Seeing as how this was just a cursory review of the movie, let me add a few things I noticed about this film as I watched it with my wife earlier this week. This being a Hindi film catering to a large Indian population, you may miss out on the subtle play-on-words humor and you might find the song and dance sequences unnecessary. Do not let that deter you from watching this movie till the end as the crux of the movie lies in the uniqueness of the central character, Rancho and his views of the entire education system.

I was born in India and unlike most of my friends at home, I went to a boarding school for about 7 years. Those years I spent at RKC ( http://rajkumarcollege.com/ ) helped develop my personality from a wannabe-Chatur to someone who personally identified with Rancho. While attending undergrad and grad school here in US I realized how heavily creativity is emphasized even in non-art/non-literature classes. By and large studying in India is the same from kindergarten all the way through undergrad and grad school - rote memorization and re-application of known techniques. This is what the movie repeatedly tries to call out against and this is a first public attempt of it's kind. Every single educated person in India has gone through decades of miserable memorization to prove that they are intelligent even though recollecting from memory isn't the same as solving the unknown. Now we have a country of billion people who think the smartest ones are those who can remember everything and regurgitate it during a 3 hour exam.

The underlying theme of the movie is questioning if higher education is really the answer to India's problems. The sole mantra in India for past sixty years has been that education is the only way to rise out of dire poverty. Family and social well-being are core to the Indian value-system and this movie highlights the pressure on the students to succeed at all costs, failing which the sister doesn't get married or the mom doesn't get to buy food. Not much room for exploration and discussion when, as one of the actors puts it, mom's sari (garment) gets in the way.

Education as a surefire way to success was indeed possible when a vast section of the populace was uneducated and just being fluent in English guaranteed a job at a multinational corporation opening a branch in the country. However, now that the country is full of educated, ambitious youth, what good is it if they all read the same books and answered the same exams in the same exact correct way? The lack of diversity and creativity gives rise to the only way for students to gain competitive advantage - better grades.

Here on HN we spend hours each day coming up with a new, unique, more efficient solution to a problem faced by all. Now imagine studying for 15-20 years and not being allowed to come up with ONE new idea because it is not in the book or course schedule. In most of the western world, people take the ability to "do what you want" for granted so much so that not getting to do what you want is treated as failure. You like photography but due to bills have to work as an insurance agent? You're a failure! In India, you have a job as an insurance agent with a steady paycheck instead of some random fad-profession like photography? You're a success!

Personally, what hit home the most (and caused me to tear up uncontrollably) was the scene where Farhan talks to his dad about leaving his engineering degree and going to pursue his passion of photography. In 2000, I had nearly the same confrontation with my father. I was sick of studying business and wanted to come to US to learn Computer Science. Everyone in my family and our social circle was a business-owner or salesman. It wasn't that I was breaking social boundaries that shocked everyone. It was that I was fighting for my right to pursue a field I loved instead of a safe-bet field such as business like everyone else I knew. At one point, Rancho says that the only reason he got the highest grades in Engineering was because that was his passion. I have felt the same about computers ever since I was the kid and even though my family encouraged me to pursue my interest in the field as a hobby, taking it up as a career was frowned upon.

There's a small bit in the movie about Indian degrees being a mere stepping stone for securing a job in the US and having a successful life. That belief is absolutely true and is often what negatively impacts me the most here in US. I've lived and breathed computers, numbers, science, and programming for two decades now and yet most everyone back home and even here think that I'm doing it solely for the money like a million others. Immediately I'm lumped in with anyone who went through a 2 month Aptech course.

Every now and then people back in India ask me why I'm not making millions and billions starting my own software company because that is regarded as the only path to success for expatriates. After all, why else would I have come all the way to US if not for unlimited wealth? I have a hard time explaining to them that I did it for passion and knowledge instead of money. The simple issue here is that we Indians push our children too hard to do what everyone says is the "right" path to success - study hard, work harder - instead of letting the children and youth choose what they truly want to do. My dad supported and encouraged me to learn everything I wanted but when it came to choosing a career and life, I had to stand up and fight for my dreams and I don't regret one bit of it.

I know this isn't a direct review of the movie but I just wanted to write how I truly felt from the perspective of someone who has lived through what the movie talks about.