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Ghoul has a pointed political premise and the ingredients of a grim horror story, but Nandini Ramnath’s 2018 review argues that the scares do not build into sustained suspense. Her judgment is that atmosphere and urgency are not enough to overcome slow pacing, thin characterization, and an allegory explained too directly.
Does Ghoul deliver enough scares?
Not in Nandini Ramnath’s assessment. In her Scroll.in review, published August 24, 2018, she acknowledges jump scares, gore, ominous music, and grisly makeup, yet finds the overall horror minimal. The show creates a gloomy atmosphere, but its slow pacing and weak suspense keep that atmosphere from becoming a steadily mounting threat.
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This is one critic’s reading, not a measured audience consensus. Ramnath’s central criticism is that the series has an urgent idea but does not make its storytelling as effective as its premise.
What is the series about?
Set in a dark, authoritarian near-future, Ghoul follows Nida Rahim, played by Radhika Apte, a military interrogator assigned to the Meghdoot 31 detention center. Nida has aligned herself with the military and distanced herself from her liberal father. When she and the center’s staff question a prisoner named Ali Saeed, his unsettling behavior turns the interrogation into a struggle for survival.
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Netflix describes the new prisoner’s eerie behavior as setting off a young interrogator’s search for truth and fight to stay alive. The series uses that detention-center setup to bring political repression into a horror story rather than treating the supernatural threat as its only subject.
Where the political horror meets the supernatural
Ramnath reads the detention center as an allegory for state repression, with the possibility that political power’s abuse is the story’s “real ghoul.” She sees the political undercurrent as timely and potentially compelling, not as a settled statement of creator intent. Her reservation is that the narrative does not carry the allegory through with enough subtlety: explaining it too directly drains some of its force.
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That tension is the review’s strongest point of analysis. The series wants its horror to resonate beyond the walls of the facility, but, in Ramnath’s view, the explicitness of the commentary works against the unease that horror needs. The political idea supplies urgency; the execution does not consistently turn that urgency into suspense.
What works—and what does not—in Ramnath’s review
Atmosphere and ambition
Ramnath credits the show’s atmospheric gloom and cinematography, alongside its jump scares, gore, ominous music, and makeup. She also recognizes the political premise as relevant and ambitious. These elements give Ghoul a clear identity, even when they do not, in her view, make it frightening enough.
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The review calls the first episode the weakest and argues that the slow pace undercuts momentum. A compact episode count does not automatically produce a tight thriller: Ramnath’s criticism is that the storytelling still needed sharper pacing to sustain tension.
Characters and performances
Radhika Apte gives a committed performance, but Ramnath finds Nida short on inner life, making it harder for the character’s choices to carry emotional weight. She also argues that Manav Kaul’s character is not convincingly established as cruel. For the review, these characterization problems weaken the impact of the central conflict rather than allowing the cast to fully overcome it.
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How many episodes are in Ghoul?
Netflix lists Ghoul as a three-episode horror series. Its episodes are titled “Out of the Smokeless Fire,” “The Nightmares Will Begin,” and “Reveal Their Guilt, Eat Their Flesh.” Netflix announced in July 2018 that all three would arrive together on August 24, 2018.
That short format may suit viewers looking for a brief series, but it does not resolve Ramnath’s pacing complaint. Her point is not simply that the show is long; it is that the writing and suspense do not make the most of the story’s compact structure.
Who should watch it?
Ghoul is most likely to interest viewers who want horror with a political frame and are willing to value atmosphere and premise even when the suspense is uneven. Those looking primarily for relentless scares, deeply developed characters, or a subtle allegory may find the weaknesses Ramnath identifies more decisive.
Netflix’s official GHOUL listing identifies it as a 2018 horror series starring Radhika Apte, Manav Kaul, and Ratnabali Bhattacharjee, with Mahesh Balraj also named in its cast details. The page listed Hindi among its audio options when accessed October 8, 2026; catalog availability and language options can vary by region and change.
Verdict
Ramnath’s review finds Ghoul more compelling as a political idea than as a sustained horror experience. Its dark setting, visual atmosphere, and relevance give it a reason to exist, but slow pacing, underwritten characters, and over-explicit allegory keep the scares from landing consistently. Her conclusion is that tighter pacing and stronger writing could have made its familiar premise more effective.
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