Vampire stories have been reinvented countless times, but Half sinks its teeth into an especially wild blend of genres beyond just horror. The gory martial-arts “curry Western” follows twin half-blooded vampires, Ethan and Ivy, played by Ranjith Sajeev and Aiswarya Raj, as they wage war on a group of ruthless desert-highway hijackers.
At TIFF 2026, Horror Geek Life spoke with director Samjad and stars Sajeev and Raj about putting their own spin on the vampire-revenge story, developing the twins’ natural chemistry, and enduring an intense desert shoot. They also discussed the film’s raw, physical fight choreography and its ambitious production.
HGL: Samjad, where did the idea for Half come from?
Samjad: The idea came from simply how to take a classic vampire revenge tale and do it our own way. Very grounded, realistic, and we took that simple idea and wanted to explore it in our own way.
HGL: What was the dynamic like among the three of you?
Aiswarya Raj: The dynamic was there from the very first time Ranjith and I met. We were in a meeting, and we wore the same outfit by accident; both of us had on black shirts and blue jeans. Samjad took a picture of us and thought we looked like twins, and from that moment we had natural chemistry together.
We spent four months together, and it came naturally; we didn’t have to put any kind of effort into bonding sessions. Also, what we went through together in the desert, it was extremely hot, filming, practising, and when you go through that adversity together it was easy to bond.
Also, Samjad was easy to work with. This was my second film, and I never thought I’d work with such a grounded, humble person. It helped me, helped us all, to make it fun during those four months.
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Ranjith Sajeev: The dynamic between myself and Aiswarya was very seamless and easy right from the get-go. Even though we played vampire characters, Samjad was determined to treat them as human; as siblings, they bicker, they fight, so the audience can relate to that human/sibling relationship, but they happen to be daywalkers as well.
Usually when you see vampires, they are larger than life, so how do you make the story grounded, put the characters first, but still give it a supernatural feel? I think that’s the way we approached Half. Even in the fight scenes, the choreography is not well-polished and is very raw and visceral.
Samjad: These two were amazing actors. I worked with Ranjith on my first movie; he was the hero, so this role was easy for us to work with. With Aiswarya, she was very new to the action stuff. The acting was no problem, but I had to ask her if she was ready for this, tell her she was going to face some hardships, and she was ready for it.
We rarely used a harness in the action scenes, so it was very physical, but these two actors were ready for anything.
HGL: Was it hard to keep the story focused on the human side of the characters while still respecting the vampire aspect of the story, especially since they’re daywalkers?
Ranjith Sajeev: There is a baseline we have to follow: they thrive in darkness, they love blood. But how do we bring our own spin on this, make it fresh, give you a new experience? I think humanity is at the forefront of this story, that sibling camaraderie, to push the story forward.
Elements of vampires will of course be there, but there’s also the Western aspect, so we are blending a lot of genres together to try and make something unique. Even though they are daywalkers, there is a sense of vulnerability there, and a weight in the action sequences, the choreography, as if the fight styles are integrated into their personalities.
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HGL: What surprised you most while making Half?
Ranjith Sajeev: I was excited as I’ve never done a full-on action film before. Action is my favorite genre of all time. I grew up watching a lot of horror and action films. To do a film of that genre, basically playing my character Ethan is like an amalgamation of my dreams growing up, to be part of the genres I loved to watch.
The sheer scale of the film was ambitious and surprising; it’s the biggest film I’ve been a part of. I think the sheer scope of the film was daunting, but everyone was on board because we all thought this film is going to take us to a very special place. All of 2025 for us was dedicated to making Half, and all of the blood, sweat, and tears are finally paying off.
Aiswarya Raj: For me, I was surprised because I never thought a role like this would come my way. What are the chances of getting a script like this? Being a vampire, all the action — these are the kinds of films I grew up watching in Hollywood. Half is a movie I never thought I’d be a part of, but also, I never thought it would happen in my industry.
For me, each day, every moment was new, as I’m also new to the industry, but I also didn’t feel the weight of it, and that was a huge blessing for me. When you are under a lot of pressure, trying to figure out the action, the choreography, the sibling dynamic, my character Ivy, it can be hard, but it was good pressure for me.
I was able to do something I had been dreaming about for a long time, so the pressure and stress that comes from it is a blessing, a great feeling. I’m really grateful I got to do this, and I think it came out good.
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