In STATIC, a chilling found-footage-style horror told through police reports, vlogs, and forensic logs, acclaimed filmmaker Rohit Rao travels to a remote hillside home near Shimla to debunk rumors of a haunting. What he finds instead is a growing void in the walls—a presence that doesn’t just haunt, but learns. Watches. Echoes.
Told in a multimedia format blending psychological horror with techno-paranoia, this story explores the breakdown of identity through observation. As static interference begins to corrupt the Choudhary family’s behavior, something ancient and unseen begins to shape them from within. By the time the cameras reveal the truth, it may already be too late.
If you’re a fan of The Blair Witch Project, Archive 81, or the unnerving dread of House of Leaves, STATIC is a descent into the terrifying consequences of being seen too clearly.
POLICE REPORT 1: ARRIVAL AND SETUP
Date: October 3
Source: Detective Karan Mehta – Surveillance & Crime Scene Unit\
Case ID: SHM-2310-003
Summary:
Filmmaker Rohit Rao, 38, arrives at the Choudhary residence near Shimla at 12:42 p.m. to investigate alleged paranormal activity. The hillside home is isolated, with no neighbors within 10 km. Rao installs 12 CCTV cameras and audio equipment. The Choudhary family—Ajay (54), Neena (52), Ishaan (22), Priya (19), and Ragini (75)—appears anxious, with disjointed speech patterns noted in initial footage. Rao’s skepticism is evident in Camera 1 (personal cam) logs.
Key Footage Events (CCTV):
- 6:15 p.m.: Cameras installed in common areas, bedrooms, kitchen, attic. Drone camera and mics activated.
- 9:47 p.m.: Ragini stares at Camera 4 (hallway) for 23 minutes, lips twitching slightly.
- 11:34 p.m.: Minor static interference on Camera 8 (living room). No source identified.
VLOG ENTRY – ROHIT RAO (Timestamp: Oct 3, 11:34 p.m.)
“Day one, and I’m already questioning this gig. Ajay and Neena keep muttering about ‘static’ and ‘whispers,’ but their stories don’t line up. It’s like they’re reciting something half-remembered. The house is creepy, sure—old, creaky, cut off from the world. Perfect for a ghost story. But I’m hearing this faint whine when I shut off the mics. Equipment glitch, probably. Still, it’s… unsettling. I’m wired with cameras now. Feels like I’m watching myself live.”
DAY 1: THE ARRIVAL
The road to the Choudhary house twisted through pine-choked hills, a narrow vein of gravel under a sky heavy with clouds. Rohit’s Jeep rattled, his camera bag bouncing in the passenger seat. He’d visited years ago—Ajay and Neena were old friends, their home a haven of warmth. Now, it loomed at the road’s end, its windows dark as closed eyes, the paint flaking like dead skin.
Ajay met him at the door, his handshake too tight. “Rohit. You’re here. It’s… it’s bad.” His voice cracked, and he repeated, “It’s in the static.”
Neena hovered behind, her hands twisting a dishcloth. “The TVs… they hum. At night.” She paused, eyes darting to the ceiling. “You’ll hear it.”
Rohit forced a smile. “Let’s figure this out. Tell me everything.”
Inside, Ishaan and Priya stood in the hallway, silent. Ishaan’s gaze was distant, Priya’s too sharp, like she saw something behind him. Ragini, bedridden upstairs, was “watching,” Neena said, her voice trailing off.
“It started with the static,” Ajay said, then paused, as if waiting for a cue. “Late at night. All TVs. Then… whispers.”
“You have to feel it,” Priya cut in, her words clipped. “Not… not see.” She stopped, frowning, like she’d forgotten her next line.
Rohit’s skin prickled. He unpacked his gear—12 cameras, mics, a drone—methodical, grounding himself in routine. By dusk, the house was a panopticon: no blind spots, every angle captured. The red LEDs blinked like fireflies.
