‘All is well…’
The Indian film industry, or Bollywood as it is known, is an area that goes largely unexplored by western film fans. I went into 3 Idiots with various preconceptions about the genre based on very little actual evidence. I was expecting a long running time, lots of musical numbers, plenty of dancing, a generous helping of tedium… mostly bad stuff. Whilst I was kinda right about a lot of this, that’s not the full story…
The titular idiots are Raju (Sharman Joshi), Farhan (R. Madhavan) and their charismatic leader Rancho (Aamir Khan). Rajkumar Hirani’s coming-of-age college comedy follows the idiots in their quest to get through college and secure a job at the end of it all. Pressure from their parents and outright hostility from Virus (Bomran Irani), the college director, present a number of obstacles for our affable heroes.
I don’t know how typical 3 Idiots is in terms of your average Bollywood production, but it is super long, it does have singing and dancing, and the acting is often ostentatious and melodramatic. That being said, it is hard not get swept in it all, particularly as the acting is tremendous throughout. Khan’s Rancho is a wonderful cinematic creation in the vein of the Dude or Forrest Gump. An irresistible performance.
Elsewhere, Irani has loads of fun as the villainous antagonist, and Kareena Kapoor is also great as the daughter of Virus and the love interest of Rancho. In a way it’s surprising that Hollywood hasn’t come calling for a remake, but then, it would be impossible to compete with the source material.
At its best, 3 Idiots is a life affirming epic that is both poignant and compelling, at its worst, it’s cloying, sentimental and repetitive. Your enjoyment will depend on your level of tolerance for such things. I found it charming and captivating.