Page 19 - Here and Now – Apr 2024

Movie review – “3 Idiots”

The Hindi movie, "3 Idiots" came out in 2009 and took viewers
by storm. The themes it touches upon continue to be
relevant to this day.

“3 Idiots” is the story of a little boy, Rancho (Phunksukh
Wangdu), born in the foothills of a mountain who pursues

education for knowledge and not for the certificate or the degree
associated with it. Ever since childhood, he has known only one thing in life, and
that is how to pursue his love for the discovery of 'how machines work' to simplify and ease the
lot of human beings. His passion to understand the principles behind the working of machines
spurs him to get on to an eternal process of searching to invent simpler means to achieve the
same end. His passion compels him to demonstrate to his friends that the process of solving
the biggest problems in life is in the application of the fundamental principles of nature.

The movie begins with him demonstrating the same by recalling an example of how
remembering the fundamental lessons in life, like salt water being a good conductor of

electricity saved him from being ragged by his seniors on the very first day of college. His strong
belief in his life's goal makes him question the mundane and all the stereotypes being followed
that he sees around him, He grows up to become one the greatest inventors the world has ever
known.

“3 Idiots” is also the story of this boy's belief-turned-perseverance towards helping his two good
friends search and find their purpose, their ikigai, of greatest fulfilment in their lives and
discover the beauty of living every moment to the fullest by always being inside the flow. His
life’s lessons were never taken seriously by his friends in spite of his sincere efforts till the time

he demonstrates to each of them with real life examples. A flashback shows that during one
such incident, while he is trying to explain the short lived success of learning things by rote
without understanding the meaning of the same, it makes him pick up a personal vendetta with
another classmate of his. It turns out to be worth his life's bet because through that
demonstration, he is able to prove his point to his beloved friends, 10 years later. that success
in the long term is only justified by the means and every other method is just a stopgap.

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