3 Idiots: Confusing a Nation!


Ok, so 3 idiots, the current Bollywood flick is officially the biggest blockbuster of Indian cinema. An amazing movie with a terrific plotline and characters. Topping it all is the brilliant message it delivers encouraging one to follow the heart, rather than go by the conditioning of parents when it comes to choosing ones profession. At the same time it encourages the pursuit of Excellence rather than the pursuit of Success. A nation agrees but I am a little confused.

The issue is not with the message itself, but by the method through which it is conveyed. Let me explain myself.


Chatur vs Rancho - Pick Your Hero

The drama in any story arises when there is conflict between personalities, more so, when they are placed on an even footing. This movie has not one but two conflicts. The first one is between Rancho and the eccentric professor Virus. But they are not equals, so let us keep them aside. The second conflict is between equals Rancho and Chatur.

Rancho aka Phunsuk Wangru is a born genius who can think differently, act differently, has the capacity to change the world. Then we have Chatur Ramalingam aka Silencer who is our studious boy next door, more interested in the pursuit of success even if it means mugging up the answers to the exam questions or buttering up to the professors. One has an answer to every problem, the other is an ordinary man without any extraordinary prowess.

Who looks like the hero? It has to be Rancho and that’s what the movie also makes of him at the end. This is where I slightly disagree. According to me, Chatur is the bigger hero.

Not blessed with natural genius, Chatur nonetheless does well for himself. Proof? The fancy cellphone, super expensive car, mansion, etc that he flashes before his friends at the start of the movie. He is a success achieved purely by hardwork. A virtue which most of us sadly lack. His sheer perseverance to be successful in life must be appreciated but rather he is caricatured in the film much to the delight of the audience. I too being one of the guilty ones who laughed the loudest only to realize much later that I am being taken for a ride. It suddenly dawned on me that its these very Chatur's that make up a crucial part of the Microsoft's, Dell's, Intel's, Infosys and countless other successful corporations of this world. You really think Rancho would try for a job in any of these places? Even if he did get in, how long would he stick around ?

One might now argue that Chatur is just another guy running after money, has no real passion in life, passion is all that matters, doing what one likes the most is more important than making money doing mundane things. Rancho might probably go on to become the next Bill Gates, who knows. Hmmm....


Passionate reality cheque!!!

"What is my passion?" A question that most people keep thinking of, find an answer too late in life, or worse still, never find it. The latter being most common. This movie encourages one to find their passion and pursue it.

Well, the problem for me is that my passion isn’t a constant. It changes with time as I get to experience more of life. It’s an ongoing experiment. So am I fair in saying that I am a passionate guy and will do whatever my mind or heart says to me? I wish it could be like that but fortunately or unfortunately, we have more to life than pursuing our passions. We have responsibilities towards our near and dear ones. Goals to achieve, which could be simple things like, how do I impress the girl or guy next door (actually this could be one of your passions, I could be wrong after all), how do I pay my next credit card bill or emi and many other such trivial or real concerns depending on what stage of life one is in? Welcome to reality.

Unlike the majority of people, luckily Rancho dosent seem to have any such issues in life as he is a loner till almost the end of the movie. Maybe, Kareena can throw some light on how married life is treating her after she settles down with Rancho in Ladhak. Am sure, she will have some interesting titbits to share.

Moving onto 'Gulab Jamuns' and 'Tom & Jerry'

When I was very young, my only passion in life was to eat Gulab Jamuns the whole day. I know another friend of mine whose only ambition in life was to just watch Tom & Jerry cartoons even when he was in 12th standard. Imagine if we were to go and tell our parents that we wanted to pursue stuff like eating Gulb Jamuns and watching Tom & Jerry they would certainly think we lost our minds and wouldn’t waste a second to give us a piece of theirs.

Passions develop over time and unfortunately it is most often during our college years or later that we recognize our true passion. Perhaps because it’s when we experience life out of our comfort zone. Few, who find their passion much earlier in life are the lucky ones who go on to build careers in their chosen fields. What about the rest? Are they doomed? I don't think so. There is a simple technique to deal with this. Your passions could become your hobbies whenever you discover them. Make enough progress in one field to invest in your passion in another field. This investment could be as simple as time. Time to watch your favourite movies or listen to your favourite music, you don’t necessarily have to be a film maker or a musician to enjoy these passions and by doing so as a hobby it doesn’t make you any less passionate or a lesser mortal than the creator.

Talking of creators, I would like to shift some gears now and explore another facet of this world, to show why we need more of Chatur's in this world than the Rancho's.

For Every Rancho, this world needs a Million Chatur's

Yes, we need the Rancho's who become the Phunsuk Wangrus of the world, to make their wonderful inventions and make our world better. They are the creators. But the creator is nothing without the consumer. Henry Ford the legendary car maker and industrialist is probably the first man to realize this. He produced one of the largest selling cars ever and also pioneered the start of assembly line culture in industries. He had people doing the most mundane things like fitting screws the whole day at his factories. Yet, he found ways to motivate his workers and make passionate consumers out of them. How did he do it? He introduced the culture of 8 hour work day and the 5 day work week, paid higher salaries. His logic was simple. The workers needed time to go out and enjoy themselves too and not just work 24/7. He thereby indirectly led them to buy his cars, as now they had the time and the resources to have a good life. It was a win win situation for both, as Ford made money selling his cars and the workers had access to a great life. Till this day, this formula is working everywhere. Try hard to deny it, it is the circle of life for most of us, not just for individuals alone but for entire nations too. We are left wondering if we live to work or work to live.

That is why, I am most convinced that in order to maintain this balance, we need a few million Chatur's to let the Rancho's do what they want to do. The man with all the fancy gadgets, the one who enjoys the fruits, Chatur is meant to live a complete and fulfilling life while the Rancho's of the world are toiling away creating the gadgets of tomorrow.

All Izz Well that Ends Well

The purpose of writing this post is not to belittle the intentions of the filmmakers but the message in the movie comes with a little asterisk at the corner. All I have tried here is to make the fine print a little more visible and clear. To be super successful in life you either need to be an eccentric genius like Rancho or achieve success by sheer dint of hardwork like Chatur. There is no middle path. And yes, even if you have the brains of a Rancho you still need to work very hard. Like Thomas Alva Edison once said "Genius is 1% Inspiration and 99% Perspiration". This point, the movie misses out entirely.

Before you leave, don’t forget to add your valuable comments below or at the 'Mind u Read' Facebook page. Am expecting a great debate on this topic. I remain convinced we need more of Chatur's ilk for a healthy wealthy balance of this world. Rest, I will leave for you to decide. All izz well, I hope?

Also don't forget to read my subsequent Posts on 3 idiots :

When Fiction Meets Reality - Part 01 (My first reaction to your comments)

When Fiction Meets Reality - Part 02 (My second reaction to your comments)
Spread the word:


Comments

  1. You did a reality check for us :) amazing !

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  2. nice counter point but being like chatur is not the problem it's being forced to be like him that's the problem. he is like that cos he want's to be . he is self motivated but not everyone can handle presssure to being strecthed to limit, case of raju I am talking about. and farhan's dad being ashamed of him getting "only" 91% instead of 94% like b4.

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  3. Thanks for the reality check.
    you are simply amazing!

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  4. the way u have expressed ur thoughts is simply amazing.

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  5. i think you need to do yoga if u have so much of free time. tht wud help u be fit aswell

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  6. definately...this was a gr8 post!..
    it was damn intrsting. but though at certain limits i would disagree.not because this post support chatur or is against rancho or any falana reason..XD
    basically this movie was to make people aware specially those of students the method of studying , simply mugging up everything , getting good impression on teachers obviously makes no big difference. or if it does it's only up till ur college life!.if you are not among the rancho's ...you are definately..the RAJU. or may be FARHAN..movie covers every particular character of how a student is. thus the person on himself..must know.what he\she is been upto.
    i great wrk though!...simply fascinating!!

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  7. hey nice work man u really an amazing person.........
    i really do agree withu we need more people like chaturs than rancho bt after a certain time v r forced to b like even if v too can make good contribution.........
    although nice work man
    keep up the good work

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  8. the point in the movie is to find ur passion n stick to it, maybe the free thinkers n the followers are the two separate mind-sets being discussed above, its always a balance of both, one cannot suvive without feeding the other or getting fed from. Life is thus all about such fluidity, one is the initiation the other is the flow, so two points discussed above, well... where is the termination? seek within urself to find it all.

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  9. It isn't like I;m taking Rancho's side or something but let me tell you this too. Not only is Rancho born with exordinary talent, but Chatur is born woth it too. The talent of CHatur is MEMORISING which you fail to point out. Few people love a subject like Rancho does and few people memorise a subject like Chatur does. And majority lie perfectly in between.

