Very rarely do you come across a movie with a serious subject at its core, given a lovely, light treatment that entertains, and leaving you inspired! Hindi Medium is one such movie that will make you laugh, make you happy, and yet, leave you with some open questions, tugging at your heart to do something about it.
Mita and Raj Batra, are an affluent self-made couple from Delhi’s Chandni Chowk, who own a thriving "original fakes" garments business and drive a swanky BMW. They want the best for their only daughter, but it's not going to be a cake walk. Unable to impress the elite schools with their Hindi, their "consultant" suggest another way - grab a seat through the RTE quota. There is only one problem though - they will need to pass the inspection, and that means, giving up the comforts of their home and living in a slum until the inspector is convinced they are poor enough to merit the RTE seat.
The film deals with a couple of very relevant topics in today's India - the class divisions around language, and the pressure on parents to get their kids admitted in elite schools, and the underlying "business" of education! Irrfan is dependable as usual, while our Western neighbor, Saba Qamar, quite pulls her own with an impressive debut in Bollywood. Deepak Dobriyal has a small but significant role as their "khandaani gareeb" friend and neighbor, who teaches the Batras the art of living, in more ways than one!
The first half is delightful; the second half gets a little stretched and over-dramatic, although it serves to drive home the point and leave you with something to chew on. If you haven't seen this one yet, not a bad way to spend the rest of your weekend!
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