Vinod Narayan

The idiot Controversy has been in the air for some time and not having read the book, I am in no position to comment. But after seeing the movie and reading about how close or not close the script is to the book, here are a few things that keep me thinking.

As a former engineering student I could personally relate to about 60% of the movie, not that I was a replica of any of the characters, but I have seen in my college life people who are at least 80% similar to the characters

1. There were Ranchos, might not be one but a culmination of multiple characters. One who would have had the passion of engineering that Rancho has. I have even heard of one who has wrote exams on behalf of someone else (anyone commenting please don’t use names in here, this is just hear say). Another guy who was in love with a Medical student, and again people who defied the institution and the system. We have had other students who fell in love with children of the staff. Rancho might be fiction, but elements of Rancho are very true in colleges, at least the one we studied
2. There were people from the backgrounds much similar to Sharman Joshi’s and obviously people like Farhan who landed up there and could not figure out why till the last paper in the last semester was written, Some still wonder, while some moved on I guess
3. The Ragging has been in similar and more pervert ways as one could imagine.
4. We have seen suicides on pressure, not necessarily our college, but in other comparable college incidents in those times
5. The joke of the motor starting was there in all engineering colleges. what happened to me once was that after the whole circuit connection my motor started turning opposite J I guess this puzzled both me and the teacher but he was fast enough to switch off the main supply to avoid any mishaps
6. The story of the pen and pencil is an old joke of what Russians used in space.
7. We have used a scooter for hospital transportation but not necessarily for someone in the same state of illness or the exact character type.
8. Delivering the baby was totally new as we never had access to computers and that whole thing looked to me as a high blown fiction and quite unrealistic, but the depiction was worth watching with the masalas brewed in

Again what we should see is if the climax and the unrealistic and often purely fictional story elements have been borrowed from the book or not.

But for the jokes, the way the life in a college, the pressure, the competition etc… it might be too unlikely to be termed as a copy, but more should be dealt with as an inspiration

But yet even an inspiration needs to be given due importance, for there are very few people in this world who can create things from thin air, and often when someone does that we call them unrealistic and far from life.

So most writers and movie makers are always inspired by something or the other and I strongly believe that inspirations should be recognized.

Again I think how the education and competitive system kills creativity and how passions go unrecognized is a central theme and if taken from the book, due recognition should be for chetan.

But I will refrain my thoughts and read the book and later comment, sadly I can’t find one of the copies in US yet.

Finally we were able to watch the 3 idiots. Reminded me of my REC days. I guess everyone who has been in an engineering college would have felt the same way.

The interesting thing that struck me is that even if engineering is not your passion, a four year life in an engineering college is worth the effort.

I guess I learned more from my life in the college than the syllabus we had. Moreover I was there not because engineering was a passion, but that’s where the herd was heading and I too joined. But once into the school it was a whole different ball game. The sheer enjoyment and diversity you get to see being in an engineering college was worth it. I am not sure if life in an Arts college is similar, but I guess all college life is fun if you want it to be.

There were some cool things we did during our college times, May be I will have a different post with some of our misadventures that time.

For all those who have a passion other than engineering, go for it but if you ever end up in an engineering college for no fault of yours, enjoy it to the maximum, complete the course and get out and follow your dreams.

Sholay is one of the greatest Bollywood movies of all time. Though inspired by Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai; Sholay brings to screen a similar theme with all the bollywood ingredients including songs, dance and action.

Sholay brought to Bollywood a totally new genre of action, what Magnificent Seven had bought to Hollywood.

A set of very capable but misfits and outlaws uniting to fight a greater evil and in the event embracing heroism and Martyrdom.

Sholay also brought to the Indian screen a negative character that is still considered as one of the greatest villain roles in the Indian film industry and was played by the late Amjad Khan.

If you were to have one Bollywood Movie, I would say you have this.