May 09, 2010 11:22 AM
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A movie made by idiots for idiots about idiots? This was the question that occurred to me half-way through the film. The film seemingly asks all the right questions about career choices and the brutally crushing competitive education system. The solutions offered in the film though ranged from the ludicrous to the typically filmi-fantasy of the 70s.
The film starts on a no-brainer note and the tenor is maintained throughout. Two ex-school mates are on the search for their elusive close-buddy from the same school.How can one not even know the home town of a room-mate and a close buddy, with whom four years have been spent? The trio of friends have spent many a night boozing under the stars and painstakingly involved themselves in the lives of two of them, Raju and Farhan and yet they know nothing about the their third friend(Rancho). We’re shown heart-rending scenes of how Farhan’s family gave up the comfort of the Air Conditioner and gut wrenching scenes of poverty at Raju’s home ( add the atta-me-baal milana wala scene for nauseating effect ). And you are confused, is it a slapstick approach to a serious subject ? Then why kill poor Lobo ? Another stereotype , among a zillion others, who has to strum guitar and break into a song with English lyrics ( Gimme some sunshine…) coz he has to justify that name as he is a student from Goa.
The movie is set in a college run by a Director-cum-HOD-cum-Dean-cum-warden, played by the new Anupam kher , only that he can ham better than Kher, Boman Irani. The only other staff memeber we see in the college, in the entire film, is a librarian.Why cant we find real young people to play young people in movies is hard to undertstand, think of a nation of billion plus movie crazy people and . Aamir, aspiring actors. Madhavan, Sharmaan, are all long married with kids and pushing 40s. Kids in hostel seemed to do soul searching only while boozing or in the rest rooms if you go by the film.
How funny was Chatur peeing all over as if he had contracted an infection. Chatur dropping his pants towards the end was directorial-bankruptcy or humour at its worst. We thought the point has been proven once Rancho scored first rank in the exam and Farhan realized his dream by sending an envelope of cheesy photographs to Hungary ( Can you believe that) and Raju got the job ( by just being honest, as easy as that !! ). But the director had to take us through the long and winding route to Shimla to Ladakh via Manali, to ultimately hammer home the formula of success. Incidentally, the drive to Ladakh was the only moment of beauty in the entire film, not withstanding farty humour.
Success by following one’s heart and passion results in 400 plus patents, books published on wild life, nothing less. Was wondering if the improvised atta-chakki that is powered by a petrol-engine is also one of the patented technologies. I was left wondering as to what did Rancho exactly do to top all the exams ? Was that inverter that runs on batteries also patented ? Are inverters supposed to run on anything other than batteries? Perhaps the patent is for using the inverter to run a vacuum cleaner to suck out a baby. Arent Laptops supposed to run on inbuilt batteries ? Then how did the laptops conk off as soon as the mains blew? Mebbe we should all go to ICE to unlearn what we have learnt.
3 idiots would’ve made a good soap-drama for the TV, it has been cruelly cut short for a movie. This dumbed version of social message-cum-slapstick comedy by a director, who promised much with his Munnabhai series , is apt for the idiot box where there is respite from ads and alternative channels to surf.
