Quick answer: The Vvaan: Force of the Forrest is a folklore fantasy thriller that marks the first on-screen pairing of Sidharth Malhotra and Tamannaah Bhatia. I watched it in theatres, and the idea is better than the execution. The forbidden forest, the Van Devi legend and the Bihar connection are all interesting, but the screenplay never uses them deeply enough, and the story feels familiar. It works as a one-time, big-screen timepass if your expectations are low. My WatchVerdict rating is 5/10.
5/10
Quick verdict: Strong setting, thin story
The folklore backdrop gives The Vvaan a visual identity, but the writing leans on a plot audiences have seen done better, and the lead pairing doesn't deliver the chemistry the promotion promised.
The Vvaan at a glance
| Title | The Vvaan: Force of the Forrest (also spelled Vvan) |
| Release date | September 25, 2026 (India, theatrical) |
| Language | Hindi |
| Runtime | 136 minutes 25 seconds (2h 16m), per the CBFC certificate |
| Certification | UA 16+ (CBFC India), passed with no cuts |
| Genre | Fantasy, mystery, folklore, action |
| Director | Deepak Kumar Mishra |
| Writer | Arunabh Kumar (story, screenplay) |
| Main cast | Sidharth Malhotra (Rishi), Tamannaah Bhatia (Mamta), Sunil Grover (Deepak), Maniesh Paul (VP), Anup Soni, Shweta Tiwari |
| Production | Balaji Motion Pictures, TVF, 11:11 Production |
| Our rating | 🟠5/10, Average / Only for Fans |
Table of contents
What is The Vvaan about?
Rishi Kumar (Sidharth Malhotra) is a Mumbai builder who stopped believing in God after he and his wife Mamta (Tamannaah Bhatia) lost their unborn child six years earlier. Mamta never lost her faith and still prays for a baby. A land dispute pulls Rishi back to his ancestral village, Devanchal, where a new road is planned through Dev Van, a sacred forest believed to be home to Van Devi. The village has one rule nobody breaks: no one enters the forest after sunset.
Rishi's elder brother and the villagers want the forest left alone. Rishi wants Devanchal developed and backs Deepak (Sunil Grover), the man pushing the project. As he learns what Deepak is really after, the film moves from a faith-versus-logic family drama into a supernatural fight over the forest. The rest is best left for the spoiler section below.
Is The Vvaan a horror movie?
Not really. The Vvaan has supernatural elements and a few dark forest sequences, but I wouldn't recommend it to someone looking for a conventional horror movie. It's closer to a folklore fantasy thriller, with mystery, mythology, an eco-message and an action-heavy climax. If you want jump scares, this isn't the film for that. If you're nervous about horror, there's nothing here that should keep you away.
Does The Vvaan actually capture Bihar's folklore?
The film is inspired by the Maa Van Devi Temple near Bihta, about 35 km from Patna. The shrine is believed to be 350 to 400 years old, though that age comes from local tradition rather than any archaeological record. Van Devi is worshipped there as a sacred pind instead of an idol, and local belief says nobody should stay in the area after sunset because the goddess is present at night. Writer Arunabh Kumar and director Deepak Kumar Mishra visited the temple and spoke to priests and villagers while developing the story.
What the film borrows is the core: a forest goddess, a sacred grove and the after-sunset rule. It adds a Chhath Puja song, which is a smart regional touch. What it changes is almost everything else. The village of Devanchal is fictional, and the king who breaks the rule, the reincarnated warrior and the smuggling villain are the film's own inventions, not part of the temple's legend. That's normal for a fantasy film, so don't read The Vvaan as a historical account of the temple.
The bigger problem is that the setting mostly works as background. Apart from that Chhath song, little on screen feels specific to Bihar. Swap the location for any forest village in India, and the story would play almost the same. For a film that sells itself on Bihar's folklore, that's a missed opportunity.
What works and what doesn't
What works
- ✔ First on-screen pairing of Sidharth Malhotra and Tamannaah Bhatia
- ✔ A different setting for Hindi cinema: forest folklore instead of the usual city drama
- ✔ The folklore and supernatural setup give the film its own identity
- ✔ Works as an easy theatre outing with friends or a partner
What doesn't work
- ✘ The city-man-returns-to-his-roots setup feels childish rather than mythic
- ✘ The Bihar folklore that inspired the story barely comes through on screen
- ✘ The lead pairing's chemistry doesn't match the pre-release hype
- ✘ Sidharth Malhotra's recent theatrical run has been rocky, and this doesn't clearly break that pattern
My take: the idea is better than the execution
The Vvaan has three good ingredients: a forest nobody enters after dark, a goddess the whole village fears and respects, and a real Bihar legend behind both. The screenplay doesn't use any of them deeply enough, and that gap between idea and execution is my main problem with the film.
The story is rooted in Bihar's own folk beliefs, right down to a song built around Chhath Puja, a festival celebrated nowhere more intensely than in Bihar. That's exactly the audience this film needed to win over first, and the connection to the region never lands on screen.
The setup feels closer to a children's fable than a mythology thriller. A man returns to his native place, is warned to stay out of the forest after dark, and predictably doesn't listen. The reincarnation-and-destiny angle is something Bollywood has tried before, and rarely well. The emotional weight the film reaches for, especially around Rishi and Mamta's loss, never fully shows up.
Sidharth Malhotra doesn't bring much new here, and after a string of underwhelming box-office runs, I don't think this is the film that turns that around. As for the pairing everyone was excited about, the on-screen spark isn't there. Star power alone isn't carrying films right now: Haiwaan opened with two big names and still fell from ₹2.79 crore on day one to about ₹67,000 on day eight.
