Taare Zameen Par…

Dekho inhe yeh hain, oos ke boodien…
Patoon ke godh main, aasman main koodien…

Angdayee lein phir, karvat badal kar…
Nazuk se moti, hans de phisal kar…

There are movies that entertain us, there are movies that make us sad, there are movies that mirrors our society and then there are movies that can bring a change in that society. Taare Zameen Par is one such movie that can bring a positive change in our society and how we deal with kids. The movie takes you on a journey through the eyes and mind of Ishaan, an eight year old kid suffering from dyslexia. The movie is not about special need kids or dyslexia but it is about everyday kids and how they are conditioned in our society to succeed at every cost.

The movie takes ones attention from the first shot, shot of Ishaan trying to catch fish in his school pond. It tries to explore how a child’s mind works in our complex and competitive society. As Aamir’s character says in one scene from the movie “We are not raising kids these days but products in assembly lines.” The movie is not about kids who are able to cope with this competition and succeed but millions of other kids who are not able to compete in this fast-paced world and are termed as, losers, idiots and bevakoofs. Is losing such a bad thing? Is succeeding everything in our society? Maybe it is, because it’s a dog eats dog world. We have created a society for winners but there is no place for losers in our society.

The movie deals with all these questions in the most sensitive way. Aamir’s character, Raam Shankar Nikumbh, as a teacher who tries to understand children’s psyche is a masterpiece of work. Aamir as a Director never for a single shot lets his own character dominate the real hero of the movie, Ishaan. The best part of the movie is the simplicity with which it is shot. There is a certain laziness with which Aamir lets us into the mind of Ishaan.

There are number of stand out scenes in the movie but some unforgettable scenes like when Aamir discovers Ishaan’s dyslexia or how he explains it to Ishaan’s educated but unaware parents or how he explains to Ishaan’s Dad the meaning of khayal rakhna in a very subtle way or the climax art show with some hilarious and beautiful moments, will remain with me for a long time.

There is no doubt that this is one of the finest movies to have come out of India in recent memory. Aamir has used movie making to deliver a message that is not preachy. I am not sure if it will change anything in India or make people more aware about the problem of dyslexia but the movie still has the potential to make that change. It is not easy to change society or people’s mindset but actors like Aamir have the most powerful medium of movies to bring about the change. People don’t like changing when they are forced to or preached about and that makes this movie even more important.

As I was watching the title song of the movie, it reminded me of all the special needs kids that I have come across in my life and my only wish is that hopefully every one of them will come across a teacher like Raam Shankar Nikumbh who can change their lives for good.

Yeh toh hain sardi main, dhoop ke kirane...
Utare jo aangan ko sunhera sa karne...

Mann ke andheron ko roshan sa kar dein...
Thiturthi hatheli ki rangat badal dein...