That night, he lay in the guest room, the silence thick, oppressive. At 3:03 a.m., he jolted awake, heart racing. A low buzz hummed in his ears—faint, like a TV left on downstairs. He checked the live feed. Nothing. Just the family, sleeping.
POLICE REPORT 2: SYNCHRONIZATION AND UNUSUAL BEHAVIOR
Date: October 4
Summary:
CCTV captures the family eating in silence, movements synchronized: spoons lift, mouths chew, glasses tilt in unison. At 3:03 a.m., all members, including Ragini, look up and smile—lips tight, eyes still. Speech patterns grow fragmented, with repeated phrases (“It’s in the static”).
Forensic Note: Synchronization suggests subconscious coordination beyond normal behavior. Audio interference (static) detected but untraceable.
Key Footage Events (CCTV):
- 8:15 a.m.: Breakfast. Family eats in unison, pausing to sip water simultaneously.
- 3:03 a.m.: All members sit up, smile for 7 seconds, and lie down. Ragini’s smile visible on Camera 4.
- 11:12 p.m.: Static distortion on Cameras 2, 6, 9.
VLOG ENTRY – ROHIT RAO (Timestamp: Oct 4, 4:11 p.m.)
“They’re acting… programmed. Lunch was like watching a mirror. Same movements, same rhythm. No one talks, but Ajay keeps muttering, ‘It’s in the static,’ mid-sentence. I caught myself copying them—spoon up, spoon down, like I needed to blend in. It’s not a prank. It’s… instinctual. Priya said, ‘The house wants us aligned.’ Her voice was so flat, like she was reading it off the walls. I’m rattled.”
DAY 2: THE SYNCHRONIZATION
Morning light barely reached the house, the hills cloaked in fog. Rohit reviewed the overnight footage while the family ate breakfast. The cameras showed nothing—just sleep, silence. But at the table, the choreography began: five spoons dipped, rose, entered mouths. Five glasses tilted. No one spoke. Their eyes stayed fixed on their plates.
“Is this… normal?” Rohit asked, his handheld cam whirring.
Neena blinked slowly. “Normal?” She paused, too long. “It’s… in the static.”
Ajay nodded, his spoon frozen midair. “The house. It’s… it’s in the static.”
Rohit’s stomach twisted. “You’re freaking me out, guys. Is this a bit?”
Priya’s head snapped up. “You’ll understand. Soon. The house… it aligns us.” Her words came in bursts, like a bad signal.
Ishaan said nothing, his fingers tracing circles on the table, over and over.
That night, Rohit couldn’t sleep. He kept hearing Priya’s voice: The house aligns us. At 3:03 a.m., he woke, pulse hammering. The live feed showed the family sitting up in bed, smiling at nothing. Seven seconds later, they lay down. Ragini’s smile was the worst—her face gaunt, her eyes too wide.
He saved the clip, hands trembling. “This is… group behavior,” he said to his vlog cam. “Not ghosts. Psychology. I need to talk to them.”
But the whine in his ears was louder now, a needle in his skull.
POLICE REPORT 3: PSYCHOLOGICAL DECAY AND SYMBOLISM
Date: October 5
Summary:
Priya paints 17 identical images: five faceless figures around a red crack, now resembling an eye. Ishaan stops eating, whispering to Camera 3: “We echo. Hollow is better.” Rohit has a nosebleed at 3:03 a.m., unaware. Family speech grows more disjointed, with delays and repetitions. Static distortion worsens.
Footnote: Audio analysis detects white noise spikes at 3:03 a.m., no identifiable source.
Key Footage Events (CCTV):
- 10:22 a.m.: Priya paints in the attic, producing eye-like cracks.
- 3:03 a.m.: Rohit’s nosebleed on Camera 7. He remains asleep.
- 8:45 p.m.: Ragini speaks on Camera 4: “You brought him, Rohit. He’s watching.”
VLOG ENTRY – ROHIT RAO (Timestamp: Oct 5, 11:58 p.m.)
