The 4th idiot

Maybe this post was meant to be written some weeks back soon after I saw the movie "3 idiots " for the second time, but some other top priorities superseded my attempt. I am not another 'idiot' to sit here and write a review about the movie long after people have given away their verdict. It was a fabulous treat to eye that glued me to my seat for approx. 3 hrs, I am sure I wont find too many people who would differ to that. Especially , the 'Balaathkaar' sequence was breath taking even physically, believe me I still laugh when the scene pokes my mind. But probably I am deviating from my intention, I am not here to glorify the elements that made us laugh and probably still continues to. I wanna talk of an element of the movie that probably went unnoticed, that we never thought about and most likely , that we even laughed at it coz of the way it was portrayed. May be, even I laughed at it for the first time and only that time. But on the next, probably this was the element that triggered in a sort of introspection, it made me think if I was sadistic to the extreme extent; that if I was the "4TH IDIOT", the one on the audience who could appreciate such a thing with a loud laugh.

The scene begins when the colours on the screen fade to black and white and the narration begins. Even though I cant reproduce the exact dialogue, I can remember how the narrative plots a picture of Hari's (Sharmaan Joshi) home and the socio-economic conditions of his family. Of course the scene lead to a laugh riot in the theaters. But my first doubt is , given a condition where I had a friend with such a condition;even if I had to narrate or remember such a situation, I guess and I wish I would never be sarcastic to this limit. The narration could have avoided the comparison with the poverty stricken scenes of movies of 80s, maybe the makers of the movie would have had to compromise a sarcastic comedy verbal filth, but probably they made a mockery out of a million or more poverty stricken families of this country. May be one would feel I am taking it too much out of context; but in a country where a person could be labeled traitor for his comments on a game , I wonder why there was no controversy for having made a complete bizarre scene out of the "Poor India" ( Thank god! at least there was no controversy ).

Its a boon to have a heart big enough to laugh on your own short comings, but cant appreciate when you are sadistically sarcastic about it. I wonder how many would have appreciated it if you were from such a background. A movie even though is only meant for entertainment, does leave an impression within people , maybe a long lasting one. A younger generation, the genre to which I belong,contemplating such a scene, comfortably believe or pretend to, that, maybe this is something how it was in 1980's; but reality is a short drive away from your cosmopolitan metropolis

I have no issues with the movie makers, they meant pure business in which they succeeded if not more, but how do you describe idiots like me who would never know what it means to be living in such a condition. That if someone says she couldn't buy a sari in last two years doesn't mean its all about a mere sari. I pity the "4th idiot" in me who probably doesn't want to see the other side of Dominozz or KFC, who rolls in a 500 rupee note to light a cigarette.

I believe every movie leaves in a message and this one (infact that particular scene) too has left a strong message or a strong impact in me, a positive one, "Never ever be the one who would perceive it that way".