    The point that the movie wants to make is that Students should understand the subject by learning and NOT by memorising everything. The so many students who fail repeatedly do so because they DONT REMEMBER the answer or cant mug up properly compared to if they could understand the concept ( which can be done by giving examples to them and special coaching),the concept would stay in their mind forever and it would be way easy for them to write a conceptually based paper. Chatur in this movie is NOT shown as a hard-working person, he is shown as a guy who memorises everything without giving a thought to what it actually means.

    I always loved Maths and so far alwayse excelled in it, grasped concepts easily and earlier than most people but that does not mean that if I don't study I'll still pass. But the importance of the getting the concept makes it so easier for me and the answer sort of "clicks" in the exam.

    So sorry for it, but I definitely think you've got your ideas all wrong.

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  10. hey!!..
    nice job!!..
    i simply realised laughing on chatur was laughing .. on 99% on the people.. may be including me.. :)

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  11. really agree wid u kartik...:)

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  12. true......... but it was just a movie.......

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  13. gr8 thoughts!but i think u r an another rancho at the end.Proving the things what u said! like u gave an e.g of Ford :P, gr8 point of view!:)the realistic one!

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  14. Well Kartik I agree with your point of view to some extent. I believe that there is a Chatur as weel as Rancho in everyone. I don't think of anyone (pardon me here but atleast the ppl I know) who have not mugged up things. Understanding is necessary but we all understand and memorize things. That's how things work.

    Coming to your point of what Edisson said:

    Moving on to the point of Gulab Jamuns and Tom and Jerry.. well again I agree few of us understand our passions early. I cannot say others are doomed but still somewhere in the corner of your heart, you still feel that.."Oh I wish I had done this. May be in the next lifetime." And passions do change over a period of time, but there is one thing that doesn't change come what may. No matter where you are, no matter whatever you do, you still feel that something in life is missing. That missing thing is your passion. And mind you eating gulab jamuns and watching Tom and Jerry can also turn up to be exciting careers. For eg. If watching Tom and jerry excites you so much may be you can create your own animated cartoon. Or in the case of Gulab jamuns you can be the most famous Mithai seller. (Mithai seller may sound stupid but envision yourself being the biggest chain of mithai seller for the entire country.) And this is what the movie tries to tell you. Envision things. Practicality is important in life but sometimes it kills many possibilities. I am sure when Henry Ford envisioned his business ppl must have said it is not at all practical.

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  15. I believe "What u think is what u become provided u do what it demands in terms of hardwork , perseverance,focus and determination....Be it Rancho / Chatur. Both of them were hero in their own world.N biggest problem in our lives is the "COMPARISON" between two ppl who hav no similarity ...........

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  16. Do u mean 2 say v shld underestimate ourselves tat v cant b like Rancho.....and just follow d usual path tat Chatur did and Chatur was good in ratta(mugging up things) well every1z not good in tat u need 2 understand things rather than mugging up just like a parrot.... if Mugging up things could really had given success than 2day parrots would have ruled d world.....and u cant compare Eating Gulab Jamun and Watching Tom nd Jerry with real life as there is no monetary interest involved in tat.....and u mean dont think hatke think usual as others do and aim 4 success and rancho made himself a genius by the path he followed tat was understanding things and then applying it .......anyways opinions differ!

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  17. good post..nice movie as well....enjoyed it like none other movie..but i do not believe in extreme charecters...not in ranchos as well as chaturs....its a degree to which one can be a mugger or an innovator...every one is in gray shade btween the two....some those are extremes,well, are geniuses coz its difficult to be same all the tym...

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  18. nice post kartik..deep thoughts even,well m in favour of chatur he z a real hard wrk man n wat eve he gt is by hiss work n if v look at ranchos style he z brilliant no doubt ..but his rules n his way of thnking nt go with dis tym..but still all z well make us to feel good

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  19. its a nice thing u hv xplored.......acc to me inspite of d fact how smart u are.....u have to work hard to top ur college.....and this thing was missing frm the movie......we never saw rancho studying.

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  20. awesome!!!!movie was good but was exasperated at many instances....i feel dis gives a reality check....hats off to u

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  21. hhmmm, well, sticky wicket...!!
    btw, awesome work!
    i would really appreciate this, but will take it with a pinch...!
    we cant really say that RANCHO was just a flash in the pan, isn't it?
    you are true at some parts,, i must say!
    but still, mugging up is, no way, the ryt thing.
    nevertheless,, everyone has the ryt to put up their views, after all, ours is the democratic country!! LOL...!
    all izz well that ends well!!! :)

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  22. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  23. hii Kartik ,

    a very simple question for you what would you like to be in life.... rancho or chatur...

    answer my question and half of your query will be solved

    the way u took the film was definately not what it actually showcased.... see each and every child is special "taare zameen per" jokes apart... just to mean that all of us have some or the other potential in us in chatur that talent was memorizing things then why go for science pursue ba or bcom and then go for mba(where mugging and buttering works) what he actually did in the end so he did well because he went to his field , science was not for him ....

    so plz correct your facts
    all is well

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  24. http://muglikar.multiply.com/journal/item/66/5_Point_Someone_Vs_3_Idiots...But_I_love_both

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  25. a movie.. Nothing much.. I think my thinking is more towards rancho n less towards chatur.. But got myself in a line i.e. Medical where you need to be chaturs.. Leaving aside the subs i was comfortable in i.e. Maths and physics.. could not work hard to replicate talent in marks.. Thinking of doing pg in my passion only.. BUT the way it's shown in movie.. I think it's not true.. No1 with even Eisnstein's iq can do things wat rancho did and get 1st rank.. Rank doesn't necessarily reflect intelligence and vice versa.. All in all, it's just a movie..

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  26. @khushi n one anonymous.. Well said..

    @tushki..
    Couldn't exactly got the latter part.. But it's not as simple as u put it.. People like to be like rancho.. But for that u need to have intelligence which depends upon genetics and many complex matters.. It's not every1's cup of tea.. Whereas at least being like chatur is more in your hands as it's about hard work.. And as is said every1's got the same '24 hours' ! I can't work hard but can't criticize some1 doing it , be it in a way chatur's doing.. The way i see is - at the end chatur won't be having many friends.. People like rancho had 2-3 good friends and a hot gf;-)

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  27. Well you are an Architect by education but an Animation and Visual Effects professional by career...No wonder why you felt like this about a MOVIE...!!!
    You'v got Nice writting skill..Keep up the good work buddy.... :)
    and No comments on the post... ;)

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  28. Hey Kartik... now we all see a "passionate" Writer Coming Up! So lets IGNORE this debate and think it in this way.Writing being your passion, and having enough support system to manage your life financially, Wont you dive into full time writing or anything that satisfies that hunger?!!!
    We need money to Continue our life and passion. When chasing money becomes the passion, problem arises there. I understand in order to balance the system, we need million chathurs and few Ranchos. But the truth is, the world always love to hear about this foolish, yet passionate creators in Bill gates, narayan murthy's, henry ford, ranchos and et al. we dont like to hear about those consumers who got benefited from the creators.so i dont see a problem in 3 idiots with regards to this. But i really dont understand wat exactly made this such a Huge hit!

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  29. Good Work Kartik!!! Keep it up.. looks you can be a professional film critic and blogger.

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  30. I am special because I don't have anything special!

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  31. kartik,

    I dnt knw, what u think but this chatur kinda mentality is lacking our country in the race against other developed countries.

    u taking about that these chatur's are running microsoft, dell n all.. but dnt u think where these companies are right nw, they deserve to be at the much better place. Microsoft claimed to be the master in software solutions but actually they are in PC RELATED SOFTWARE business only where IBM would be today if they were right coz they were the pioneers in information storage through using electronic technology and microsft's bill gates steal the credit of the component which was actually made by IBM and thats from when they become so popular.
    secondly u talking about we dnt need RANCHO'S.. we only need ranchos dude.. lets take an example of TATA's.. tata started its business somehwere aroung 1850's .. its almost 150 years to tata steel and where are they nw.. dnt u think in 150 years TATA stell would have been the worlds largest steel compamy.. yes surely would but they arent coz they lack that rancho's way of striving for excellence... and u knw this dream of making the largets steel companies of the world has accomplished by MR. LAXMI MITTAl who just started 18 years back and look where s he nw...
    dude, its all about the attitude and excellence.. everyone can achieve succes like tata's, hinduja's, DSCL, Singhania's but everyone cannot achieve excellence like walmart in supply chain and inforamtion storage, Ikea in vedor relations, relaince in its linear alkaline benzene business etc etc and thats what our country need..
    U talking about gullab jaamun but to make u update, there is this maker of rasgullas in kolkatta and he enter into this business coz he loves eating them and nw his brand of rasugullas is the largest selling brand of rasugullas in private labels all over the country and he is the biggest exporter of rasugullas too.
    I hope u soon will get out of this mentality of favouring chatur's .

