Sequel is a difficult animal. They arrive with the weight of expectation and the burden of proving that electricity can strike twice. ‘Vash Level 2’, Krishnadev Yagnik’s 2023 Gujarati Sleeper Hit, is not back, back. It jumps directly to terror, plays with innocence and corruption, honesty and horror, to give a film that is raw, unstable and, many times, chaotic.

Set after twelve years of the events of the first film, the story does not waste any time in drowning in the dark. A school, usually a sanctuary for friendship, happiness and dreams, becomes a platform for a nightmare because a victim of hypnosis for a group of 17 and 18 -year -old girls. His behavior seems like a disturbed cross between a slasher film and a zombie thriller, sometimes, even a frenzy and a terrible minian attack. Schoolgirls’ scenes are cruel to jump together from a roof or attack strangers on the road – the way you look almost away, not only for their shock value, but the way they turn innocence into horror.

Where earlier ‘Wash’ attracted his power from the same family under an unimaginable attack, created a clostophobic setting, which made every intimidation individual, ‘Vash Level 2’ spreads his canvas. More characters, more moving parts, more spectacle, and more scary. The result is ambitious, but sometimes the trading of precision for volume and chaos is done. Once a house was frightened in its restrained settings inside a house, which becomes loud, dirty and hard.

Janaki Bodiwala, who recently won a national award for his performance in the original (Best Gujarati Film Samman in ‘Vash’), takes a backseat here. For most parts of the film, she lies in a botanical state, her frozen smile is more unnecessary than any scream. It is scary in its peace, and has just a standout scene when she is freed from magic in a moment. Her limited role is surprising how central she was for the first film, but she works by adding a calm cold in the proceedings.

Instead, the baton is taken by Hitu Kanodia, in the form of a father Atharva with pain, which emerges as an unexpected hero caught in the cycle of vengeance and occupation. He plays it with firm belief, giving the film a center of gravity amidst frenzy. Hiten Kumar, with his experienced gravity, adds further weight as a ‘uncle’ with crooked plans. Together, they place the story on the ground, even the script and shock and the spectacle bends heavy. As the principal of the school, Monal Gajjar has also reduced to just a helpless authority, which is surprised by the horrific surroundings.

The film briefly points to misconception through dialogue, but never digested it clearly. The focus remains on effective shocks, nightmares, and large -scale hypnosis, in the first half in the yagnic stages with flair. But the second half starts to falter. The story loses breath, creeps into familiar trops, and the climax feels in a hurry. The twist is so simple that it borders when it is entertaining, opposite the raw horror a disgusting.

It is also worth remembering that the original ‘Vash’ was remake in Hindi as ‘Satan’. While there were stars and brightness in the latter, it lacked raw honesty and cruelty that Yajnik brought to his film. ‘Vash Level 2’ hugs those feelings again. Even though it becomes messy and uneven at times, it never feels dishonest. It does not wait for suspense to boil; It throws you in chaos from the first scene and dare to see you away.

Larger, loud and more chaotic than their predecessor, ‘subdued level 2’ is not innocent, but it leaves its mark. It begins as a fierce horror storm and ends on a soft note, even after the credit rolls sufficiently provokes.