Fear Files, the Indian horror series, is heading back to the small screen with its second season, Fear Files - Har Mod Pe Darr.
The new season will bring double the scares using a more realistic approach, the makers say.
The first season gripped the audience with more than 200 episodes by presenting horror with a unique narrative. Fear Files - Har Mod Pe Darr, which was launched in Mumbai on Friday, will raise the bar by keeping the ‘good wins over evil’ philosophy intact.
The show, which will be aired on Zee TV starting April 25, will be told from the point of view of four producers, who will showcase their respective stories in various episodes.
“We want to show something different to break the clutter on TV. We have an audience for [the] horror genre in India. This time people will relate more to the episodes as the scary scenes will not look unreal,” Palki Malhotra of BBC Productions, which is co-producing the show, said at the launch.
Asked how the show will survive in the cut-throat TV business, Malhotra added: “Horror is totally different from the daily soap genre. The way it is produced is not like any other show on TV. The horror genre is time consuming as you need to keep the authenticity of stories.
“We have come this time with better preparations as it’s not easy to scare people nowadays. But Fear Files will not promote any superstition. Horror has nothing to do with superstition.”
Fear Files - Har Mod Pe Darr was launched with a 5D teaser of the show.
Although the horror genre has not captured audiences in either films and TV, Fear Files - Har Mod Pe Darr will attempt to draw better viewership with technology.
Sukesh Motwani of Bodhi Tree Productions said: “Horror has received huge response across the globe. Though Indian horror films have not received a good response in the past few years, we cannot compare it to TV shows because they use everything from love stories to humour.”
While he says they have abstained from focussing on the usual scare tactics, such as witches, haunted houses and ghosts, they have inculcated the use of “better sounds and visual effects, so that people don’t feel it’s unreal”.
Extensively shot in Mumbai, Fear Files - Har Mod Pe Darr will star mostly young actors, including stage artistes.
“Renowned faces give an unreal feeling in a horror show. But when people see new faces on screen, they start assuming them in the real world,” Motwani said.
The weekend show, which is booked for a 10.30pm time slot, will compete with the likes of Nach Baliye 7, India’s Got Talent, Crime Patrol and Comedy Nights With Kapil.
Is 10.30pm perfect to show a horror series over the weekend?
Pradeep Hejmadi, Zee TV business head, said, “We have made a whole different texture in our weekend programmes with shows like Maharakshak Devi, Neeli Chatri Wale and DID Supermoms.
“The only thing which our audience was missing was a thriller show. Mostly teenagers, who look out for edgy content, are awake at this time slot. Bringing back Fear Files was the safest idea. So, the audience will love to see a new genre at 10.30pm time slot.”
