Taare zameen par: A review

This movie resulted in a self-discovery of sorts. I realized that I’m a sentimental shmuck, for all my bravado. The tears were always close to the surface and I had to duck low in my seat to maintain some semblance of dignity, so I wasn’t exposed for the sissy that I am. But the curious glances of the other audience members during the intermission told me that my façade wasn't fooling anyone.

Bollywood grapevine has it that this movie was actually Amole Gupte’s brainchild and Aamir Khan usurped the chair of director and poor Amole was relegated to the position of “creative” director. Whatever the facts, I’m glad this film was made. I’m thankful that it had none of the hype of OSO or Saawariya, so the fluff could be separated from real cinema. I am grateful that those affiliated with the film shunned appearances in reality TV shows and other props to promote the movie. It speaks volumes about the sheer confidence and passion they had for the film and its message. Hats off to them.

I admit that I wanted to see Khoya Khoya Chand and not this film. I also grumbled about shelling thirty bucks (not a huge amount by any standard, considering that I’ve shelled out twice the actual price of a movie ticket for atrocious seats) more for the scalper tickets. I had to eat humble pie after all. The film is a gem and I take issue with anyone who thinks it is mediocre, motor-mouth RJs included.

Taare zameen par deals with a child’s struggle with dyslexia. More importantly, it underlines the cruelty, indifference and insensitivity “normal” people use to deal with those differently-abled. It’s also a lesson in humanity, good parenting and compassion without being too preachy. The film sensitively portrays the harsh world a child of eight inhabits, his confidence shattered by constant taunts of teachers, peers and parents who don’t understand his problem. Living in the shadow of an overachieving elder sibling, with whom he is forever compared doesn’t make matters easy for the poor kid. The child, however, is gifted and of above-average faculties, and lives in the beautiful world of his imagination. He is just not what our society considers “normal” or even functional. Of course, such dreamers have never had it easy. Remember Leonardo da Vinci? And predictably enough, our education system and societal yardsticks which define a person’s worth by the marks he/she scores, by his/her rank in class, by the amount of money he/she makes, manage to stifle the child’s creativity and break his spirit, but Aamir Khan saves the day!

The movie also makes a point about how little we respect those talents which can result in little or no monetary gain, about how, to be considered “settled” and secure in life, one has to be an engineer, doctor or have an MBA, about how we should treasure children and nurture them just because they are. And how, as influential people in an impressionable child’s life, teachers and parents have a great responsibility- that of making or breaking a child’s life.

Darsheel Safary, the kid who plays the main role in the movie, is the discovery of the year. (Sorry boys. He pipped Deepika Padukone to the title because my loyalties lie with real talent and not with pancake). His reactions are instant, un-studied and un-tutored. He doesn’t get to say much in the movie, but his body-language and expressions speak a thousand words. He has such unsullied innocence, that you want to reach out and protect him from harm. You have my vote for best actor of the year, kid!

The music score is unusual and I cried throughout the Ma song (yes, snicker away. Let’s see how you hold up while watching this movie). The whole theatre kept still even when the credits rolled by, because there was a heart-wrenching documentary about children in the end. That means we still can be salvaged right? That we still have compassion and humanity? That the movie touched a chord somewhere in the Mumbaikars present, so anesthetized to emotions?

It takes colossal strength of convictions to make a film like this, especially in this day and age of item numbers and sculpted six-pack abs. Please, please, please watch this film and make it "run successfully all over".