That said, if you want a cheap AC ticket, some popcorn and two hours of not thinking too hard, it does that job. Go in expecting a lazy Sunday timepass with friends, not a mythology epic, and you won't feel cheated.
The Vvaan runtime: why do websites show different times?
The CBFC-certified runtime is 136 minutes and 25 seconds, or roughly 2 hours 16 minutes. Some online databases, including IMDb at the time of writing, list a longer runtime of around 2 hours 45 minutes. Those listings usually come from early or user-submitted data. For the Indian theatrical version, the CBFC figure is the safer one to trust.
The Vvaan ending explained (spoilers)
Spoiler warning: this section reveals the ending. Skip to Hit or flop? if you haven't watched the film.
Who is Deepak, and what does he want?
Deepak isn't the development-minded ally Rishi thinks he is. He runs a smuggling operation and wants the road so he can exploit Dev Van. He's also a descendant of King Vikramaditya, the ruler in the film's prologue who broke the forest's rule, and he killed his own father to get a sacred anklet the king received from Van Devi.
What is Rishi's connection to the forest?
The climax reveals that Rishi is the reincarnation of Veer, a warrior Van Devi blessed long ago. Veer promised that if Devanchal was ever in danger, he would return to protect it. That's why the forest keeps pulling Rishi in, and why the film keeps returning to destiny.
What happens to Mamta?
Before Rishi goes into the forest at night to expose Deepak, Mamta asks him to take part in Chhath Puja. During the puja, she slips into the water and starts to drown. Rishi saves her with what the film presents as Van Devi's guidance, and that moment brings back the faith he lost six years earlier.
Does Rishi die?
No. Rishi survives and kills Deepak in front of Van Devi, protecting the forest and the village.
What happens to the baby?
The story jumps a year ahead. Rishi and Mamta have a baby daughter, the child they lost hope of having. The final shot shows a glint in the newborn's eyes, hinting that she's connected to Van Devi.
Does the ending set up another film?
It leaves the door open. The baby's final shot and the King Vikramaditya backstory could support either a sequel or a prequel, but no follow-up has been officially announced.
For me, the ending lands better than the build-up because it finally ties Rishi's personal loss to the forest's myth. It still arrives too neatly, though. The film spends most of its runtime holding back the mythology, then explains almost all of it in the last stretch.
The Vvaan: hit or flop? Current box office
At the time of this update, Koimoi reports that The Vvaan has earned ₹66.31 crore net in India in 13 days, about ₹85.61 crore gross worldwide. Other trackers show slightly different totals and disagree on the budget, so there's no settled hit or flop verdict yet. The film opened well, with collections growing on its first Saturday and Sunday, then dropped sharply on weekdays. Whether it ends up a hit depends on the budget figure the trade accepts.
Where to watch The Vvaan
The Vvaan is currently available in theatres. No official OTT release date or streaming partner has been announced.
Who should watch it?
Watch it if you: want a casual theatre outing, are curious about the Sidharth Malhotra and Tamannaah Bhatia pairing, or enjoy folklore-driven visuals even when the story is thin.
Skip it if you: want a proper horror film, a tightly written mythology thriller, or a film that explores its Bihar roots with real depth.
WatchVerdict scorecard
These are my own WatchVerdict scores, not industry ratings.
| Category | Score | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Story | 5/10 | |
| Folklore | 6/10 | |
| Performances | 5/10 | |
| Visuals | 6/10 | |
| Suspense | 5/10 | |
| First half | 5/10 | |
| Second half | 5/10 | |
| Overall | 5/10 🟠|
The folklore and visuals earn a point above average, but the story, performances and suspense carry most of the film, and they sit at 5. That's why the overall score is 5.
Final verdict
- 🟢 8-10/10 - Must watch
- 🟡 6-7/10 - Worth a watch
- 🟠4-5/10 - Average, only for fans
- 🔴 0-3/10 - Skip it
The Vvaan gives Hindi cinema a rare folklore setting, and Sidharth Malhotra and Tamannaah Bhatia bring curiosity value as a new pairing. But the story doesn't earn the mythology it's reaching for, and the Bihar roots that could have made it distinctive stay mostly in the background. Go in for a relaxed theatre outing, not a mythology epic, and it delivers exactly that much.
5/10
WatchVerdict rating: 5/10 🟠Average / Only for Fans
A one-time watch for the setting and the pairing. Keep your expectations at timepass, not serious folklore drama.
FAQ
What is The Vvaan movie about?
An atheist Mumbai builder returns to his village, where a road is planned through a sacred forest believed to be home to the goddess Van Devi. The fight over the forest pulls him into a supernatural conflict tied to his own past.
Is The Vvaan a horror movie?
No. It has supernatural elements, but it's a folklore fantasy thriller, not a conventional horror film.
Is The Vvaan based on a true story?
It's inspired by the folklore around the Maa Van Devi Temple near Bihta, Patna. The plot and characters are fictional.
Does Sidharth Malhotra die in The Vvaan?
No. His character, Rishi, survives the climax.
Will there be a The Vvaan sequel?
Nothing has been announced. The ending leaves room for a sequel or a prequel.
Where can I watch The Vvaan?
In theatres. No OTT release date or streaming partner has been announced.
What is The Vvaan's runtime?
136 minutes 25 seconds, according to its CBFC certificate.
Who directed The Vvaan?
Deepak Kumar Mishra, from a story and screenplay by Arunabh Kumar.
Is The Vvaan worth watching?
As a casual theatre outing, yes. As a tightly written mythology drama, it falls short. Our rating is 5/10.
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