    ALL IS WELL
    shubham

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  32. well all have a different view point. no one can criticize others n justify themselves. maybe we never clearly understood what the movie "3 idiots" wanted to convey. {we have been making interpretations, obviously no ones gonna ask the filmmakers}
    chatur n rancho are the two extreme cases in this movie, intermediates being lobo, raju n farhan {like most of the students}. no one is talking about them but debating on as to who the better "hero" is!!!
    n everyone here has watched the movie n also suggested it to others [i guess].. can i know on what basis did you rate the movie??
    judging a movie as a hit or flop entirely depends on the audiences [of varied age groups] n you obviously cant expect everyone to come out of the theater n discuss "what was the message?"
    here i am not taking sides, but people fail to realize that things come out in a different way altogether. some do not get what they desire for so the believe their passion ca be their career [no harm]. u cant go stir everyones thinking ways [not intended to the post].
    so people get a life n instead of debating, think in what way does the movie inspires u [ if it does] n do something about it rather than finding your heroes coz neither can you now become a genius [though can think like 1] nor can you master memorizing.. so go on with your life n be a real life hero not a reel life hero!

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  33. Well,i dont agree with ur ideology abt rancho
    i think in 3 idiots,not only rancho 's genius is there but along with it rancho's kind and helping nature is evident. Also he has proved that FRIEND IN NEED IS A FRIEND INDEED.This can be seen when alok(sharman joshi's father)is very sick then he is the one who takes him to the hospital.On the other hand,if chatur was in his place he would have thinked of some kind of CHAMATKAR at that time.So, i think we need a bit of both chatur and ranchod in this society that we r living in.

    As far as passion is concerned,one should go for his / her dreams and listen to that heart says and act through brain accordingly.

    Hope u get my point.........

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  34. I dont agree with u..Chatur was indeed a machine..He lacked creativity and imagination like chatur which holds the crux for excellence according.I do agree he was hardworking.hardwork alongwith creativity is important..

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  35. The idea is said VERY convincingly .......BUT I STRONGLY DISAGREE with this gentleman's idea of success (interms of being purely MATERIALISTIC). Today each PARENT, each ADULT is teaching their children to be MATERIALISTIC.......which SHOULD NOT be the case. BEING an EDUCATOR myself and being this this preofession for the last 15 years.........i ... See MoreINDOMITABLY DISAGREE with CHATUR being the HERO .........I would still choose a STUDENT WHO CHOOSES HIS BRAINS RATHER THAN A STUDENT WHO IS MANIPULATIVE IN HIS PURSUIT OF SUCCESS!!

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  36. I liked every character of this film as I can identify some of it with myself & i think most of the people would.As for many people,a boy/girl studying in an engg coll or a medical brings laurels to his/her family than those who dont do the stereotype professions.Guys,no offence but most of u would agree that we are made choose the professions than what we actually want to pursue & go ahead in our lives.Like that dialogue by Farhan's father (Parikshit Sahani)"Kapoor sahab kya sochenge?"Like those people in our neighbourhood wont gossip even if someone studies engineering or medical!World isnt only about docs & engineers,we need all kind people/professions to keep the whole world growing n living together.Well,I had my say & I hope aal izz well!

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  37. ....SHUT DA FUCK UP...!!!

    u son ov bitch...

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  38. hi...in my opinion not evry1 can b clubbed into 'chatur' or 'rancho'. In fact ppl like chatur r nt vry different 4rm rancho as dey r also brainy...d idea lies in follwing ur own unique path to achieve glory n success...wch also diifers 4rm ppl 2 ppl...nyhow nice article..i throughly enjoted reading it.

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  39. HI..
    I respect your view point. While everyone in the nation are applauding about the charectors and the way it is presented, you, I must say, have done a great job analyzing critically. You are right that the people in MS, intel are people like CHatur, but it is also a fact that most of these people are like one of my neighbour- a doctor who takes out thick book and flick through pages if any patient comes for check up. Just because his degree was based on mugging up. He knows exactly on the book but he has difficulty in implementing them..
    Furthermore, with all due respect to your logics, if whatever you said was implemented in the movie this movie would not have been as it is now. perhaps a whole lot of comedy would lack.. If you study Chetan Bhagat's 5 point someone, no charecter is emphasized as chatur though he becomes an attraction for few lines. The directors for this movie added his part in order to make it more fun..

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  40. If people like Newton,Michelangelo, Picasso, Gandhi, Wright brothers,vivekananda etc can be called Chatur, I think world need more chatur if not I think this world is already full of chaturs....

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  41. Either you are some kind of attention seeker.. because think in a mature way.. its just a 3 hour piece of media!! then you should post flaws in Lage raho munna bhai.. munna bhai MBBS etc etc your analysis may find appealing to a certain foolish genre of people but i think you are paid for it or something...

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  42. i think you missed the point. do you really think any one is a born genius?? rancho's hardwork was "passionately persistent" as compared to chatur's "11th hour hardwork" and this level of persistence and endurance can come up only when your mind body and soul are aligned. its when you feel your work and entertainment is same! and thats who chatur was...someone who was passionate about mechanics. he failed a lot of times...but the aspect to understand is that it never made him deter from the path. on the other hand there are guys like 'silencer' who know matter how much earn or be part of any god damn organisation will never understand the meaning of 'smell thee flowers". I hope you not one of them and will create a positive awareness in society. peace.
    frost.

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  43. Great posting buddy.
    I agree to most of the statements.

    Economy need more Chatur's to run them properly. Our own country's IIMs and IITs are producing more and more chaturs every year.
    There would have been no Infosys, IBM, Wipro if there were no Chatur's. Its all about supply and demand. Innovators in west create companies and products and then pass it on to third world countries for support and maintainence. So there is a huge demand for followers and there is a good money also. As most of us run after the money and chose that field which has money (like IT industry in India as of now). No matter whether its their passion or not, they are giving their 100% or not. Whether or not they are not enjoying their work or not. Until and unless they are getting money for that, they will continue to follow. In India, we are afraid to follow our passion as we have too many social responsibilities and if we don't earn money we can't support our family. Thats our priority number one.

    Why USA leads the world because Stanford, MIT produces out-of-box thinkers. Why nobody in India could invent google, iphone, ipod like product. There are many ranchos in india but they do not stay here and go to MIT/Stanford as they don't see any future here.

    Film correctly points out in right direction.
    If a country has to grow, they have to produce some inventors and out-of-box thinkers. Obviously there is a great need of followers as well. But First lets produce some talent in our education factories.

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  44. there are always 2 sides to a coin. I am sure most of us didn't even realise the other side of the coin. good post. I totally agree that all of us cannot be Rancho but all of us can try being Chatur...

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  45. First of all .. thanks for presenting other side of the story.. second it was a delight to read your post..

    I read all the above comments too... I can see a clear cut gap between the Author's perception or assumptions and film's (or moviegoer's assumptions)... Chetan Bhagat while writing the book assumed this story to be of IIT graduates, the ones who've cleared one of the toughest examinations in the world.. they are expected to be Phunsukh Wangdu not Chaturs.. you are right when you say we need more Chaturs than Ranchos.. but from IIT you expect to give India more Ranchos not Chaturs.. IITians are encouraged in the campus to be entrepreneurs and create thousands of job in India for Chaturs.. Chaturs are not bad or stupid guys but when you come to IIT you have to justify 15 lacs of governments money spent on you.. you cant end up working abroad and be a simple bookworm...you need to be a thinker.. Its pretty much a thinking with which IITians should behave not everyone.. you should not come to IIT if you are not made for it.. do something else.. Once in IIT .. you have to be a person responsible for R&D in India.. this was the message of Chetan Bhagat.. you all got it wrong... 400,000 applications and 1% selection only happens in IIT not anywhere else in the world.. Nehru made IIT to produce engineers with excellence not a Chatur.. there are lot of places (or engineering colleges) for you if you want to be a Chatur.. but IIT is only place which has potential to produce Phunsukh Wangdu.. let IIT be like that for the future and pride of our country..

    I can say so because.. me too an IITian..

    Disclaimer: I never intend to harm anyone's feelings here.. Through Chatur, I was just presenting an argument..

    Aal is Welll...

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  46. Just one comment based on your "Gulab Jamuns".
    Over a period of time thinking based on Characters.

    Chatur: Gulab Jamuns are sweet and should be eaten as desert. They are available in shops freshly made or in cans.

    Rancho: How Gulab Jamuns can be made better in terms of taste, texture, how they can be kept fresh for longer time, etc..

