Being a child is, indeed, one of the toughest and d the most underrated phase to go through. The learning we go through in our childhood may not turn us into Nobel Prize nominees, but the amount of information we process at this stage can beat any present day super- computer. In fact, we are like extremely powerful super-computers lacking operating systems. The installation of this operating system, unlike our desktops, takes years. Thankfully, there is more to us humans, than there is to computers, leading us to learn highly complex processes with ease. Imagine what would happen if our mind leads us to stray into a different method of learning.

What has all this metaphysical comparison to do with this month’s reel review? Well the movie selected for this month’s review deals with a very special child using a different and unusual method of learning that I mentioned earlier. This deviation is also medically termed as dyslexia.

The movie Taare Zameen Par is about a young boy named Ishan, who, in the first half of the movie has been portray as a regular dull student. He faces difficulties in learning simple spellings and is an absolute academic failure. His harsh father and dismissive teachers worsens his condition. However, the young boy has a savant like condition showing an exceptional aptitude for painting and arts. But as noticed in the Indian society, academics are of utmost importance and any “extra curricular” activities are rarely encouraged. Though there are parents who serve as exceptions, Ishan was not as lucky. Ishan did show a lot of attachment towards his family, especially his mother;however, he was predominantly a loner. Constant comparison with his academically successful elder brother also played a part in his sorry state. Be it home or school,Ishan found no respite from constant criticism and comparison.

The frustrating atmosphere of his school leads Ishan to bunk school and to cover this up, he asks his brother to forge a letter of absence. But his father finds this out and packs him off to boarding school. This place further alienates him from any emotion what so ever and pushes him to the brink of a condition beyond his understanding.

It is at this point when Ishan’s saviour, in the form of an ordinary substitute arts teacher, breaks into the scene. Aamir Khan, playing the role of the substitute art teacher Ram Shankar Nikumbh, is a soft hearted and interactive teacher. It does not take him long to notice the young boy’s plight and investigates into the matter. Unlike the many teachers, who took the simple way out, despising the young boy to be dumb and uninterested, he studied Ishan’s test papers. He discovers that Ishan suffers from dyslexia.

The first step was damage control, and the only way the teacher could do this was by showing Ishan how the greatest of minds including Albert Einstein, Agatha Christie, Leonardo Da Vinci and many others were also dyslexic. He soon discovered Ishan’s artistic bend and used it as a tool to improve his language and other academic skills. At the same time, he encouraged Ishan to continue with his painting. The movie ends with a painting competition which Ishan wins beating his art teacher. At the same time, he shows considerable improvement in his academics as well. His parents are pleasantly surprised with the overwhelming positive response from the teachers and Ishan’s father is drowned in guilt and regret.

Though the movie ends in the normal Hindi movie style, with the feel good element and all the imperfections set right, it does carry a very important message. It points out the importance of the fragile and formative childhood years. The worst thing about this age is that we have not even come up with tested defence mechanisms, and if, by a stroke of cursed luck, we fall short of the zillion expectations we are bombarded with the most carefully chosen insults and criticism. Let us hope that every parent watches this movie with the willingness to learn and the readiness to change.

Siddarth Ayyagari

BA (Journo, Psy & Eng)