India’s full of old stories, beliefs, and scary stuff that makes for great horror movies. Some of these movies aren’t just made up; they come from real things that happened, old stories people tell, and strange customs. From witches in Bengal to scary curses in Kerala, these films mix what’s real with what’s not. Here are ten scary Indian movies from this century that are based on true events, local beliefs, or old ways of life. They show that what’s real can be even scarier than made-up stuff.
10. Tumbbad (2018)Â
Platform: Prime Video.
It’s a pretty wild horror story set in rural Maharashtra, based on old folk tales. Think greedy ancestors, a cursed god called Hastar, demon-gods, and treasure curses. Critics dig it, calling it one of the best Indian horror movies out there. It’s not about anything that happened or any real hauntings. It’s all myth and a story about family, playing out over generations in the early 1900s in Bengal/Maharashtra.
9. Bulbbul (2020)Â
Platform: Netflix
Bulbbul, taking place in late 19th-century Bengal, is a cool, supernatural story that’s pretty feminist. It’s about a lady from a rich family who turns into a ghost to get back at dudes who hurt women. The movie is inspired by the Chudail legend—kind of like a witch in North Indian and Bengali stories. Director Anvita Dutt says it’s not a true story, but it comes from old tales and things her family told her. Over on Reddit, viewers praise the film’s masterful creation of a spooky atmosphere and its exploration of feminist horror.
8. Bramayugam (2024)Â
Platform: Sony Liv
This Malayalam horror movie mixes old temple curse stories, holy ceremonies, and village frights about devil worship and secret societies. Even though it’s based on old beliefs and stories passed down, the filmmakers say they got ideas from true stories of ritual killings and occult abuse in Kerala long ago. Like other movies like this, it doesn’t use just one real event, but the scary stuff comes from actual cultural worries.
7. Manichitrathazhu (1993 Malayalam)Â
Platform: Disney+ Hotstar/Netflix
So, there’s this 1993 Malayalam movie, Manichitrathazhu, a mind-bending thriller about someone with multiple personalities who people think is possessed. The story goes that it’s loosely based on something that really happened in a Kerala mansion way back in the 1800s. Then came the Hindi remake, Bhool Bhulaiyaa, in 2007, which made the story super popular all over India. It’s about a woman who everyone thinks is haunted by a ghost called Manjulika, but it turns out she has a mental thing. This whole story has some truth to it, popping up in old court papers and local legends.
6. Stree (2018)Â
Platform: Disney+ Hotstar
Stree puts a fresh spin on the Kannada urban legend of Naale Ba. This is a ghost story about a spirit that knocks on doors at night, doing its best to sound like a wife or mother, all to trick men into meeting a gruesome end. To keep safe, villagers would write Nale Ba (meaning come tomorrow) on their doors as a warning. The movie turns this old story into a funny horror tale set in Chanderi. Even if it’s not a ghost story with official paperwork, people in parts of Karnataka and Gujarat really believe in this legend.
5. Pari (2018)Â
Platform: Prime Video
Pari, a dark and twisty supernatural thriller with Anushka Sharma, takes you into the world of demonic possession and old witchcraft beliefs in Northern India. While it’s not based on one particular story, director Prosit Roy dove deep into real rituals and local tales of ritual abuse and cults in the Indian countryside. What you get is a cool, creative take on trauma and folklore, not a straight-up true story.
4. Chhorii
Platform: Zee 5 / Prime Video
Vishal Furia’s Chhorii, which is the Hindi remake of his 2017 Marathi horror Lapachhapi, retains the terrible stress of rural isolation with the psychological stress of pregnancy. A set in a sugarcane field follows the story of Sakshi (Nusharat Bharucha), a pregnant woman who suffers from rituals while hiding from debt collectors and harassing rituals. While the atmospheric setting is effective, the film overuses the scary sound effect and excessive exhibition, weakening the story flow. Bharuccha’s limited performance is less in expressing the Nayak’s unwell psyche. Despite his efforts to highlight the feminist subjects, Chhorii repeats the flaws of the origin without improving them.
3. Kumari (2022)Â
Platform: Netflix
Kumari, a Malayalam horror flick, tells the story of a teen girl possessed while she’s on her period. It pulls from local beliefs about virgin sacrifices and demonic rituals. Word is, the movie got some of its ideas from Kerala’s old stories, like tales of kids getting possessed and abused in tribal groups. It’s not based on one exact event, but it feels like some awful things that really happened to girls who were mistreated because of dumb superstitions. People on Reddit are calling it one of the scariest regional horror movies to come out lately.
2. Raaz Reboot (2016)Â
Platform: Amazon Prime Video
Even though the Raaz Reboot movies say they’re based on real events, they don’t really connect to any real, documented incidents. The ads for the films mention they got ideas from spooky places, like the Bhoot Bangla in Ooty, but there’s no real case or study to back it up. It’s more about spooky stories than true events.
1. Ek Thi Daayan (2013)Â
Platform: Prime Video
Kannan Iyer directed this spooky psychological thriller, with Karan Johar producing. Emraan Hashmi plays a magician who’s being haunted by a childhood witch called daayan. Even though the ads say it’s based on old stories of witchcraft from rural India, the story isn’t based on anything truly real. Instead, the movie uses common fears about witch hunts and beliefs found in some areas – but the whole thing is made up. It shows what worries people, not an actual haunting.
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Final Thoughts
If you’re after scare-fests based on true events, this list leans more toward movies inspired by myths and legends instead of documented ghost stories. Stree and Bhool Bhulaiyaa get closest to that folklore-meets-reality vibe. Still, the other movies tell amazing stories connected to fears many of us had growing up. That makes them feel real on a cultural level.
Basically, these films show that Indian horror doesn’t need real hauntings to be amazing. They can run on shared culture, old wives’ tales, and the pull of stories passed down. They’re a cool mix of imagination and tradition set in landscapes where superstition feels very real.
Written by Nidhi Singh