Fog curled gently around the rooftop of Polo Floatel, the Hooghly glinting below, as Bhanupriya Bhooter Hotel announced itself not with a jump scare, but with atmosphere. Last week’s trailer launch unfolded like an invitation into a haunted address where mischief matters more than menace, and laughter lurks behind every creaking door.

The evening’s highlight was the trailer reveal, which immediately pulled guests into the film’s eccentric universe. The visuals establish the eponymous hotel as a luxury property built over what was once a cemetery — its displaced spirits now very much in residence — and set up a delightfully chaotic narrative centred on Mimi Chakraborty’s Bhanupriya, a sharp, logic-driven lawyer who checks in, dismissing rumours of ghosts as pure superstition. What follows, as the trailer suggests, is a barrage of bizarre encounters where reason steadily collapses, skulls, skeletons and apparitions appear far too casually, and the hotel itself seems determined to test her scepticism. The tone remains mischievous rather than menacing, blending jump scares with punchlines, matter-of-fact exchanges between the living and the dead, and an undercurrent of intrigue that hints someone may be trying to scare guests away for reasons beyond the paranormal. Alongside Mimi, Soham Majumdar, Bonny Sengupta, Swastika Dutta and Kanchan Mullick lean fully into the madness, their characters oscillating between confusion, comic terror and knowing amusement, while threads of romance — both contemporary and old-world — and flashes of gentle satire promise a comedy-horror that thrives on chaos as much as charm.

Swastika and Bonny

Speaking about the role, Mimi said, “My character is extremely practical — she believes everything can be explained logically. That’s what makes her journey so funny. She enters this hotel thinking she’s in control, and very slowly, everything slips out of her hands.” She added that the film’s strength lies in its tone: “It’s spooky, yes, but it’s also light. The idea is to enjoy the fear, not be overwhelmed by it.”

Once the trailer applause settled, the launch leaned into performance. The rooftop had already been transformed with spooky décor — dim lights, misty corners and eerie props — while performers dressed as ghosts drifted among guests. A drama troupe kicked off the celebrations with a theatrical act that set the mood before the evening slid effortlessly into music and movement.

Unsurprisingly, the spotlight soon shifted to Chandni raate, the film’s already popular dance number that has been steadily building buzz since its release. The song, which blends ghostly undertones with irresistibly groovy beats, captures the spirit of Bhanupriya Bhooter Hotel perfectly — playful, quirky and knowingly absurd. As Chandni raate played, the cast took to the floor, with Soham hosting the evening and leading the celebrations as Mimi, Swastika Dutta and others joined in. The hookstep, simple and infectious, mirrored the song’s on-screen charm and had the crowd cheering along.

In the film, Chandni raate functions as more than just a dance break. With peppy composition by Arnab Dutta and witty lyrics by Arnab Dutta and Zinia Sen, the track cheekily references modern digital romance — WhatsApp chats, Instagram flirting and the inevitable question of when people will finally meet in real life.

The evening gained another surge of energy when the team of Kaalipotka joined the celebrations. Making a lively entry, Swastika Mukherjee and Shruti Das led a spirited group performance, bringing a fierce, festive energy to the rooftop. Soon, the casts of Kaalipotka and Bhanupriya Bhooter Hotel came together, dancing to each other’s tracks, feeding off the crowd’s reactions and turning the launch into a shared celebration rather than a single-film showcase.

By the end of the evening, the trailer launch had done exactly what it set out to do. Bhanupriya Bhooter Hotel, which releases today, emerged not just as a comedy-horror film, but as an experience rooted in mood, music and mischief — a haunted hotel where logic checks in first, laughter follows close behind, and fear is always served with a generous dose of fun.

Swastika Dutta, Soham Majumdar, Shruti Das with Aritra Mukherjee, Mimi Chakraborty