“Priya’s paintings are… wrong. Five figures, red crack, but now it’s like an eye. Staring. Ishaan’s not eating, keeps saying, ‘Hollow is better.’ Grandma said I brought ‘him.’ I checked the footage—her lips don’t move, but it’s her voice. Clear as day. I’m hearing things in the corners, where the cameras don’t reach. The rooms feel… deeper. Like they’re watching me back.”
DAY 3: THE EYE
Priya was in the attic, surrounded by canvases. Each showed five shadowy figures in a circle, a red crack splitting the floor. But today, the crack was different—curved, with a dark slit like an iris. An eye, unblinking.
“What’s with the eye?” Rohit asked, his cam unsteady.
Priya’s brush paused. “It sees us,” she said, her voice halting. “When we… when we see it.”
“You’re painting the house?”
She shook her head, slow, deliberate. “It’s… painting us.”
Rohit backed away, the turpentine fumes stinging his eyes. Downstairs, Ishaan sat at the kitchen table, an untouched plate before him.
“You eating, man?” Rohit asked.
Ishaan’s lips twitched. “Hollow… is better. We echo.” He repeated it, softer: “We echo.”
Ajay and Neena were in the living room, staring at a blank TV. “It’s in the static,” Neena murmured, unprompted. Ajay nodded, his eyes fixed on nothing.
At 3:03 a.m., Rohit woke to blood on his pillow. A nosebleed. He stumbled to the bathroom, cursing, missing Camera 7’s footage: him sleeping, blood pooling, his body rigid.
Ragini’s voice echoed from upstairs, caught on Camera 4: “You brought him, Rohit. He’s watching.”
Rohit froze, staring at his reflection. He checked the footage. Ragini’s lips were still, her eyes locked on the lens.
POLICE REPORT 4: SLEEPWALKING AND DELIRIUM
Date: October 6
Summary:
Behavior spirals. Ragini’s eyes remain open, lips moving silently. Priya paints a sixth figure (resembling Rohit) in her images. Rohit sleepwalks, whispering to Camera 7: “The house is us now.” Family members mirror postures across rooms. Rohit reviews footage and sees himself in an unrecorded clip, speaking independently.
Audio Note: Buzzing tone at 3:03 a.m. plays through all speakers, including unplugged ones.
Key Footage Events (CCTV):
- 2:14 a.m.: Rohit sleepwalks, whispers to Camera 7.
- 7:33 a.m.: Priya paints red cracks on mirrors, adds a sixth figure.
- 3:03 a.m.: Family gathers in hallway, stares at Camera 6.
VLOG ENTRY – ROHIT RAO (Timestamp: Oct 6, 2:20 a.m.)
“I tried to leave. The road was gone. Just trees, forever. I wrote my name—R-O… then nothing. I checked the footage tonight. There’s a clip I didn’t shoot. Me, on Camera 1, saying, ‘You’re already part of it.’ I don’t remember that. The cameras are splitting me—there’s me, and then there’s the me they see. The static’s in my head now. It’s thinking.”
DAY 4–5: THE MIRROR
The house was wrong now. Corners bent at impossible angles, shadows pooling too deep. Rohit’s footage showed rooms stretching, their edges soft, like a dream.
Priya painted on mirrors, red cracks over her reflection. Her latest canvas added a sixth figure—taller, with Rohit’s slouch. “It’s complete now,” she said, her voice a whisper. “The circle.”
Ishaan stood in the attic, motionless. “We are the watchers,” he said to Camera 3, his eyes reflecting the lens.
Ajay and Neena swayed in the living room, hands clasped, murmuring, “It’s in the static.” Ragini’s lips moved faster, a silent chant.
Rohit sleepwalked again. Camera 7 caught him whispering: “The house is us now.” But the real terror came at midnight. He reviewed footage and found a clip on Camera 1—him, standing in the hallway, staring at the lens. “You’re already part of it,” his doppelgänger said, smiling.
Rohit rewound. The clip wasn’t there. He played it again. There he was, speaking words he didn’t remember. His reflection on the monitor grinned wider than his face could stretch.
