Starring: Adil Hussain, Priyanka Bose, Shubham Jha, Sanjay Suri
Music: Advait Nemlekar
Director: Prakash Jha
Is everyone, regardless of social status, entitled to the same level of education? And if so, is this accessible for everyone? Prakash Jha’s latest film, Pareeksha, looks at these questions.
Buchchi (Adil Hussain) is a rickshaw puller, who every morning, transports upper class children to the prestigious Sapphire International School. He has one dream – to ensure his extremely intelligent son Bulbul (Shubham Jha) gets a good education, so he doesn’t end up following a similar career to his father. Buchchi is ferociously passionate about this dream, even arguing with his factory working wife Radhika (Priyanka Bose), to make sure that Bulbul’s focus does not get diverted elsewhere. After a rich passenger leaves his wallet in the rickshaw, Buchchi takes the opportunity to get his son admitted to Sapphire – but how will the family be able to keep up with the spiralling costs involved in attending such a prestigious school?
This is not the first time director Prakash Jha has looked at the education system in India – his 2011 star studded film Aarakshan also tackled the subject, but Pareeksha is a more intimate, personal film. The story of Pareeksha may not be completely new – after all, there have been plenty of films in Bollywood family dramas where the sacrificing elder brother does everything he can to get his younger sibling educated. Whilst this was usually a plot point in earlier films to create drama, Pareeksha makes this the central focus of the film, and director Prakash Jha grounds the story in reality, giving it a fresh approach.
Jha creates real, three dimensional characters, and has selected a more than competent cast to bring these characters to life. Adil Hussain carries the film on his shoulders – as usual, he is excellent in the central role, and relatable and believable as the rickshaw puller who will do anything to get his son the education he deserves. Priyanka Bose provides ample support as the understanding wife, and makes a mark despite having a slightly smaller role. Shubham Jha impresses with a very sincere performance as Bulbul – he displays the various shades of the character with ease. Sanjay Suri is immensely likeable in a cameo as a Superintendent of Police who helps Bulbul, and other poor children in the locality by tutoring them.
Pareeksha is not a flawless film – the film meanders a little in the latter portions after Sanjay Suri’s character is introduced, starting to resemble Super 30 (2019), but it does find it’s way before the end to deliver a strong, yet simple climax. In fact, the simplicity of this film is a one of the major successes – it asks many questions about the education system in India, but never becomes preachy – there are no long monologues about how a change is required – instead, the film gently suggests this through the situations created.
Overall, Pareeksha is a film that needs to be watched, and is a film that might just make you think about the privilege we have in our daily lives.
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