TAARE ZAMEEN PAR
Cast: Darsheel Safary, Amir Khan
Direction and Producer: Amir Khan
Story: Ishaan Awasthi (Darsheel Safary), an eight-year old dyslexic child has difficulties in reading and spelling, as a result he performs miserably in academics. In contrast to this, Ishaan's elder brother, Yohaan is always at the top, be it in sports or studies. When Ishaan's academic report reaches nadir he is packed off to a boarding school by his father to be 'disciplined'. A temporary art teacher Ram Shankar Nikumbh( Aamir Khan) joins Ishaan's boarding school and soon notices Ishaan’s condition and approaches his parents and tries to convince them about it. However Ishaan's father remains skeptical and continues to brood over how Ishaan might not do well in the outside world where money earning is considered important for faring well in life, and not painting ability. Undaunted, Nikumbh who himself was dyslexic as a child takes it upon himself to develop and improve Ishaan's reading and writing abilities. With Nikumbh’s hard work and unique teaching style Ishaan finally overcomes his problems with characters and starts painting again. By the end of the year Ishaan not only performs above average in all his subjects but also wins a drawing competition organized by Nikumbh.
My Take: Everything about this movie is just perfect much in line with Amir’s earlier projects. Child actor Darsheel Safary is brilliant. Lyrics by Prasoon Joshi are just out of the world(specially the title song and a track named “Ma”)and will really touch your heart. Shankar Ehsaan Loy have given some unforgettable scores. But the real credit goes to debutant director Amir Khan not only for choosing a great plot but also for doing great justice to it. Hardly do we come across a mainstream bollywood movie which is entertaining and at the same time has such great social message at its heart. There are two scenes worth mentioning. First, where Nikumbh visits Ishaan’s house and tries to explain the root cause behind Ishaan’s problems to his parents. Ishaan’s father blindly refuses to listen to Nikumbh who then points out how burdened today’s child is. All parents want their children to be either engineer, doctor or an MBA, and in that cause spoil their children’s natural skills. Second is the one where Ishaan’s father visits Nikumbh and claims how caring he is. When Nikumbh states that caring isn’t just providing , it’s about making your child feel that you are always there for him Ishaan’s father leaves speechless realizing his folly. These two scenes summarizes the whole message of the movie.. “Every child is special” .
This movie, with its ability to entertain children and adults alike and at the same time make an attempt to change the way society treats its children, is definitely a must watch. No wonder the movie bagged eight Star Screen Awards.[see list]
