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Timeline

Mantra (2022) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Release, runtime and language
2022 · 17 mins · French
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Directed by
Stef Meyer, Pascal Bourelier
Starring
Raphaël Quenard, Maud Wyler

After relocating to a large, older house in the suburbs, Emma finds herself alone when Paul must leave on business. Feeling isolated, she forms an unexpected and unsettling connection with a Praying Mantis. As she becomes increasingly dependent on the insect, Paul’s return looms, threatening to disrupt the unusual bond she has created.

On this page (6)
  1. 1 Where to watch
  2. 2 Events in order (12)
  3. 3 Timeline questions answered
  4. 4 Movie threads
  5. 5 Movies like Mantra
  6. 6 Every angle
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12 events in order · contains spoilers

Mantra Timeline: Events in Chronological Order

Every key event of Mantra (2022) in order, scene by scene, with when and where it takes place. Use it to untangle flashbacks, time jumps and parallel storylines, to refresh your memory before the sequel or to find the exact scene you are thinking of.

  1. Move to Hyderabad and new housing arrangement

    Mantra relocates to Hyderabad after securing a software job, having spent most of her life in hostels. A taxi driver, posing as an assistant to her employer, suggests she stay as a paying guest with an elderly couple in the city. She reluctantly agrees, hoping to settle in quickly and start her new job.

    When
    Arrival day
    Where
    Hyderabad, on arrival
  2. New living arrangement with the elderly couple

    Mantra moves in with Ramarao and his wife, who warmly welcome her into their home. She considers hostel options but ultimately accepts the paying guest setup while continuing to adjust to Hyderabad. The couple’s kindness provides some initial comfort, though she remains wary of her unpredictable routine at the new job.

    When
    Days after arrival
    Where
    Elderly couple's home, Hyderabad
  3. A creeping sense of danger

    As she settles into her job and daily routine, Mantra feels as if someone is following her with ill intent. She senses unseen eyes watching from shadows and brushes off the nerves at first. The unsettling feeling foreshadows that her new life may be haunted rather than just nerve-wracking.

    When
    Early days after moving in
    Where
    Hyderabad, at home and in the workplace
  4. Police confrontation and a prank by an ex-classmate

    A team of police confronts her, accusing Mantra of being involved in a scandal. The accusation turns out to be a prank by Vijay, her former classmate who is now a police officer in Hyderabad. Their earlier frictions soften as they realize they must cooperate to navigate the mounting mystery.

    When
    During early investigation
    Where
    Police station and Hyderabad
  5. Vijay’s growing trust and marriage plan

    Vijay’s attitude shifts as he reaffirms their friendship and begins to see Mantra as more than a confidante. He introduces her to his family with the intention of marriage, showing how the bond deepens despite the unsettling rumors surrounding her. Mantra opens up about the encounters she has faced from people trying to kill her.

    When
    Shortly after their reconciliation
    Where
    Vijay’s social circle and family
  6. Vijay investigates Mantra’s living situation

    Agreeing to follow up on her case, Vijay digs deeper and is shocked to discover that Mantra is living in a home entwined with a murder investigation. He suspects hallucination or manipulation but decides to verify with her belongings and past records. The revelation forces the group to confront a possible supernatural or criminal threat.

    When
    Following his decision to investigate
    Where
    Mantra’s accommodation in Hyderabad
  7. Entering the haunted house

    Vijay, a few media colleagues, and Mantra enter the home to verify her story. Mantra proves she has been living there by presenting her luggage and documents, stunning everyone. They quickly realize the house is haunted, and urgency replaces skepticism.

    When
    Investigation day
    Where
    Elderly couple’s home
  8. Escape plan thwarted by locked doors

    Their attempt to escape is thwarted when the doors slam shut, trapping them inside the haunted house. The building also blocks outside communication, leaving them cut off from help. As panic rises, a chilling sense of danger grips the group.

    When
    Immediate aftermath of entry
    Where
    Old couple’s home
  9. First death and the photo shock

    The ghostly presence begins killing members of the group one by one. One person dies from sheer shock after catching a glimpse of Mantra’s photo, revealing a hidden link between her and the house’s past. The tension peaks as fear and mystery fuse with the supernatural.

    When
    Inside the haunted house
    Where
    Old couple’s home
  10. The ghost's letter reveals Mantra’s true lineage

    A spectral message arrives in the form of a letter that reveals Mantra is Ramarao’s daughter, one of twins who was raised apart from Anjali. The revelation reframes the haunting into a family history rather than a random possession. The truth connects Mantra to the home’s past and the murders surrounding it.

