Filmmaker Vikram Bhatt recently announced 1920: Cold Winter, the next installment in the long-running 1920 franchise, while also unveiling the film’s first-look poster on social media. Sharing the announcement, Bhatt wrote, “The Anand Pandit-Vikram Bhatt partnership continues its winning streak. Following the success of Haunted 3D: Echoes of the Past, the duo is already creating buzz and is now all set to bring audiences 1920: Cold Winter, the next chilling chapter in the iconic franchise.”
The announcement comes just days after the release of Haunted 3D: Echoes of the Past, a spiritual successor to Bhatt’s 2011 horror film Haunted – 3D. According to trade estimates, the film has emerged as one of the surprise performers of the month, once again demonstrating that the filmmaker’s brand of supernatural horror continues to attract audiences.
But the announcement of 1920: Cold Winter raises a bigger question. How has Vikram Bhatt managed to keep horror franchises alive for nearly two decades when most Bollywood genre franchises struggle to survive beyond one or two installments?
One answer lies in the fact that Bhatt has rarely built his horror films around stars. While most Bollywood franchises depend on recurring heroes, established actors, or interconnected storylines, Bhatt’s horror franchises have largely been built around concepts, atmosphere, and the promise of a particular cinematic experience.
The 1920 franchise is perhaps the best example of this approach. Since the release of the original 1920 in 2008, the series has featured a constantly changing cast that includes Rajneesh Duggal, Adah Sharma, Aftab Shivdasani, Tia Bajpai, Sharman Joshi, Meera Chopra, Karan Kundrra, Zareen Khan, Avika Gor, and several others. Yet the franchise has continued to survive because audiences were never returning for a specific character. They were returning for the 1920 brand.
That is a rare achievement in Hindi cinema. The franchise itself became the star.
The strategy is similar to the way many successful international horror franchises operate. Viewers know the cast may change, the setting may change, and the story may be entirely different, but the core promise remains the same: supernatural suspense, mystery, and scares. Over the years, 1920 has built that kind of audience trust.
Bhatt’s horror journey also extends well beyond 1920. Through films and franchises such as Raaz, Haunted, Shaapit, and numerous supernatural thrillers that he has directed, written, or produced, he has helped shape modern Bollywood horror for more than two decades. While trends have changed around him, he has consistently returned to the genre and continued experimenting with new stories within familiar horror frameworks.
Another reason the model has endured is economics. Horror is one of the few genres that does not necessarily require major stars, massive visual effects budgets, or extravagant action sequences. Atmosphere, suspense, mythology, and storytelling often become the primary selling points. This allows filmmakers to control costs while still delivering theatrical experiences that appeal to audiences.
The 1920 films themselves followed a fairly recognizable formula. Haunted mansions, supernatural entities, possession, romance, emotional trauma, religious mythology, and psychological conflict have remained recurring elements across the series. The characters change, but the DNA of the franchise remains familiar to its audience.
The first installment of 1920, released in 2008, helped establish that formula. The film followed a married couple who move into a haunted manor where dark supernatural forces begin to take hold. The movie became a commercial success and laid the foundation for a franchise that would later expand through 1920: Evil Returns, 1920 London, 1921, and 1920: Horrors of the Heart.
What makes the franchise particularly notable is its longevity. Beginning in 2008 and now preparing for a sixth chapter with 1920: Cold Winter, the brand has survived changing audience tastes, the rise of multiplexes, the growth of streaming platforms, and several shifts in the Hindi film industry. Few horror franchises in Bollywood have maintained that level of continuity.
The timing of 1920: Cold Winter also feels significant. The announcement follows the encouraging box office performance of Haunted 3D: Echoes of the Past, suggesting that audience appetite for supernatural horror remains intact. For Bhatt, it is another indication that the formula he has spent years refining still has commercial value.
Whether 1920: Cold Winter ultimately becomes a box-office success remains to be seen. However, the film’s announcement serves as a reminder that Vikram Bhatt has accomplished something few filmmakers in Bollywood have managed to do. By building horror brands rather than star vehicles, he has created a franchise model that continues to generate new chapters nearly twenty years after it first began.
In an industry where franchises are often dependent on actors, Bhatt’s biggest horror success may be that audiences continue to show up for the genre itself.
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