3 Idiots by Nikhil

2.5 stars

Plot Outline: Just to sum up the story, its about 3 students at an engineering college who become good friends and the times they go through. One of them is a genius who gradually makes the other two realize the right path for life. The movie emphasizes on the important message that one should study to gain knowledge in a field of personal choice, and not just for material gains.

Review:
I'd gone for this film with a lot of expectations, after all it was a film with the finest actor in the country and directed by the guy who'd created the wonderful Munnabhai series. And on top of it, it was the paid preview on Thursday night. But contrary to the hooplah around, I came back disappointed. And though you (atleast most of you) might be thinking of me as some overtly-critical snob, I'll explain why below.

Well, right at start I must admit, that the movie is quite funny in portions, especially with the 'Balatkaar' speech, the light-hearted depiction of sequences with Sharman's poor family and some other portions as well. The movie has a decent message too. And normally, all this should be enough for someone to consider it as a nice movie, but not me, primarily because of the respect and expectations that the people associated with this film have come to command.

Well to start with, for a director who had provided such an amazingly original and genuinely hilarious comic content in Munnabhai, it was a shame to see jokes in the movie that are so cliched or have been doing rounds as email forwards since quite some time. Whether it was Madhavan trying to get off the plane, Sharman forgetting his pants, Aamir shuffling the exam papers to avoid identification, or for that matter, even the whole talk by Boman about the Pen/Pencil use in space; I dont think there would be anyone who hadn't seen/heard that before.

And as is the commonly seen problem with the Indian film industry, subtelty is a like a crime. Not one, not two, but Three people commit suicides in a single film just to drive across the fact that there is a lot of pressure on students!! And how many scientific innovations would you show in one shot (that too of a pregnancy!) just to show that Aamir is a genius? How highly do these film makers think of the intelligence of the Indian audience is clear as a crystal, and it ain't something to celebrate about.

Aamir somewhere needs to move out of the 'perfectionst' mould, atleast while picking up roles, cause here he is the genius at studies, the perfect friend, the most profound thinker and the kids lover who get the girl too.. waah! A bit of flaw would probably have made me believe that such a character could somewhere exist in this world, but no, he's the achetypical slightly-more-believable version of the shaktimaan-type hero.

On the positive side, 3 Idiots brings to fore the fresh talent of Omi Vaidya aka Chatur as the leechy, front-bencher sychophant. He has done a brilliant job and I expect to see much more of him in the future. Boman as 'Virus', the typical ultra-khadoos engineering professor, is very believable, especially for those who have seen similar characters while studying in engineering colleges themselves. And yea, another positive of the film is Kareena's short role :) .

But on the whole, the cliched exaggerations and disappointments from people like Hirani, Vidhu Chopra and Aamir who have such a big responsibility on their shoulders to come up with meaningful cinema is what drives me towards disappointment from an otherwise 'decent' film. Laugh and enjoy, but you won't get an intellectual kick out of 3idiots.

3 idiots by Ashim

I say: AWESOME! ****

By now, 3 idiots is a super duper hit and the word of mouth is already out. Let me tell you what I think works for it!

Raju Hirani is superb in putting his point forward. He did that before with the Munnabhai sequels and does it again with 3 idiots. Why try and preach, moralize or get too serious about proving your point? The same thing can be conveyed through the medium of entertainment. He uses humor to convey the ‘high funda’ message of the movie!

The film’s subject is actually a pretty serious one. The film talks critically but humorously about problems with the Indian education system. It elevates significant issues like- obsession with high grades, relevance of memorizing by rote and mostly about parental pressure for high grades and career choices. Students committing suicide because of these pressure from family and teachers is regular today. 3 idiots raises a pertinent question- Was it suicide or murder? Hirani balances these staid moments with funny moments beautifully and knows just when to pitch in emotional lows, after a comical highs.

Most of the sidesplitting sequences are the college life scenes like the ragging session, Omi's balatkaar speech and 3 idiots found drunk n hiding at the back of the class. The trio caught in an embarrassing situation at the reception of Kareena's sister, the dinner sequence at Sharman's house and Sharman's seriously ill father driven on a scooter to the hospital are some other sequences to make your jaws ache. Somebody told me, that a few of these gags were actually old internet jokes. That does not influence my liking for the humor. The jokes I read/heard earlier were even funnier when I saw them filmed.

The performer who stood out was the lesser-known LA-based actor Omi Vaidya who stars as Chatur aka ‘Silencer’. His Hindi-challenged dialect is simply hilarious and his speech is one of the funniest scenes of all times. Aamir Khan does have the central role and story revolves around him but Sharman, Mahadevan and Boman also have their roles well etched out. Film belongs to everyone! Goes without saying, Aamir is fabulous as always. He actually looked like a guy in the 20s. Sharman has meatier role than Madhavan. Both were perfect in their roles and did great. Boman (Virus) was impeccable as the vile princie. Kareena despite the tiny role length makes her presence felt and looks good.

Nothing’s perfect! The film does have its negatives. The end stretches a bit too long and suddenly things are not spontaneous anymore. The second half of the film does falter in parts. It is actually quite ‘filmy’ when the baby is delivered on a ping pong table. But you would still love Aamir Khan doing any kind of filmy stuff and pass it with a ‘huh!’ I feel, ‘Aal iz well’ is pushed a li’l too far when the baby in the womb starts kicking on hearing the chant. Songs are not great but sound melodious to the ears and nicely picturised as well! Despite all these small hiccups, the film is a laugh riot and one of the most entertaining films ever.

So in short, with awesome cinematography, uproarious and wild dialogues, superb direction and top notch acting performances, 3 idiots deserves every bit of what it has achieved yet and is likely to achieve in the times to come! 3 idiots is a family entertainer, it’s funny and at the same time is emotional n enlightening. The film is fresh and has a feel-good factor which makes it work in a big way.

Ashim Srivastava - an idiot!