“ Taare Zameen Par” register phenomenal box office success

Aamir Khan has done it again. He is a visionary, we have to grant him that. The trend started with “Dil Chahata Hai”,when the whole young brigade went gaga over his portrayal of friendship and unconditional love in the movie, along with stellar performances by Saif Ali Khan, Akshaye Khanna, Preity Zinta, Dimple and others. Then came “Lagaan”, and the whole nation swayed to the tunes of patriotic zest,that reached a crescendo in “Rang De Basanti”. His iconic performance in the movie made him a superhero of sorts, and it was acclaimed by the critics and the mass audience alike.

So everybody, specially his fans, waited with bated breath for his directorial venture named “Taare Zameen Par”, and he has not disappointed them. The movie has set new standards for Bollywood sensitivity, and the heart rendering tale of a child suffering from Dyslexia, being relegated to almost being a mentally disabled child shunned and ridiculed by the society, his friends, and even by his own family; and the way he overcomes this problem with the help of a sympathetic and kind teacher played by Aamir himself, has brought tears to everyone’s eyes—be it a stoic politician or a staunch film critic! The movie has grossed Rs 770 million in its fourth week and is still going strong. According to box office predictions , it will even outshine Shahrukh Khan’s blockbuster ‘Om Shanti Om’, if it continues this dream run for few more weeks. “Om Shanti Om” has been the biggest grosser last year, but it seems lacklusture in terms of content and minimalism when compared to “Taare Zameen Par”. Shahrukh’s “Om Shanti Om” was a tribute to a bygone era of bollywood with retro flavor, and boasted of the charming and effervescent Deepika Padukone, but Darsheel Safary as the eight year old Ishaan Awasthi in “ Taare Zameen Par” is a revelation as an actor. He is spontaneous, lovable, and carries the film completely on his shoulder.

Earlier movies like “Black”(2005), “Dard Ka Rishta”( 1983), “Sparsh”(1986)or even regional movies like “Shwaas”(2004)in Marathi , “Koni”(1990) in Bengali etc have tried to portray physically or mentally disabled protagonists , but none could tug the emotional chord of mass audience as well as intellectual movie buffs in the same manner as “Taare Zameen Par” has done. Kudos To Aamir Khan for making a movie that is sincere, earnest and gives a feeling of all encompassing warmth about humanity that indeed recreates the starry magic on silverscreen.