After the success of Pataal Lok on Amazon Prime, Anushka Sharma's Clean Slate Filmz drops its second OTT offering, this time on Netflix. Bulbbul is a supernatural period drama that is written and directed by Anvita Dutt (in her directorial debut) and stars the Laila Majnu pair of Tripti Dimri and Avinash Tiwary in the lead. Rahul Bose (English, August), Paoli Dam (Hate Story) and Parambrata Chattopadhyay (KahaanI) are also part of the main cast. Bulbbul: 5 Mysteries in Anushka Sharma’s Spooky Netflix Drama That Deserve Answers (SPOILER ALERT).

While we are a little more critical in our review, Bulbbul has received a more warm response from other critics and from many of the viewers. People have loved Tripti Dimri's performance as the titular Bulbbul, the beautiful frames courtesy Siddharth Diwan's cinematography and Meenal Agarwal's production design, as well as the feminist themes.

But there are a couple of netizens who accuse the film to be a remake of a Thai film, Krasue: Inhuman Kiss. Like this Twitter user below:

Interestingly, Krasue, the film that is supposed to have inspired Bulbbul, is also streaming on Netflix.

Watch the trailer of Inhuman Kiss below:

So has Krasue: Inhuman Kiss really inspired Bulbbul? For that, we have to explain the premise of the Thai film first. Krasue (original title - Sang Krasue) came out in 2019 and is directed by Sitisiri Mongkolsiri. It is based on the scary local folklore of a demonic entity, krasue, that possesses any women and get them to detach its head and heart that haunts the village in the night and sucks the blood of other living men. A nurse thinks she has inherited the curse of the krasue, that leads to the mysterious deaths in the village. Bulbbul: All You Need to Know About Tripti Dimri, the Lead Star in Anushka Sharma's Netflix Film.

Bulbbul, meanwhile, is about a demon woman who haunts a village in the Bengal residency during the close of the 19th century. It is also about a child-bride who is married to a family of feudal lords and what happens to her when the one person who she forms an attachment is made to go away.

The plots of both the films are different, so you really can't accuse Bulbbul of being a remake. In fact, Bulbbul draws some inspiration from Satyajit Ray's Charulata, except without the spooky and dark elements.

That doesn't mean Bulbbul and Krasue don't share similarities. There is a love triangle in Krasue that bears a faint semblance with the relationship saga shown in Bulbbul, between Bulbbul, her childhood companion Satya and a doctor Sudip. Both the films are also beautifully shot.

That's where the comparisons end, though.

For Krasue is more bloody and violent in tone, with a crazy monster-infested climax and a comedic tinge. Bulbbul is serious and is less focused on the supernatural going ons and more on criticising the patriarchal reigns of the society. So before we pass on a judgement, let's do one basic thing - can we at least watch the films first before making the comparison?

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 24, 2020 10:11 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).