12th Fail

Movie Review: 12th Fail

Director: Vidhu Vinod Chopra

Genre: Biography

Language: Hindi

Starring: Vikrant Massey, Medha Shankar, Anant Joshi, Anshuman Pushkar

Released: 2023

My Rating: 10 out of 10

Only once in a while you watch a movie and feel that you have watched perfection in storytelling, not just brilliance (which also is rare, I must say). As you can easily guess from my rating of 10 out of 10, “12th Fail” is such a movie for me.

This is the story of Manoj Kumar Sharma (Vikram Massey). As the movie opens, we see him as a student living in a remote village in the infamous Chambal area. He is preparing notes to carry with him in the exam hall, so that he can cheat. Not because he is a bad person, but that’s all the kids in that school know and are expected to do In order to clear the 12th exam. Even their teacher helps them cheat. This nicely sets up the context for the rest of the movie. This is the life, this is the environment, this is the reality from which Manoj Kumar Sharma has to start his journey to clear one of the most competitive exams in India and become an IPS Officer. He gets that inspiration from an honest police officer who is unafraid to fight against the system.

Getting inspiration, as we all know, is the easy part. Everywhere in the world and definitely in India, the odds are stacked against people like Manoj. The movie follows his struggles along the long road to his eventual success. This is not a spoiler, as it’s not a suspense how the movie is going to end. 

What I found to be one salient feature of this movie, is the focus on positivism. This is not a tear jerker, although I did cry at the end, but with happiness. Along the way, Manoj gets help from many sources. His family gives him unconditional support, in whatever way each can.  A restaurant owner (and a complete stranger) feeds him without taking money. Another stranger, Pritam (Anant Joshi) becomes a friend and takes him to Delhi and allows him to stay with him. Gauri Bhaiya (Anshuman Pushkar) tutors him and offers him a room to stay. I will let you notice other acts of kindness, but suffice it to say, Manoj doesn’t fight a lonely battle, and others see his battle as their own and genuinely want him to succeed. Of course, the most important support comes from his girlfriend and future wife, Shraddha Joshi (Medha Shankar).

This focus on positivity during a tough struggle with honest no-frills storytelling is what I found so refreshing. I don’t know if this is unique, but it’s rare. I didn’t notice any melodramatic moments, any cinematographic tricks or anything that feels forced. Maybe there were. I was so riveted watching the people in the story, that I certainly didn’t notice any, if there was. The scene near the end of the movie, where the results of the exam are announced, manages to move us, even when it’s completely expected, because it feels so real. This is how people would react in real life. I cried with them, joining in their happiness.

Which brings me to the people in the story, the actors. Everyone is incredible. Perfect casting, perfect acting. I will have to praise each and every actor, and the list is long, so I will skip it. But it would be criminal to not mention Vikram Massey, who has given a performance that I will list amongst the greatest ever. It doesn’t even remotely feel like he was acting. A true definition of “natural”. To use the cliche, this is an Oscar worthy performance. 

Many years ago, I watched a movie that I thought was unlike any other I had watched till then. That movie was “Parinda” and it made me forever remember Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s name. Some of his later movies, where he collaborated with Raj Hirani (3 Idiots, Munnabhai) are amongst the best of the Bollywood movies, but they don’t have the stark reality of Parinda and 12th Fail. Parinda, and the pervasive atmosphere of dread stayed with me for many days afterwards. This movie 12th Fail, also stayed with me for many days, but for exactly the opposite reasons, for its positivism and inspiration. And this time too, I feel like I have watched a movie unlike any other.

I cannot recommend this movie enough. If you don’t watch it, you are depriving yourself of a chance to enjoy one of the best movies ever made. The movie is very family friendly, and I am sure, teenagers would enjoy it.