they seek.

GST (Ghosts in Trouble) movie review: As I walked out of the screening of Srujan Lokesh’s directorial debut Ghosts in Trouble, what came to mind was the British sitcom Ghosts (not the US version), about a group of ghosts from different historical periods haunting a country house and their relationship with the new living occupants.

In Ghosts, Alison Cooper inherits a crumbling mansion from a distant relative, which is haunted by ghosts from across ages. When she then falls out an upstairs window and has to be put on a medically-induced coma for a while, after being clinically dead for a few minutes, Alison wakes up to find that she can now see and hear the ghosts living in her house. How they learn to coexist and even like each other, as the ghosts await their moment of ascension into the afterlife is at the crux of this delightful comedy.

Srujan sets up a similar premise – he can see a bunch of friendly ghosts, who for no rhyme or reason are hell bent on keeping him alive, even though his presence has never come to any good earlier for anyone in his life. These souls need to wrap up unfinished businesses, so that they may finally transition to the afterlife. And that’s where the actor-filmmaker falters – these ghosts aren’t helpless and don’t really need his intervention; they can possess people at will and can physically touch objects too. So, Srujan’s Lucky is not even a medium, in that sense.

But that’s not all; turns out, Lucky is not the only one who can see and hear the ghosts. His bestie and girlfriend are privy to these interactions as well, which begets the question – what was it about Lucky that the ghosts had to wait for him to get them to the afterlife? Beats me. The issue with Ghosts in Trouble is not just with the lack of logic in this or the backstories of the ghosts. It’s in the presentation of the humour too. The entire film is like a double episode of Majaa Talkies, with a bunch of characters, played by the likes of Girija Lokesh, Tabla Nani, Niveditha Gowda, Giri Shivanna, Shobraj, Vinod Gobaragala, etc., who riff off each other; the dialogue is a relentless volley of set-up and punchlines, which in this situation, isn’t exactly fun.

Also read: Srujan Lokesh on GST: The only intention of making this horror comedy was… 

There are other red flags too, including a sari-clad woman’s navel, but if one were to begin to nit-pick, there’d be no end to it. For what it’s worth, Chandan Shetty’s songs aren’t bad, including a romantic number. The Chameli Chal special number is, no doubt, catchy; as for it’s purpose, well, that’s anybody’s guess.

GST movie verdict: Srujan Lokesh has a devoted fan following, albeit on TV, and this is the kind of film that may just appeal to them. Question is, will they head to theatres to watch him? Well, your guess is as good as mine.