    I hope you understand the difference and choice you need to make. Both are talking about Gulab Jamuns

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  47. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  48. You are an Architect by education but an Animation and Visual Effects professional? Doesnt that say a lot about you? About some one following his passion? and if you didn't i pity you man... I followed my passion... my husband a fighter pilot ... followed his... most my frnds followed theirs...I think following passion has a lot to do with what you liked doing as a kid... and how you used that knowledge about yourself in creating a career for your own self... If you liked eating gulab jamun... maybe you were cut out to open your own dessert parlor... just a thot... I like travelling my hubby like pgotography... I am an internet marketeer -- and an MSc in Stats... how did i realize my passion? I created my own photoblog!

    I think that was the whole point of the movie and nothing else.

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  49. Your post had a completely different take,in a really thoughtful direction.

    I do agree that Chaturs are needed, but is the Chatur-way really as 'noble' as it seems?

    But I have one thing to ask you.

    Ask Chatur to design a simple machine for implementation of say, hydro power. Chatur, having mugged up the theory will not be able to put his education into practice.

    Ask any other, not even a Rancho, but a Joy to do it. He will be, I am sure of that.

    I am a student. In my school I saw two or three Chaturs and a few Ranchos. Even though both the groups did well on 10th boards, I personally find that Rancho group has understood the theory. Chatur group had mugged it up for the exams.In practical exams, I can see all the Ranchos sail through with ease, because they know exactly what they are doing.

    A classmate of mine, another Chatur,wrote the temperature we had to measure the same as we had measured in the practicals. Want to hear the catch: The professor had changed the powder. This resulted, of course in a big zero in the pracs.

    What I want to say is instead of mugging up and then regurgitating in the exam hall, which, unfortunately our education system unknowingly promotes, i would like to see some creativity,some originality in education.

    Due to my good fortune, I studied in a school which can be compared closely to Phunsuk's school, but my new education institute suffocates me, making me realise the importance of liberalization for allowing the creativity to blossom.

    How else will we have more Phunsuks, when they are exactly what our nation needs to boost it's infrastructure.

    So it's Rancho all the way.

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  50. There are 3 keys to success, I personally believe, are will,hard work and PROPER GUIDANCE. The first two keys are in our hand to use it but only with third, will you get the success faster and we go to school to get this guidance. And 3 IDIOTS emphasize on this lack of guidance provided in the indian educatiion system, which millions of Chaturs require to be at par with Rancho. I don't agree that only ppl like Rancho can be the creators of the world. I believe that even Chatur can be a creator if given proper guidance(or in this case education).

    to talk about the passion, this movie is for the people who have already explored that passion but still forced to pursue the career in which they are not at all interested.

    I agree with all the points you have mentioned in this blog and our very thought-provoking and really appreciate your analysis, but your ideas are very much distinct from the movie and cannot contradict or be related to the concept shown in the movie.... :)

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  51. good read..
    Take a chill Pill..You cant take movies that seriously now...

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  52. u r just another guy giving enuff reason to say that a certain thing is not possible....... or u don hav the balls to leave everything aside achieve it.... wt wud hav happened if Mahatma Gandhi wud hav thought so......u probably wud hav been cleaning sum1 elses butt

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  53. hahaahahahaahahahahahah
    I just keep on thinking of kareena's character living the fun life with her hubby in ladakh.
    mrs. wangdu
    haahahahaahahahaah

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  54. an interesting POV. I hope the Chaturs stay away from the teaching profession

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  55. Karthik,

    Nice post. But just how did you get the idea that Phunsuk Wangdu has not worked hard to be where he was. I mean 400 patents cannot be awarded to a lazy bum.
    Secondly like you a majority of the people will think Chatur is successful. If cars, mansion etc etc is your definition of success he is. But he was bound to be successful cause he was doing what the world expected him to do. Remember the classroom scene and machine's definition.
    No we dont need either Phunsuk or Chatur. We need people to excel in what they love doing. Trust me. I quit my job (months before the movie released) to take up something I like. Yes it is hard and tough. But it gives you a high and satisfaction.

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  56. Agree. Word for word. Grt read. keep it up.

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  57. Chatur's that make up a crucial part of the Microsoft's, Dell's, Intel's, Infosys and countless other successful corporations of this world.

    --We need Ranchos to build such succesfull corporations too!

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  58. Without paying attention to the overly dramatised versions of Ranchos and Chaturs in the movie, there is a natural tendency to apprieciate the Ranchos. In the history of mankind so far as we know it, all progress has seemed to happen in leaps of innovation. Much less thought is spared to the background that allows the creativity to foster , that eventually leads to innovation. It is of no apparent consequence how well Einstein's wife fed him suppers so that he could be free to mull on cosmological constants. Simply because such fostering does not need anything extraordinary, only execution of conventional practices. People admire and apprieciate what they themselves cannot do, what is novel and ground-breaking - and it is precisely because it is _already_ a world of a million Chaturs and few Ranchos, that Rancho is the hero.

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  59. I have read your post and i appreciate your POV
    however I have a few contradictions :

    Firstly, Rancho is not born with genius. All human beings are born with the same brain capacity the only thing is to use it well.
    Secondly, Chatur did not play fair. While I must admit that he worked hard, he left pornography in the rooms of the other students ;)
    Chatur has success ... not education. He has only memorized what he learnt in his text books and it is of no real use to him now that he has money.
    Rancho on the other hand is an educated man ... he is a thinker trying to make the world a better place. As shown, he opened a school for little children as he wanted to make a change in humanity
    As for the Dell, Microsoft thing do u think those 'Chaturs' are really making a difference in the world ?
    Take Einstein as an example. He was a genius because he was educated , yet you will find no proof of him memorising the books words :) He had his own ideas !
    And that is what sets Rancho apart
    Moving on
    I would like to contradict your statement that passions are not found. Everyone has a passion.
    For example, my passion is helping others, For this purpose I am completing my MBBS
    Why do people do the jobs that they do? It may be because of pressure by parents.... then again it may be because they actually like to do so..... some people are creative and are fascinated by beauty,,,, voila ... ARCHITECT !
    Some like machines and how they work.... voila! Electric Engineers ! ..... some like trade and profit..... Business men
    It is due to our passion that we select these jobs and I actually pity you if you have not found your passion yet !
    and gulab jamans :o Tom an jerry ???
    are you whack lol

    my friend you have percieved the message of the film wrong
    we do not need more chaturs... we need more ranchos.... thinkers....ideologists.....

    a person may have multiple passions.... but it is what he is MOST PASSIONATE ABOUT which counts
    for example..... i LOVE MUSIC ....... I LOVE IT
    but i didnt go into the music business .... helping mankind was a bigger passion
    why do you think people actually go to the film or music industry
    do they not have other passions?
    you contradict your own statements friend :)

    I do agree that for one rancho there should be a million chaturs :)
    but if there was not a single rancho ... then ?
    face it friend a man can invent something and use it himself but what would the chaturs do if there were no ranchos :)?
    they would BECOME ranchos as is the circle of life :)


    and this quote
    Genius is 1% Inspiration and 99% Perspiration
    my friend this is ALLL what the movie is about
    rancho is not a very carefree person we never see him roaming around
    he is always studying...getting education
    and that is what "Aal izz Well" is about

    he says it when he gets the 99% perspiration :)
    he calms his heart telling it that its all good :)

    This is my view of the movie and as we both are equals i appreciate your right to give an opinion :)

    Goodbye Brother :)

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  60. I think this blog writer is trying to be Rancho though telling world 2 be Chatur,i think the blog itself is creating confusion. If Rancho is not hero then definitely we are all stupid to discuss bill gates, its a movie about people who sets example! People like Rancho are discussed to widen our thoughts and not to run away from responsibility!

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  61. Interesting article, but you too have made an assumption that there are some people who are super talented and there are some who are not.

    Research has showed that even geniuses like Mozart became what they were because they spent about 10000 hours honing their skills. Their talent alone would not have been enough to make them what they are. 10000 is said to be the magic figure, some people start very early and reach , some late but most never get to that number.

    You seem to imply that we need to decide early in life if we are the Rancho type or the Chatur type and act accordingly. But I believe that whoever finds something that he/she enjoys doing and is willing to enough time on, is going to be successful beyond his imagination. Nobody should ever aim to be like Chatur- toiling day and night doing work which for him is mind-numbingly boring, desperately looking forward to the day when he can retire.

    As for society needing people like Chatur- In this day and age, the only ways to make people work on what they dont like are money and prestige. There will still be people who opt for these over finding and pursuing their passion. Their choice. Even if there are no such people, society will find a way to get by without them as it has in the past.

    Here is a link which explains the 10000 hour thing - http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23588962-the-secret-of-your-success-10000-hours.do

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  62. One point with which i agree completely. 'Follow your passion' is the message of the movie. Well Duh!! The bigger question is how to find your passion and pursue it. Now this is something that is not trivial.

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  63. I will only add this. Being talented helps. But its Hard Work and Passion for anything that gives the enjoyment to the accomplishments. Good post. Keep it Up. I wish you all the best in your life besides the good posts.

