Tumbbad opened to mostly positive critical reviews. On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, it holds an approval rating of 87% based on 23 reviews, with an average rating of 7.67/10.[51] Rachit Gupta of The Times of India called the film “moody and atmospheric” and said that fans of Hollywood horror films will be reminded of Pan’s Labyrinth (2006) and Eraserhead (1977).[52] Baradwaj Rangan wrote: “It’s been a while since something genre-based turned out so rich and mysterious, so defiantly its own thing.”[53] Raja Sen called the film “an ambitious one, artistic and attentively made, reminding me of the trippy stylings of filmmaker Tarsem Singh.”[54] The Indian Express’s Shubhra Gupta called it “highly unusual, visually stunning, richly atmospheric concoction of genres and themes.