An Interesting Survival Thriller With Dated Treatment & Lazy Execution

RATING – ⭐ ⭐ ✨ 2.5/5*

Tu Yaa Main Review MovieTalkies:

Some Bollywood filmmakers make films for the Juhu-Bandra crowd, and some make films for Chembur, Kurla, and Nalasopara audiences. Bejoy Nambiar, who earlier used to make niche films, now seems to be attempting a film that caters to both these worlds. It feels like a collaboration between an Instagram rapper from Nalasopara and a social media influencer from Juhu or Andheri. Oh wait — that’s not just a metaphor; that’s literally the film.

And that’s only the beginning. The real issue is that the core survival plot is clearly inspired by the Thai film The Pool. Now, even that original film was mid at best, so adapting it itself feels like a questionable decision. We have already watched Anaconda, Lake Placid, and Deep Blue Sea countless times on television three decades ago. Watching a similar setup on the big screen in 2026 feels too late and too familiar. The opening scene is directly lifted from those ’80s and ’90s creature-horror survival flicks, immediately giving you the indication that you are in for something dated. However, to be fair, Tu Yaa Main does attempt to grow beyond those clichés and builds an interesting premise of its own. There is potential here. I genuinely wish the film had better actors and stronger visual effects, because the viewing experience could have been far more engaging.

Tu Yaa Main Story:

The film opens with a crocodile hunting people somewhere in Goa. Cut to Nalasopara — a rapper nicknamed Flowpara (Adarsh Gourav), full of big dreams, is busy making Instagram reels. On the other hand, MsVanity (Shanaya Kapoor), a rich influencer with millions of followers, is monetizing her social media stardom. The two spot each other during a rainy moment, and suddenly we see them staring at one another like they’ve already fallen in love. A rather silly beginning, in my opinion. The silliness escalates when they start talking, and the cameraman keeps taking dramatic close-up shots of Shanaya as she gazes at the guy like he’s already her boyfriend. It feels forced and artificial. Soon enough, they collaborate on a video and begin growing fond of each other. In what feels like no time at all, they’re in love — and MsVanity, aka Avni, is pregnant. Now reality hits the rapper. He begins seeing life differently and asks for a break. The couple heads to Goa to clear their heads, but destiny traps them in an abandoned swimming pool. To make matters worse, a crocodile enters the pool. To make it even worse, there isn’t just one crocodile — there are two. The big question: will these lovebirds make it out alive?

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Every old cliché you can think of appears in this film. You know the crocodile will jump from nowhere — but it will conveniently miss the leads and attack some other object. The same crocodile that looks deadly moments ago suddenly becomes inaccurate when it comes to the protagonists. With so many predictable moments, the thrill almost evaporates. Suspense drops to nearly zero. As the film progresses, the plot becomes thinner with every passing scene because there’s simply not much left to show once the survival setup is established. I couldn’t digest the logic that the couple survives for hours in the pool with crocodiles lurking around, but during chase sequences they don’t even get a minute’s breathing space. This “hours vs minutes” inconsistency killed whatever excitement I had left.

The biggest mistake by the writers, in my opinion, is removing some of the strongest moments from the original. In The Pool, the protagonist fights back and attacks the crocodile in the final showdown. There’s a sense of victory and catharsis. In the Hindi version, however, the couple prefers a safe escape. Had they retained that intense confrontation, the climax would have felt far more satisfying. Instead, the film adds several romantic and emotional elements in the first half to stretch the narrative. That’s understandable — after all, they’ve expanded a gripping 90-minute thriller into a 143-minute romantic survival drama. But the extension feels excessive. The first half drags, and by the time the real survival drama begins, you’re already fatigued.

Tu Yaa Main Cast:

Speaking of performances, they are strictly average and further weakened by the inconsistent writing. Adarsh Gourav does a decent job, especially since this is relatively new territory for him. But the problem is that actors like Siddhant Chaturvedi and Vijay Varma have already set a high benchmark for street-smart, hustler-type roles in Gully Boy. Matching that energy and authenticity is extremely difficult. Shanaya Kapoor’s character is flawed and immature by design. Performance-wise, she isn’t terrible. Playing a high-profile influencer probably comes naturally to her, so the first half feels comfortable. The real test for her lies in the second half during the intense survival portions. Her screams, frustration, anger, and physical struggle needed to look raw and convincing. She manages to be somewhat effective, though not outstanding.

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Ansh has done similar roles in his “Bigg Nerds” reels, so his flow feels familiar and effortless. Parul Gulati looks perfectly suited for the PR/manager role, but unfortunately, there isn’t much scope for her to actually perform.

Tu Yaa Main movie Review:

On the technical front, Tu Yaa Main falters significantly. The sound design lacks tension. A survival thriller lives and dies by its background score and ambient sound, and here it rarely creates genuine fear. The cinematography is average, and the color grading often resembles an Instagram reel rather than a theatrical feature. The music is forgettable, and the editing feels sluggish, especially in the stretched first half. The visual effects suffer due to budget limitations, and it shows. The crocodiles lack the realism required to elevate the tension. In a creature-based survival thriller, weak VFX can completely break immersion — and that’s exactly what happens here.

Bejoy Nambiar’s return to mainstream territory is a surprising move. There is a visible attempt to blend romance with survival drama, and that sudden tonal shift from a relationship drama to a trapped-in-a-pool thriller does generate some initial curiosity. But the impact remains limited. The film could have been sharper, tighter, and far more gripping had it been trimmed by at least 30–40 minutes.

Instead, it becomes a stretched-out survival drama that focuses heavily on a relationship that never truly generates emotional depth. The emotional quotient feels forced rather than earned. Despite its flaws, Tu Yaa Main does have an interesting core idea and a few moments that work. But overall, it remains an average film at best — and if you’ve already seen The Pool or similar creature thrillers, this one may feel too dated and dragged to justify a theatrical watch.

In the end, it’s not a terrible film — just one that never rises above mediocrity.

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