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  64. Excellent Post.. Very well argued!

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  65. i dnt agree 2 u..ho sakta hai chatur jaise log bhi kuch ban jatte hai life mein par uske jaise bhut aise log hai jo cramming kr sakte hai par unhme confidence nai hai bolne ka..they r just kittabi keede bt lacking confidence in dem..dey r heros who knw atleast little bt hav confidence 2 explain or talk 2 every1 wid confidence n hav courage 2 speak d truth.knwledge is mre imp den learning ur book..in NDA EXAMS, IAS EXAMS, ETC MOST OF D PAPER DEPENDS UPON KNWLEDGE N NT ON BOOOKS.HARD WORK IS IMP BT MORE IS KNWLEDGE..SORRY I DNT AGREE WID U.

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  66. It is becoming a trend sort of to bash this movie. And that too on the basis of arguments that are responsible for the degradation of society.
    1st Argument-If every one is bill gates who would buy stuff? Economies cant prosper.
    Sir what would we do of rich life style if we rnt happy? Do happiness comes by being rich?. lets take the case of india.India might have progressed economically but certainly it is not a happy nation,y? People are doing jobs they dont like. They just have to do for the sake of living.These henry fords and bill gates are the reasons behind the today's rat race. Every one wants success like them and forget their passions.
    2nd Argument-Success is achieved by hard work.
    SIR one would only work hard on a thing if he likes it. Dont u agree?
    3rd- Talking bout passions
    sir ur friend who use to watch tom nd jerry had a passion of watching it...who knows if he had sustained that passion for animation he might had made animated masterpieces. Ask him i bet he wud be good in judging animation movies.
    And u sir liked to eat gulab jamuns...u had the taste buds to be a good chef. May not be that richer but happier.
    But also there are some passions which cant make u money...i say the passionate will find the way.
    Sir u forgot the scene in d movie when amir khan says what if tendulkar had been singing and lata mangeshkhar had been playing cricket.
    THE TRUE BALANCE OF THIS WORLD WOULD ONLY COME IF EVERYONE IS DOING WHAT HE IS GOOD AND HAPPY AT.
    Even ancient scriptures support it. They divided the society into four varnas on the basis what one is good in doing. Later corruption creeped in and made it a bloodline thing. That is another thing.
    Sir the movie has hit d consciousness of people and only wise movies can do that.

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  67. well, i read your blog, and i honestly did not find concrete explainations of why we still need a "chatur" over a rancho...

    Yes i agree, that chatur at the end was successful too in the movie, but i feel Hirani was just outlining the methods that have been potrayed are not rite. And as far as an Chatur being in a google? or a microsoft? i defer on that, as a chracter to make a 30 min presentation of his life, i dont think he would have enough words to talk about himself. (he would be too busy recollecting wht he mugged)

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  68. Totally agreed wat u hv written...
    i also thought of something like dat but not able to translate dem into words like dat...

    gr8 job!!!
    well done

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  69. truely awesome article..fully agree with u..

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  70. Dude, After readin ur blog I feel u've grown old mentally thats it...and the blog jst explains ur state of ur OLD-MIND..nothin more or less!!

    This movie is for younger gen thou I feel any1 can take wht rancho does...dont ruin it by bringin the reality chk n wht all crap!!

    If u cant take shut the F up...

    Btw U already soundin like a typical father already...What do u want to ur son to be ? :-)
    chatur or rancho ? Make a reality check..

    Thrz always gud to have Ranchos or wanna be ranchos in nation...or else India will be in 3rd world in comin generations tooooo

    No offense.

    -Veen

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  71. OK, BUGGER HERE IT IS.YOU ARE ONE AMONG ATTENTION SEEKER FROM THE CROWD!! I CUDN'T READ FIRST HALF OF SHIT YOU HAVE WRITTEN.GIVE A HI-FIVE FOR URSELF AS YOU ACHIEVED WHAT YOU WANTED TO ACHIEVE AND GO BETTER FUCK UR SELF PUSS-MAN

    IReadUrBosudaMind@gmail.com

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  72. My 2 cents (and I’ll try to be brief)…

    The soul of “3 Idiots” is subject to interpretation and context and it might be difficult to single-out one from the many that have surfaced over the past few weeks (including Karthik’s well-written blog and mine) as being most appropriate for any random person.

    I tend to partially agree with the author’s views. Where I differ is the delineation between the characters played by Chatur and Rancho. I didn’t see them as two different people (its easy to assume so since the characters are played by two different individuals). Instead, these are different states of the same mind. One takes things for granted and uses militant hardwork to be successful while the other thinks laterally. The motivation for each is subtle - Fear of the consequence (I guess the author did hint at this by eluding to the liabilities that one might have that take precedence over ones choices). While Chatur knew what the consequence would be if he didn’t persevere, Rancho was free-spirited. Even if he had known of the consequence, he didn’t seem to be bothered by it. These are states of our mind. From what I know (and I might be entirely wrong), the stalwarts of the world are neither 100% “Ranchos” nor are they 100% “Chaturs”.

    There are times when one needs to think laterally to solve a problem while sometimes its safe to take things for granted. The “Ranchos” of the world don’t necessarily reinvent everything in the world. However, they are not afraid to question it. That’s where Chatur differed. He settled for a field goal (which was safe and sufficient) while Rancho plotted a two-point conversion (my apologies for using analogies from American Football)ye . I’m reminded of a short story that was part of my English curriculum in middle school. It was titled “A Table is a Table”. A Table (and several other things in life) is called so for some apparent reason that is not worth questioning. Why a table should only have four legs is questionable by all means and so we do have three-legged tables today.

    Fear is inherent in everyone. While its deeply rooted in ones character, a lot of its manifestation has to do with the context of one’s upbringing. In countries like India, where the sheer size of its population forces insane competition, fear outweighs logic. That doesn’t go to say that one should adopt a “Chatur” state of mind but what it should ideally warrant is the audacity to know what works best and when and then apply it.

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  73. dude....i guess its matter of the opinion which belongs to individuals personality!!!
    u think chatur is hero bt chtur was after success and rencho believes in not to follow the success bt follow what ur heart says and do what u like!! and as u said chatur wont work for Microsoft and where else bt i guess people like him who think different they dont have to work for companies like that they invent new things and become gr8....Albert Einstain, the inventor of computer Charles Babbage he didn,t work for any of his company!! i guess ??? and without him these companies would not be in existence...:P i hope that would ans ur question!!

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  74. Chatur was winner of rat race and problem with the rat race is that even if u win you still are a rat.

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  75. reading ur view on the movie was interesting....different view point all right but frankly speaking, i don't agree. I agree that ppl dont realise their passions early in life/ only a miniscule % of ppl can be ranchos but the majority are chaturs ...but if u realise the passion, u need to explore the possibility...Being a "CHatur" does not stand for hard work ..it just represents a personality who adopts the ass licking and mugging philosophy to succeed in life. U can and most probably will achieve success by doing both of the above but till when?? this kind of success i dare say cannot be long lasting...it will catch up with u some time or the other...but as i said -- i found ur view point interesting (different) so went through two/ three of ur blogs...and i saw ur blog on james cameron where u have mentioned that after watching titanic, u decided to not go to US for masters in architecture as planned but chose a career of your choice- visual effects and animation...and u r happy about that decision...so i guess to some extent u also agree to the theory that u chose a profession of ur interest?? or did i get you wrong..??

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  76. point well taken. This was the same thought I had while driving back home after watching the movie. Not all of us (well..most of us) do not follow the passion because we have a life to lead. While the move inspires a few, I was always thinking, how to "measure" success ? If Rancho is a winner and so is Chatur...

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  77. dat was just a movie guys..u dnt have to be so seriuos abt it..try to achieve something rather than wasting times in such stupid blogs!

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  78. did you say your name was karthik? hello.. you had me there for a while...but i d say as i finished reading i like your perception... especially today as i was feeling rock bottom and blue...this made me feel good...theres more than a race of whos who...in this debate..if we d begin with choice of life i d like to know which you d choose?

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  79. @karthik
    its jus a good entertainer buddy..why waste so much of ur time n energy into a movie? its a movie not be confused with reality

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  80. Hi,
    i don't understand why the world needs a million chaturs for a single rancho.
    i explain this by saying, suppose everyone's thinking style and policy towards life was like rancho's (just suppose for a minute), still the world couldn't have zillions of bill gates' or microsofts, so the smartest 'rancho' out of them would become the next bill gates while the rest would just be chaturs wbho managed to make a living by working hard. in fact, thats how the world actually functions even right now. the basic outline is that "the one who is the most intelligent, at the same time being the most street smart does SMART HARD WORK gets the most success."
    plus, the other positive aspects of ranchos personality which were not present in chatur's would also be present in the people of the world, so altogether it would make a better world.

    karthik i am not trying to abuse you but i feel you are a titbit brain who is just trying to show that you are very different and are above other people in judgement and intellectuals thus gaining publicity by trying to make a big controversy out of this, think over it...