    When
    During the supernatural confrontation
    Where
    Haunted house
  11. Backstory of Anjali, adoption, and murder

    Backstory explains that Anjali, twin sister to Mantra, died in an accident, prompting Ramarao and his wife to bring Mantra into their family. They intended to care for her as their daughter and share their wealth, but Ramarao’s younger brother plotted to claim everything by killing Ramarao and his wife. The web of deceit culminates in a deadly conspiracy that haunts the present.

    When
    Flashback sequence within the haunting
    Where
    Family home and backstory revelations
  12. Vengeance and escape: Ramarao’s soul intervenes

    In the climax, Ramarao’s soul possesses Mantra and kills his brother, avenging the past. Vijay and Mantra reconcile and escape the house, embracing as they step into the outside world free from the demon’s grasp. The haunting ends, leaving their future open but tied to the family secret.

    When
    Finale
    Where
    Haunted house, then outside

Last updated: October 01, 2025 at 10:24

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Timeline questions answered

Mantra Timeline Explained: Your Questions Answered

When does it happen, and why in that order? The questions people ask about the chronology of Mantra (2022): time jumps, flashbacks, cause and effect between scenes and the correct order of events, each answered with spoilers.

Q1

Why was Mantra being targeted in the haunted house?

Mantra was targeted because she was living in the same house where Ramarao and his wife were murdered. Ramarao's younger brother had killed them to claim their wealth, and since Mantra was the rightful heir to their property, she became his target. The brother wanted to eliminate her just as he had eliminated the elderly couple.

Foreshadowing: Earlier scenes show Mantra sensing someone watching her and people apparently trying to harm her, hinting at the real threat lurking in the house.

  • mantra
  • haunted house
  • targeted
  • ramarao brother
  • murder plot
Q2

What is Mantra's true connection to Ramarao and his wife?

Mantra is the daughter of Ramarao and his wife's family friends. She was raised as a twin with Anjali, who died at birth. The elderly couple intended to claim Mantra as their own daughter and pass on their wealth to her, which is why Ramarao's brother plotted to kill them, he wanted the inheritance for himself.

Foreshadowing: The letter discovered in the house reveals this hidden familial connection, reframing the entire haunting.

  • mantra
  • ramarao
  • family connection
  • adoption
  • twins
  • anjali
Q3

Who killed Ramarao and his wife in the movie?

Ramarao's younger brother murdered both Ramarao and his wife. He learned that the couple planned to give their wealth to Mantra, their adopted daughter, and killed them to seize the inheritance for himself.

Foreshadowing: The backstory reveals the brother's greed was the driving force behind the murders, establishing his motive.

  • ramarao
  • wife
  • murder
  • brother
  • killed
  • inheritance
Q4

Why did the police accuse Mantra of a scandal?

The police accusation was actually a prank orchestrated by Vijay, Mantra's former classmate who now worked as a police officer in Hyderabad. The prank was meant to reconnect with her, though it created initial tension before they reconciled.

Foreshadowing: The confrontation sets up Vijay's later involvement in investigating Mantra's mysterious situation.

  • police
  • accused
  • mantra
  • scandal
  • vijay
  • prank
Q5

How did Vijay and Mantra's relationship develop in the movie?

Vijay and Mantra were former classmates who reconnected when Vijay pranked her with a police scandal accusation. After the initial tension, Vijay believed her stories about being pursued and began investigating her case. He introduced her to his family with marriage in mind, and their bond grew into a protective relationship that became central to surviving the haunted house together.

Foreshadowing: Vijay's trust in Mantra's story leads him to personally investigate her living situation, bringing him into the haunted house.

  • vijay
  • mantra
  • relationship
  • marriage
  • love
  • classmate
Q6

What did the letter found in the haunted house reveal?

The spectral letter revealed that Mantra is Ramarao's daughter, one of twins raised apart from Anjali who died at birth. This meant the elderly couple had legally intended to make her their heir, explaining why Ramarao's brother wanted her dead, to prevent her from claiming the family wealth.

Foreshadowing: The letter appears during the supernatural confrontation, transforming the haunting from random terror into a family tragedy.

  • letter
  • mantra lineage
  • ramarao daughter
  • twins
  • adoption
  • inheritance
Q7

Why did Ramarao's brother kill the elderly couple?

Ramarao's brother killed his own sibling and his wife because he wanted to claim their wealth for himself. When he learned that Ramarao and his wife planned to give their property and assets to Mantra (their adopted daughter), he murdered them to prevent her from inheriting and to take everything for himself.

