During my recent visit to Mumbai, I happened to catch the movie that Economic Times is touting as one of the most entertaining films of the decade – “3 Idiots”. And I agree. It is refreshing movie, very different from the standard romantic/gangster fare. While being highly entertaining, it deftly throws light on some of the problems with the education system and attitude of the society at large towards education. Being a product of the education system in India, I could certainly identify with much of what is depicted in the movie. Watching it reminded me of first verse of the Pink Floyd song Another Brick in the Wall (you can listen to it on Lala.com):
We don’t need no education
We don’t need no thought control
No dark sarcasm in the classroom
Teachers leave them kids alone
Hey! Teachers! Leave them kids alone!
All in all it’s just another brick in the wall.
All in all you’re just another brick in the wall.
Incidents in the movie certainly evoke references to “thought control” and “dark sarcasm in the classroom” – although I think the song is a bit extreme in that it seems to denounce education altogether.
In short, the movie highlights how the present system suppresses individuality and stifles creativity. It rightly also illustrates that there is an upside – the perfect product of the system (Chatur Ramalingam), represented more as a caricature, while perhaps not fulfilling his full potential actually does quite well for himself and so does the bottom-of-the-list product (Raju Rastogi).
A side note on the ragging – urinating on live wire/bulb – shown in the movie. During my college days, I had heard about ragging episodes where seniors would force freshers to urinate on a naked wire connected to a 9V battery. That would cause a (mild?) shock to run through you-know-where. However, I was appalled by the urinating on live wire/bulb shots in the movie. Given the popularity of the movie, I wouldn’t be surprised if someone tried this out either on himself or others. I think it is downright dangerous and if the wire were connected to a regular power supply it could maim or even kill a person. They should have included a “don’t try this at home” warning!
All in all, I give this movie 5/5 stars. If you haven’t seen it yet, please make it a point to do so.
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