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  81. You have got the art of writing buddy, no doubt. Kudos for that and only that. No point in hitting Ranchos' just because they can't make Microsoft's or Dell's work. Since these Chaturs make these bigger names run they bring accolades for our country. Money makes money but those who can't afford to have that sort of money to avail that quality education can be rest assured that there are these Ranchos who can create thousands of Chaturs. No one else thought of putting it across of what he thinks about Rancho and this movie, in such a forthright manner but ur heart said and u did it. And that is wot Rancho also believes in...do wot ur heart tells u is right. Jahanpanah tusi great ho...................

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  82. imagine a person "X" who is having same life as that of chatur,but who is passionate about his job or his excellence in what he does, unlike(chatur who is) passionate about just success..would you not like the world to have person "X" instead of chatur??

    This is what the movie is all about...person "x" in place of chatur would be great!!

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  83. For me the movie was just another average Indian masala flick. The storyline does not delve into the characters like the way Chetan Bhagat does in his novel and hence only delivers a confused plot at the end.
    The only constant I see here is our most 'pasandi' actor is made to look cool/intelligent/witty etc etc and bang.... 3-idiots is a blockbuster. The movie lacked the one sincere touch from Hirani (still think Munnabhai MBBS was his best work so far) It keeps demostrating that Indian producers always carry a wand(infact I should say a club) called'dont forget the money being invested'.
    It even falls way below Aamir Khan's great storytelling/acting abilities (Taare Zameen Par,DCH,Lagaan etc). I never took the movie so seriously as it never came even 10km close to my heart (It definitely lacks the extra punch).
    However,3-idiots buzz is back again. Why ? I wont refuse to accept that I could see one serious movie buff here (Karthik) who can look beyond the very intentions of the film makers.His careful analysis in '3 Idiots Confusing a Nation'article goes beyond my imagination of this movie and I keep reading it again and again to understand more.

    For me and just for me, there are 3 positives out of this movie
    1. Best Actor - Omi Viadya
    2. Best supporting Actor(female) - Kareena Kapoor

    Can I add something like best analyser (Karthik) into the above list ? :)

    PS: BTW , Karthik great job dousing the flame, I know you are alone, but good luck dude!

    Bhaskar

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  84. It was a TPV discussion!! Keep it up! Karhik.
    Below is a story (I came across online) that came to my mind while reading the blog. This would be a good reading and will give some perspective on material success - i.e., it often comes with letting go many of the small pleasures of life.
    BHEL- Be Happy and Enjoy Life!!!
    -----------------------------------------------

    An American businessman was at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellowfin tuna.
    The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them. The Mexican replied, “only a little while.”
    The American then asked why didn’t he stay out longer and catch more fish? The Mexican said he had enough to support his family’s immediate needs.
    The American then asked, but what do you do with the rest of your time? The Mexican fisherman said, “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take siesta with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos, I have a full and busy life, senor.”
    The American scoffed, “I am a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds buy a bigger boat with the proceeds from the bigger boat you could buy several boats, eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman you would sell directly to the processor, eventually opening your own cannery. You would control the product, processing and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then LA and eventually NYC where you will run your expanding enterprise.”
    The Mexican fisherman asked, “But senor, how long will this all take?” To which the American replied, “15-20 years.”
    “But what then, senor?” The American laughed and said, “That’s the best part! When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich, you would make millions.”
    “Millions, senor? Then what?” The American said, “Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos.”

    ----------------------------------------------

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  85. Great article. Agree with the basic grain of your thoughts regarding developing different passions all your life. Beacuse most people dont realize that a passion can become a pain if you make it your work. To explain, almost everyone who visits a resort will aspire to own a farmhouse, not realizing that once they possess one, they will have very little time enjoy it and they will have to spend all their time maintaining it. This was not what they bargained for. My advice : keep developing and dropping passions all your life...but for a life, be practical like Chatur !

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  86. Look I think.....
    ur 1 of d software persons
    So sorry 2 say bt in my opinion ur a little cracked guy.....

    Jealous huh??

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  87. D abv comment is postd by Saurav Upadhyay of Delhi Public School Gurgaon Sector45 class viith F

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  88. Looks like you have taken the film too seriously, and titled your blog post as 'confusing a nation'. Well, i agree that Amir Khan's films have an impact at a national rather international level, they can definitely not confuse a nation.

    I felt this is a very emotional film. Raw Emotion shown in a very simplistic manner...quite surprised no one is talking at all about this angle to the film! No doubt it is very well taken overall, and acting is super, and all that, but this film is more a 'emotional' film than a 'fun' film.

    The point i am driving here is, it is like any other bollywood story taken nicely...thats it! I dont think it deserves a discussion of this kind...and if it does, then you it surely shows that you have been very influenced by the film.

    Not every hard-working successful man has become a Bill Gates or a Sachin Tendulkar. I think the film is saying just that...nothing more! Its just that the make up of the film in this manner is atracting people to it, but they will get out of the 'kick' as they come out of the theatre, i am sure about that.

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  89. And...Rancho's of the world and Chatur's of the world get so well accomodated in the world that and there is a lot more place out there for similar types or even new types. So no need to worry!

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  90. Nice said but one thing i want to add to about following one"s passion in reference to being enterprenurs.
    As we tech. buddies are offered Handsome salary during our campus Placement and most of the guys like Rancho are fascinated by these jobs offer at one of the world's best location, they don"t listen to their heart and in some cases other factors like family pressure, unceratainity, obligatins to near ones also operate but i want to make a point here we the buddies should use education for Empowerment not for Safety, if studying in one of the Finest college coldnot give u that much level of confidence then wat"s the use of studying in Prestigious college....

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  91. stop your nonsense....u r same like a chattur..who dont want to change the education system of our contry...i think u supporting more of bangali baba powder for increasing the memory.....at the end"it,s not the 3idiots who is confusing but bits u bewakoof

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  92. yeah it was interesting.......
    atleast der was sumone who thought bout the topic rather than jst watchin d movie n moving
    i can admit that i behave a bit like chatur not mugging but u knw d perspiring thing......m not born dat smart but i achieved smartness n i feel that was actually better off. yeah v do need chatur's but with a mix of d rancho(as in d innovative thinking)
    wat i feel is u dnt to be always smart or born intelligent to think of sumthing innovative...
    n plagiarism is no way gud.....n if v stop dat v will surely b a mix of rancho n chatur which is wat an 'ideal person' is supposed to b
    itz jst my point of view over d ideal thing
    overall the post was gud....i liked it !

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  93. Hey Karthik, U have taken lot of time to write the comparisons but u didnt realise that u r a very good blogger and possibly at writing journals.. Well, this might not have come across ur mind becoz u r stuck with ur profession (which is apparently Animation and Visual Effects Specialist) and dont know where ur education (Architect) fits in that. So when wud u realise what u really wanted to do.. And for the responsibilities, which ones we are talking about? Getting money and feeding our loved and dear ones? I really do not know where we get this definition from. So we say the ones who are not having money arent "happy"!!! Kareena actually decides to marry Aamir after knowing his reality.. She cud have gone with the successful NRI she was fixed up with if she worried of the food that he feeds her..or gifts that he cud bring for her. One interesting point in that was, when we buy something with money without passion - u wud always look at the gain from the same.. the expectations grow..and we end up living lives that are devised by someone else..

    I DO NOT AGREE with any point of yours..! I guess u r just in denial of ur own competitiveness..and want to think Rancho is a born genius. But No, he is a normal guy who is genius at what he loves. So we are all born geniuses - be it science, engineering, fashion, art or cooking. We have already made up our minds to call only certain professions as worthy ones. Message from 3 IDIOTS is not to choose certain thing, but do what u just want to do and u wud be genius at it. NO matter if it changes with time.. who said u got to die doing the same?

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  94. Hey Folks, this is my first reply on the comments section of my blog. Thank u all for the wonderful insights u all have given. I had earlier written a separate post to give my replies, and i hope to do part two of it soon. Hoping that it can answer few more questions. Been getting a lot of comments from anonymous users and other user ids but i have no way to write back to them personally as most of the ids are not public. I request you all to please leave your email ids so that i can get back to you all.

    Ok then, keep writing, want to hear more. And, by the way, have you taken part in the contest for Critics game yet ;-)

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  95. Follow your passions is the truth but not the complete truth. Its about 1/3rd of the truth or (a close approximation thereof).

    Career Choice depend on Passion, Ability and Market opportunity. The strugglers of Mumbai are about passion minus the ability.

    Indian Parents discouraging sports is about Passion minus market opportunity.

    3i of course picks the sexy 1/3rd. Am i complaining. Hell no, i had a great time.