Foreshadowing: The brother's greed is established early through hints about the murder investigation surrounding Mantra's living situation.

  • ramarao brother
  • motive
  • killing
  • murder
  • inheritance
  • greed
Q8

How did Mantra escape the haunted house?

Mantra escaped when Ramarao's ghost possessed her body and used her to kill his brother, avenging the murder. After this confrontation, Vijay and Mantra fled the house together. The ghost's vengeance was complete, allowing them to break free from the supernatural entrapment.

Foreshadowing: The house's doors had been slamming shut to trap them, but the final confrontation with the brother breaks this cycle.

  • escaped
  • haunted house
  • ramarao ghost
  • possession
  • vijay
Q9

What happened when Ramarao's ghost possessed Mantra?

In the climax, Ramarao's soul possessed Mantra's body to kill his brother, who had murdered him and his wife. This possession allowed the ghost to take physical vengeance on the brother, though it left Mantra as the instrument of that violence. After the brother's death, the ghost released Mantra, allowing her and Vijay to escape.

Foreshadowing: The ghostly presence had been killing members of the group throughout the film, building toward this final confrontation.

  • ramarao ghost
  • possession
  • mantra
  • killed brother
  • vengeance
Q10

Why did Mantra agree to stay with the elderly couple?

When Mantra arrived in Hyderabad for her new software job, a taxi driver (appearing to be her employer's assistant) suggested the paying guest arrangement with Ramarao and his wife instead of looking for a hostel. She reluctantly accepted to settle in quickly and start her job, not knowing the true connection she had to the family.

Foreshadowing: The driver's connection to the elderly couple is later revealed through Vijay's investigation, showing the arrangement was not random.

  • mantra
  • elderly couple
  • paying guest
  • hyderabad
  • roommates

Movie threads

More Movies Like Mantra, by Mood & Story

Curated lists built around what makes Mantra tick: the same mood, the same kind of story or the same emotional payoff. Each list explains why these movies belong together.

Isolation horror movies like Mantra

Stories where the home becomes a suffocating cage for a lone protagonist. If the suffocating solitude and psychological unraveling in Mantra captivated you, explore these similar movies. This list features horror and thrillers where a character's isolation within a home or confined space leads to intense paranoia and psychological terror, perfect for fans of claustrophobic tension.

  • claustrophobic
  • paranoid
  • anxious
  • oppressive
  • eerie
  • suspenseful
  • Tone: tense, anxious, bleak
  • Pacing: steady, slow burn
Why these movies?

The story pattern: These narratives typically focus on a single protagonist, frequently cut off from support systems, who must confront a threat that may be supernatural or a manifestation of their own trauma. The story unfolds in a confined space, with tension escalating as the character's sense of reality is challenged, often leading to a climactic confrontation with the source of their fear.

Why they belong together: Movies in this thread share a core experience of psychological fragility amplified by physical or emotional isolation. They are united by a tense, oppressive tone, a steady pacing that builds unease, and a heavy emotional weight stemming from themes of paranoia and entrapment.

Ghost stories with family secrets like Mantra

Ghostly disturbances that are manifestations of a dark and buried family past. For viewers who enjoyed the twist of familial connection in Mantra, this collection highlights similar horror movies. These films feature hauntings where the supernatural events are directly tied to a dark secret or crime within the protagonist's own family lineage, blending classic ghost scares with a compelling mystery.

  • haunting
  • eerie
  • suspenseful
  • oppressive
  • mysterious
  • bleak
  • Tone: dark, haunting, tense
  • Pacing: steady, methodical
Why these movies?

The story pattern: The narrative pattern involves a protagonist, sometimes new to a location or rediscovering their roots, who encounters a persistent supernatural presence. The plot centers on an investigative element, peeling back layers of the past to reveal a traumatic family secret—such as a murder or betrayal—that explains and intensifies the haunting, leading to a confrontation that is both physical and emotional.

Why they belong together: These films are grouped by their shared focus on the theme of inherited trauma manifesting as supernatural horror. They combine the atmospheric dread of a ghost story with the narrative depth of a mystery, typically featuring a moderate complexity, a heavy emotional weight, and a mixed or bleak resolution.

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Movies Like Mantra

Similar movies to Mantra: the same genre, themes or kind of story. Each one comes with its own plot summary, timeline and ending explained.

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Every angle

Mantra (2022) Explained: Plot, Timeline & Characters

Everything about Mantra in one place: what happens in the plot summary, the timeline in chronological order, the characters and meaning and a spoiler-free summary. What's After the Movie adds the cast, box office and post-credit scenes.

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