12th Fail : Movie Review

The first thing that strikes you as soon as ‘12th Fail ‘opens is just how unlike a Vidhu Vinod Chopra film it is. Neither a poetic gangster film, nor a crime thriller, nor a period film, it is the straight-forward story of a 12th fail student, who through dint of sheer perseverance, and a never-say-die attitude, goes on to crack the UPSC examination, and become an IPS officer. If I didn’t know better, I would have thought that it was a Rajkumar Hirani film, but then I’m sure he would have called it ‘12th Pass’.

At a time when the moral compass of our films resembles a roulette wheel, here comes an inspirational tale that truthfully celebrates probity in public and private life. Returning to the turnstiles after a while with a story of hope and resilience, filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra maps how a worthy son of the soil, a species that is becoming endangered in the cinematic landscape, overcomes poverty and corruption to negotiate the toughest exam of the country. The tone is a bit didactic and the treatment gets a tad overstated but it is a big-hearted film that hugs you tight with its message of human goodness. Chopra has successfully generated this delightful feeling in the past with his productions Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. (2003) and 3 Idiots (2009), and 12th Fail feels like their spiritual cousin from the Hindi heartland.

Based on a real-life character, here is a chap from Chambal who doesn’t pick up the gun when his father is punished for his honesty. He doesn’t turn hostile when the local MLA stalls his wheels when he and his brother try to eke out a living. Instead, drawing inspiration from an upright police officer (Priyanshu Chatterjee), Manoj Kumar Sharma (Vikrant Massey) wields a pen and learns to write his own destiny in the allotted time so that he can also don the uniform and deliver the elusive justice. Cheating is a way of life in his surroundings but Manoj carries the righteous swagger imbibed from his father (Harish Khanna) and grandmother (Sarita Joshi).

A raw, honest story of hard work, ambition and emotion – The story is based on a best-seller written on the life of Manoj Kumar Sharma, a real-life David who challenged the English-speaking, moneyed Goliaths, and cocked a snook at the infamous coaching mafia. This IPS officer is the role model our kids should emulate, as he embodies pure grit and perseverance.

Facing blatant discrimination, injustice, absolute lack of resources, and a hostile education system, the protagonist works towards his goal – inch by inch, with sweat and tears. In a system that cheats, hoodwinks, works merrily around rules, and favours the public-school-educated, English-spouting, well-heeled cool dude, this dark horse with zero contacts, money or even academic excellence makes it.