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  96. There are too many issues unclear and mixed about ur post! u have involved politics, evolution, government and history all without understanding the context to what purpose ur opinion is doing. If u want hits and cheap publicity and more opinions on ur blog ..its working...if u want to seriously open the debate on education and future societies then do ur homwork first before u present an arguement worth commenting about...right now its immature and half baked.

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  97. In remaining with the true spirit of the movie which is contreversial with "credit grabbing" u seem to have done just that! More of it for some cheap stunt of urs in the hope that ur blog will get hits.
    where will u generate the next content once this dies down?

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  98. Heroes are rare and we do not more need common men as there are plenty already and they continue to be in future too... you probably missed out the selfless nature of Rancho who started a school for kids where there was hardly any primary education reached and his heroic acts to save people from miseries.

    What hard work Chatur did, all he did was for himself, right?

    Anyone can be Chatur but its really hard to be Rancho in real life..

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  99. A marvelous post. Brilliantly written.
    Thinking out of the box isint under everyones capacity. But to give maximum input to life is something everyone can do, irrespective of the brilliance bestowed upon him by nature. And thats what Chatur does. Thats what every common man does. Any number of applauses to out of the box thinkers cant undermine the capacity, the continuance, the determination of a common man.
    Hats Off...

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  100. people think differently n believe in different stuffs...m sorry m nt so damn very optimistic but i hv my own views...itz d sme way as d level of wittiness in humour in ppl varies...n nw bout ur views on d movie d msg dat is conveyed frm d movie is ur own figure out instincts...common evn in d movie they didn't mke Chatur luk lyk a loser ...he ranked second...had a job..a family n one cn figure out dat frm dat pen wala incident he had a chance 2 b d 4th idiot too...nw wat exctly is wrong der...?
    u knw ppl choose der heroes...u chose urs...n i chose mine...i might lyk 2 b lyk Rancho rather than chatur...coz fr me a man wid ideas n knowledge is bettr dan d person who rattofies...cum on face it...wat do u get if u rattofy sumthin...i knw many ppl feel grades matter n many want to score full 100%..but to me grades dun matter...so i think if u dun learn nothin frm wat u r studyin den why bother...o ya get grades haan...plzz lyf's nt ol bout grades....can't u see d richest person is no topper...but a man wid ideas...evn u who wrote dis can't b a true Chatur fan if u r able to draw conclusions dat counter da main theme...u see if Chatur hd been at ur place he wud hv gone wid d theme...though wudn't hv done nethin wrong itz a nyc theme...but u get my point na??
    neway m nt brainy...indeed i hv no guarantee dat my words work fr ne1...but dese r my views n as m juzz 16 n u might hv figured out nt gud at studies...i kinda feel lyk i hv tym fr ol crazy things lyk posting my views here...so plzz u knw if u think diffeerently...no issues...but keep ur thots to urself...o sorry shudn't say dis every1 got ryts...n u wrote well so gud work done...but if u keep writin such things u definitely will cum in d list of "wanna be" n get d award fr "mr.i didn't do it" or "mr. attention seeker"...or uhmmmm...well wateva i dun agree wid u...nt bout Chatur bein d hero....ewwk men common sense...he left dirty magazines outta ppl's room...sick...:P

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  101. u r just misleading,,the youth,,
    frm the fact...
    u r the group of those person who doesnt want to
    change,,,,,,,
    and think that they are correct,,,
    u r those type of person......
    who only apposes,,,,,,,,
    but do not want to raise anything
    u r just a apposer of thing..

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  102. did u even once in ur life wear the us national flag asur underwear!!! I can understand.

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  103. Love the work you do but never do the work so that you can show off your work to others.
    This is where, whether you are doing with passion or hard work.
    Movie says do not do hard work but love what you do.

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  104. mm...If Chatur is shown as hero, thats real life. Rancho is hero, its the reel life.

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  105. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  106. Humanity has gone through various stages of evolution.From the agrarian to the industrial revolution and all have a reflection in the type of education system we choose. Education and economy cannot ever be seperated.In other words- those that provide jobs, provide a livelihood and those that seek jobs want to be useful to those that provide jobs, therefore educational systems are a result of the age of the economy we live in(agrarian or industrial)

    Having said that it is apparent, the way we run our schools in this economy has a lot to do with the industrial revolution, which needed factory workers. They have to wear a uniform, work to the sounds of a bell, perform repetitive action, mistakes are stigmatized as they are expensive in factories, punctuality is of prime importance because of task interdependance, one teacher is in front of a 40-50 member class much like an assembly line. We needed factory workers.

    We now are slowly moving into the knowledge revolution. But what value is information or knowledge without its utility and therefore only few businesses can sustain models purely on knowledge(to small to call a revolution)..therefore the argurment that we are moving into the creative revolution or as we Indians call it the JUGAAD revolution!!
    Change is the only constant...and innovation and creativity is of paramount focus. Thats the need for education.

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  107. In my view that is what the film is hoping to propagate.

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  108. Hahahahhaha....They made a movie to make money and all are discussing the logic here. How funny. There's no hard fast rule to live a life. Take it as it comes..There won't be IFs and BUTs..I don't have time to analyze it even.

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  109. I am confused sorry, amused... are you trying to be profound or practical or perhaps philosophical?

    - First don't get into too much analysis. ( If you get economics, politics, social structures etc. you will end up being muddled and without hope!) The movie was pure fun.. enjoyable and had moments that we all like to have in our lives.. However, people also like movies like Munnabhai series, Chak De India, etc..which had different things to tell. Each of them probably gave you a lot of opportunity to do a reality check on them too.

    - It is also funny that you think that one should take sides. In movies and in life, we live & see contrasts and contradictions.. it does not mean we take sides. So, enjoy life as it unfolds.

    - I think the movie has it own way of conveying some basic things we need in our education system.. and for our children. Instead of doing a reality check on fiction, think and blog of ways how we can bring back curiosity into our children's minds, how we can enable children to think critically in a world where they are told what to do and how to live.

    Oops.. I got too serious yaar..
    All I want to say is.. have fun, learn and try to inspire.. BE AN IDIOT..

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  110. Hi, above anonymous user. Sorry i confused you so much. Looks like you didn't read my followup posts on the same topic. Please read for your good health. I don't want anyone to be confused or loose their mind because of me. :-))))

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  111. No problem Kartik. I did not mean disrespect. I also did not bother reading other posts because they would perpetuate and justify the same logic. ( Not sure if you changed your stance..)

    However, I think a few points were very unjustified. How do you know that Chatur's wife would not have anything compelling to share?? or for that matter who said Chatur was not a hero. Did we not scoff at bookworms during our school/college days? Yet, who said that bookworms are not successful in life? I think each one of us does thinks is best and is successful in his/her own way. There is no right or wrong there but there are consequences.

    The whole point is.. it is not about who is a bigger hero.. and we do not have to be judgmental.( with reference to this post only). We need Chaturs, Ranchos, you, everyone. You were not wrong but I think you got carried away. :)

    Having said that, I appreciate the fact that you are bold enough to share your thoughts. I remain, strictly, anonymous!!

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  112. yeah i do agree with this.... u really need many chaturs for a rancho.... ;-)

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  113. liked your post...i liked the movies as well...i believe, it has a great message for all, not just ranhos out there, but for other people as well.
    What is important is to set a goal, (that you believe in, even something which people may think is totally weird!) and achieve that by giving it all it takes. Rancho, Chatur did it...we must try to do that too in our small or big ways!
    NishanthB

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  114. "3 IDIOTS" - the name itself suggests that its not about any serious characters but 3 nincompoops. But if we watch the movie we find 2 serious characters who r Virus and Chatur along with the 3 idiots. I think Rancho [1 of the 3 idiots] to be a greater hero than Virus because he had the power to win the hearts of the other 2 idiots and change their lives in his unique but idiotic way. Virus made every student think that they were on a war with success and there is no place for the weaker ones. But its a fact that in this so called war many students are loosing themselves both physically, mentally and psychologically and its really rare and lucky for those weaker ones to have friends like Rancho who hold their hands and show them the way to make a place for themselves in this world.

    As far as Chatur's character is concerned, his way of getting good marks was to break others concentration before exams by supplying 18+ books. Whereas, Rancho was not at all interested in competing with others, but instead, he focussed on getting 100% knowledge from his books itself which led him to the top of the success platform. Moreover Rancho did not forget to live his life [2 the maxxx] , cared for his friends n did a lot for them without even caring for his exam next morning. And most important of all Rancho did not show off or looked down upon Chatur even after scoring the top in the exams. All this suggests that Rancho, apart from being a good student, was also a very good human being. It is really very difficult to succeed in life both in terms of marks and money, but it is even more difficult to help the weaker ones grow along with you.

