Cinema :"Taare Zameen Par"

Actor Amir Khan’s directorial debut ‘Taare Zameen Par’ (Every child is special) is worth watching and worth noting for the social relevance of the story in contemporary Indian context. The fierce competition, expectations of the parents and the strict school system impose tremendous pressure on an average kid going to school. He is forced to sacrifice his childhood fun while attempting to meet the stereo typed expectation of the society. In this movie, Ishan Awasthi ( Darsheel Safary ) is a child with a plus and a minus. The spark of a genius as an artist is the plus and his ‘dyslexia’ is his minus. He could become a great artist provided he gets proper attention and treatment for his problem, which should be the proper approach towards the kid. Without realizing every child is different and special, the blind expectations from all fronts torture him. And his genius becomes a curse and his ‘dyslexia’ challenges his student life and survival. The film is a bold and sincere attempt to cause social awareness by resolving the hero’s (Awasthi) issues and discovering and channelizing his talents.

I felt that the film was very lengthy (2hours 44 min). It could have been made more compact by more careful editing of the sequences. I hope the same movie will be maximum 2 hours when it is sent for film festivals. In the mean time I agree that certain elements are ‘a must’ in order to attract and guarantee audience to the theatres like songs. Amir Khan’s presence in the movie itself is big influence in attracting audience. Amir Khan did a wonderful job of playing the role of Art teacher by his simple but elegant and controlled acting. Darsheel Safary is still my favorite in the movie.

A difference in opinion is about the authenticity of the storyline. The setting is an educated upper middle class family and an above average school. I believe it took a very long time to find the problem of the boy and to recognize his talents as an artist in such a context. It would have been more acceptable if the story happened in a small town and in an average family and in an average school.