Shraddha Kapoor’s part is a bit risible, but she has some breathy moments with Rajkummar Rao. Rao, whose Bicky seems like an extension of his Bareilly Ki Barfi avatar, carries the film.

Stree is a movie anyone can enjoy, but only if they can compromise on the horror part.

Not only are the concerns expressed in Stree (patriarchy, consent, prejudice against women) mere excuses to touch our ‘sentimental hotspots’, the movie itself is a few tricks cobbled together…

There’s a tale of Chander town of a ‘chudail’ (witch) called ‘Stree’ (woman) who shows up during the four days of the local temple festival and preys on men, taking them and leaving only their clothes behind. A young lad Vicky who’s the local tailor and his two friends get embroiled in the witchy tale and begin suspecting a beautiful visitor who shows up only during the festival. Small town rumors and witty one liners make this horror tale funny, but you come away with a niggling dissatisfaction

Debutant director Amar Kaushik establishes the setting elaborately but doesn’t manage to deliver on the writing. A film like this required a steady hand to carefully balance the chills and thrills along with the outlandish one-liners, ensuring neither is watered-down by the other.

Stree is boring, slow and stretched. But a few fun jokes and the overall light-hearted treatment makes it a bearable watch.