    Last but not the least, Rancho's passions as depicted through his character in the movie, were not like Chatur's [ Lamborghini, or the 3 million dollar house with swimming pool inside,etc]. But his passion was to built his own simple and cheap machines which would be of some use to the mankind in future and thus lead him to be a scientist [Mr WANGDU] jisko dekh kar CHATUR KA TOH BALATKAAR HO GAYA!!! So "ALL IS WELL" in the movie.

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  115. The movie showed that Rancho in the end, was much more successful than Chatur. It was a bit too idealistic, that's what I thought too, but they were proving a point. They were proving that even if you don't run after the prospects of a job, or getting the highest marks in the paper, but instead you work towards increasing your knowledge and learning to apply it, you won't only be successful but mega successful. About the part where you said that Chatur was hardworking...what made you think Rancho wasn't? Rancho had ample time to play, but he worked, too. He had fun during working, but it was work, still.
    Ofcourse, if you're going to become a painter instead of an engineer, you will earn much less. But at the end of it, this is where your values come in. What do you want? A bigger car, or greater satisfaction? I agree that there are people who choose what to do in their lives because it provides them with stability to be able to raise a family, but really, what fields don't allow that? They might allow it to a lesser degree, but they allow it, too. I think a middle road is always possible.
    I don't know what gave you the impression that Chatur was the happy one. Just because he had a bigger house, a shinier car, a wife doesn't mean he was happier. What I interpreted was that he was struggling with the "who's doing what" insecurity complex, and working like a dog because the stage which he was at was just not enough for him. Rancho, on the other hand, like you pointed out was a loner, and yet at peace, doing what he enjoyed.

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  116. Cudnt agree more...

    After watching tht sequence in which Baba Ranchod Das speaks of why he ws successfull at studies and not the other two, it made me wonder n ask "baba ranchod das meri problem kya thi college mein". i kept contemplating and almost forgot abt it in due time, with busy schedules at office.

    Ur posts helps a lot in tht direction.

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  117. i agree entirely.Edison as u told, clearer it further saying ""I never did anything worth doing by accident, nor did any of my inventions come by accident. They came by work."

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  118. i disagree with ur definition of passion:
    for me "passion is the thing u'd do even if u had infinite time and infinite money."

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  119. There is only one problem with your analysis-

    The movie talks about idealism, and it says that each one of us is a genius at something, thats why Chatur wasn't an ordinary man either (what is ordinary anyway), he was an ordinary engineer, yes. Because his natural inclination and interest wasn't towards it, maybe he was good at something else, which he did not pursue because he wanted the lambo, cellphone, mansion etc.

    The movie only shows that phunsuk wangdu did so well because he chose an occupation which he liked and was good at, and mind you.. there is a difference between hard work and ghotting. Even phunsuk did a lot of hard work in rebuilding that plane, but you will not count it as hard work, why?

    I am sorry but I do not agree with your opinion at all, and neither with the analysis.

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  120. I am passionate about my field (Architecture) from the time I was in 6th grade. Was doing great, topper in college, doing great on professional front in India. after that shifted to US got job after one year, the new company appreciated my work a lot and then came a big recession where there are no jobs at all in construction industry.

    this is the given situation.... many time I thing about shifting my profession as
    want to keep working... what will you say should I get over my passion??? and find another job??

    write to me at rashmi.mehadia@gmail.com

    Regards,
    Rashmi

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  121. Well well Karthik...Y cant you c the movie from a fictional point of view and not real...if movies wer made on pure reality, no one wud probly enjoy it...because then it would be the same stuff what people go through in their day to day lives.....movies are made to entertain people and not to show them what they go through daily....they are made just to refresh one's state of mind...well so its a pretty waste on time for the smart readers who know how to cope up with and distinguish between reality and entertainment...
    And ofcourse i am not a 3 Idiots fan myself...these are purely my reality based views...

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  122. Well well Karthik...Y cant you c the movie from a fictional point of view and not real...if movies wer made on pure reality, no one wud probly enjoy it...because then it would be the same stuff what people go through in their day to day lives.....movies are made to entertain people and not to show them what they go through daily....they are made just to refresh one's state of mind...well so its a pretty waste on time for the smart readers who know how to cope up with and distinguish between reality and entertainment...
    And ofcourse i am not a 3 Idiots fan myself...these are purely my reality based views...

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  123. As we are discussing who was hero- Chatur or Rancho we are forgetting one basic thing , the theme of movie- which emphasissied on the decreasing mental pressure of students.It showed if the students take the right courses and subjects that suits their interest they are likely to succeed more easily. secondly relieve yourself from tensions as it gives negative results. third never fear from the outcome of result . fourth improve your technique of studies by applying reasoning to it. Apply your mind .
    Rancho was successful in his own terms only by applying what he belived, but chatur was equally successful in own terms by applying what he believed. Both were hardworking both were sucessful though in the end it was shown that rancho was more successful.

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  124. well.. the movies are the perspectives of directors, which targeted the money of the movie goers by entertaining them for few hrs. its so ambitious to expect a message from a commercial movie. if the movie is really made to give a message, it could hardly entertain anybody.
    .. success is a perspective. that depends what you get and what you wanted to get.
    at the end of the movie,
    "Rancho" became a teacher/scientist, who encourages elementary school age children to play dangerous games with electricity. and..
    note that he could earn enough money to get hundreds of patents in his name, which is a very expensive affair..
    "Chatur" is also a successful. he alway wanted to be a top executive through hard work and study as his guru's guided him. and he also became what he wanted to become.
    actually to compare both the characters is the main problem. the director admired the character Rancho, so they gave it a very humane touch to qualify it to be a hero. and added few selfish deeds done by Chatur's character to prove him wrong.
    it is like keeping the results in the notice-board. remember the conversation between Virus and Rancho.
    morale of the storie..
    hating/admiring the movie characters is injurious to your mental health. do what ever you want in the way you wanted it to be.

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  125. Hi Mind u Read.
    I think u have missed the point completely. And I completely disagree with u.
    No one (least of all the film maker) was belittling the guys who join Microsoft etc. The point is we do not want to remain a back seat driver forever, we want to be in the driving seat - and for that we need passion & creativity. And that other wonderful fascet of the personality that is completely missing in r education system - EQ!!

    The desired objective of the film maker was to rouse a public to passion & joy of doing, rather than merely run after money.

    There is a better way than what we have today Mind U Read ... today is not the best. We need to evolve. 3 Idiots was a Call to Action

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  126. Its utter Bullshit !!!!!!

    How can u compare these 2 personalities and more so over its all about individual interest. Some people love to do clerical job like testing and coding throughout his life as they run after quick money and luxury and some love to have out of the box thinking which will bring a level of satisfaction at the end of the day, their life is something which revolves beyond these 2 above attributes.

    So noway these things can be compared...BTW you have written this blog in order to portray urself out of the crowd by writing something different instead weired for me and there are people around in India who does not have any individualistic opinion of their own instead their whole life is dependent on others opinion and verdict..Typical Indian nature

    So, anyways its ur life its thinking that u have penned down and its my life and my thinking to criticize it.

    Different Individuals u see

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  127. Frankly speaking, I go to a movie for a break… just to enjoy
    and probably the effect lasts for a week or a little more, no matter I may have
    watched the movie 2 mores time in TV. 
    Movies are generally for entertainment. 
    But I do like the way Amir involves himself or certain Directors who
    make a movie to send a message across to the society.  But out of a dozen such movies one or two are
    well known rest are hardly heard off. 
    There are many such movies like Amir, Udaan and many more (I am not able
    to recollect their names.. sply on Hindu-Muslim riots and the after effects)  Its nice to see that you have gone more into
    it and written a blog which hardly people do. 
    I would support your blog to an extent of 50:50 coz as per me you should
    enjoy what you do otherwise it would be a burden.  I think in all the process of Rancho and
    Chatur we forget the other main character the Dean Virus.  The education system is at fault.. You would
    hardly find colleges giving quality education and the means of educating which
    is very important like for eg the definition of Machine in the movie.  Any person would grow up in their life if
    they do what they like as their interest levels would be high in pursuing it - be
    it sports, engineering, MBBS, home science or scientists or for that matter
    movie makers.  We as parents should be a guide
    to our kids in choosing their path and do a good counseling on their interest
    levels rather than forcing them to do what we like as Virus does.  Rancho and Chatur are two extreme characters.  Yes, many a times we too have commented on
    guys who byheart their lessons and yet turn out to be doctors…imagine the
    plight of patients.  Also, here the
    question is not only about the studies and career.. but to some extent he had
    also covered on relations which is little important for us to maintain. Rancho
    and Chatur could achieve heights but in the process how much of attention goes
    to relationships and merriment? Rancho had enjoyed life from the very beginning…
    but Chatur started enjoying life after he attained what he wanted.   


    When you have a set goal, you can achieve it keeping all the
    pleasures of life intact.
     

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