Vidya Balan is all set to reprise her iconic role of Bengali witch Manjulika in Anees Bazmee's horror-comedy threequel Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3. She first played the role in Priyadarshan's 2007 hit but missed the blockbuster sequel in 2022. In an interview with News18, Vidya explained what she thinks of Manjulika in Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2, written by Tabu. (Also Read: Vidya Balan says she didn't look in the mirror for six months after a producer made her feel 'ugly')

What Vidya said

“I love taboo. I don't think I spoke to her after the movie. I haven't met her in years. But I've always said that Tabu is one of those actresses who makes everything look like she's just drinking water. She is so effortless. I remember in the initial years when I saw her in Maachis, Astitva and her comedy films, I thought she was like water. It flows into everything. Whatever she does, she is always amazing,” said Vidya.

Manjulika over the years

Bhool Bhulaiyaa is a remake of Fazil's 1993 Malayalam film Manichitrathazhu starring Mohanlal and Shobana, whose character in that film was named Nagavalli. Priyadarshan adapted the psychological thriller into Hindi in 2007, with Akshay Kumar and Vidya Balan playing these roles. Vidya's character was named Manjulika in the film.

Anees Bazmee was then approached by co-producers Murad Khetani's Cine1 Studios Private Limited and Bhushan Kumar's T-Series for a sequel. It turned into a horror comedy and rebooted it with Kartik Aaryan's Ghostbuster Rooh Baba and Kiara Advani. However, he reintroduced the character of Manjulika, played by Tabu, who also portrayed the witch's twin sister, Anjulika. Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 turned out to be a blockbuster.

In Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3, Vidya will reprise her role as Manjulika from the first part. But as shown in the trailer, Madhuri Dixit also plays a character named Manjulika. Kartik and Rajpal Yadav will reprise their roles as Rooh Baba and Chota Pandit respectively. The film is scheduled to release this Friday, November 1st, on the occasion of Diwali.