At 3:03 a.m., the buzzing screamed through every speaker. The family walked to the hallway, staring into Camera 6. Rohit followed, his legs moving without thought.
“I’m not me anymore,” he said to his vlog cam. “The cameras… they’re splitting me. There’s the me I see, and the me they see. The house is learning both.”
POLICE REPORT 5: FINAL CONVERGENCE
Date: October 7
Summary:
All six individuals found deceased at 7:42 a.m. Time of death: 3:03–3:06 a.m., simultaneous cardiac arrest. All drives wiped except an 11-minute video on an unmarked SD card in Ragini’s hand.
Clip Analysis (Final Footage):
- 2:52 a.m.: The six sit in a circle, passing Camera 1. Each says: “We are free. The burden is shared.”
- 3:03 a.m.: They lie in a spiral. No movement.
- 3:14 a.m.: Final frame shows an empty hallway. A faint, flickering shadow—human-like, distorted—appears in the corner. Heavy breathing is audible.
Psychological Analysis (Dr. Leela Arora):
“This appears to be a case of shared psychosis—folie à plusieurs. A dominant delusional belief emerged, likely initiated by prolonged isolation, surveillance stress, and sleep deprivation. The family exhibited synchronized behaviors, identity fragmentation, and derealization. Rohit Rao’s recordings suggest he gradually internalized the delusion, likely influenced by his constant exposure to the family and to his own image via surveillance systems. The static, recurring timestamps, and visual hallucinations point toward a dissociative episode reinforced by environmental triggers. The recorded behaviors reflect a loss of individual ego boundaries, consistent with identity diffusion and shared delusional disorder.”
DAY 6–7: THE SPIRAL
Rohit stopped fighting. The static was alive, humming in his blood. He saw himself in every lens, every reflection—a fractured man, half-real.
Priya’s paintings covered the walls, red eyes staring. The sixth figure was clear now: Rohit, his face blurred but unmistakable. Ishaan stood in corners, whispering, “We echo.” Ajay and Neena held hands, their voices a loop: “It’s in the static.” Ragini’s chant was audible now: “He’s here. He’s us.”
At midnight on Day 6, Rohit saw the clip again—himself, unrecorded, saying, “You’re already part of it.” He smashed the monitor. The image stayed, burned into his eyes.
At 3:03 a.m., the buzzing became a voice, wordless but clear. The family gathered in the hallway, staring into Camera 6. Rohit joined them, his reflection in the lens not his own.
“The cameras were invitations,” he said to his vlog cam, his voice soft. “We watched ourselves, and it watched back. It learned us. Wore us. The static is its thoughts.”
On Day 7, they sat in a circle. Camera 1 passed between them.
“We are free,” Ajay said. “The burden is shared.”
“It’s in the static,” Neena whispered.
“We echo,” Ishaan said.
“The circle is complete,” Priya said.
“He’s us,” Ragini said.
Rohit went last: “We’re remembered.”
They lay down, a perfect spiral. Rohit’s heart slowed, the static fading to silence.
The final frame showed the hallway—empty. A shadow flickered in the corner, human but wrong, its edges trembling like static.
Someone was breathing.
EPILOGUE: UNRECORDED FOOTAGE – ROHIT RAO’S FINAL UNSENT MESSAGE
Retrieved from corrupted phone memory. Timestamp unreadable.
“The cameras split me. I watched myself, and something watched back. The house didn’t haunt us—it became us. The static isn’t noise. It’s thought. It’s memory. It’s wearing our faces now.”
POLICE INTERROGATION ROOM – OCTOBER 10
Detective Karan Mehta and Dr. Leela Arora sat across from each other, the 11-minute clip paused on the screen. The hallway was empty, the distorted shadow flickering in the corner, the breathing loud in the silence.
“That doesn’t explain the video,” Karan said, his voice low. “Wiped drives, but this one clip survives? In her hand?”
Leela paused, her fingers tightening on her pen. “No. It doesn’t.”
The screen went black.
A faint buzz filled the room.
