Darling II was earlier titled Jinn (spirit or genie). After Studio Green acquired the movie, it was re-titled Darling 2. The plot is simple. A group of friends go on a trip. Little do they know that one of them has been possessed by a ghost.
The trailer opens with a palatial mansion in the middle of a pine forest. It’s dark, chilly, and not the ideal tourist spot. Especially if you believe in the supernatural. Low-angle shots of the bungalow add to the atmosphere of trepidation. A stammering voice recites the ‘Kandha Shashti Kavam’, a Hindu prayer, to request protection. The stammered recital continues, the fear in the voice builds, across scared faces, confused faces, and the shadows that give them the chills. When Harikrishnan gets to the part with the names of the different types of demons, Arjunan makes him stop, saying that being haunted by one ghost is enough. Then they show us the ghost – a girl (of course) being possessed by a spirit
A voiceover then tells us that when a person dies, only the body leaves. Horror movie newsflash: the spirit doesn’t. The ghost-girl tells us that a boy has ruined her life, the jerk. Well, she’s here to haunt him. Then comes the horror movie staples. Thumps on the door. Someone asks ‘Yaaru?‘ (Who is it?) Footsteps running through a forest. And, wait for it, a rocking chair rocking on its own.
Darling II looks like quintessential Kollywood horror. Haunted house, check. Forest, check. Possessed girl, check. Pack of well-meaning overzealous friends who will court trouble, check.
Director Sathish had earlier said that the story was inspired from a real life incident that had happened to his friends. How realistically can he portray this? The cast includes Kalaiyarasan, Rameez, Kaali Venkat, ‘Johnny’ Hari of Madras fame, Munishkanth, Arjunan, and Preethi. Vijay Karthik Kannan wields the camera while Madan handles the editing.