The Expression Hub

Starring: Abhishek Bacchan, Nimrat Kaur, Yami Gautam Dhar, Shivankit Singh Parihar,Sachin Shroff

Directed By: Tushar Jalota

Genre: Comedy/ Drama

“Education’s purpose is to replace an empty mind with an open one.”

-Malcolm Forbes

Since, the election fever is at its peak, what better way to celebrate this so called carnival with some fascinating picks in the real as well as reel world. As promised by me to not let you get bored in the hot, sultry summer ,bringing to you a story which conveys a very important message in a comical manner, while keeping the theme in the mind. What is the story about and what message it conveys . Read on to find out more.

Story Line: Dasvi is a story which is set in the fictional state of Harit Pradesh(inspired by the real state of Uttar Pradesh of India). The state has a charismatic and an arrogant chief minister named Ganga Ram Chaudhary who is implicated in a scam. For this, he is sent to jail. Not willing to give up his reins over the state , he installs his wife as the interim Chief Minister of the state.

The wife, Bimla Devi who is a very timid person at first soon grows ambitious and plans to make her interim post permanent. Ganga Ram Chaudhary who is used to the luxuries of his mansion is treated like a regular prisoner thanks to a new superintendent of police posted in the jail where he is kept. He tries to make various excuses to make his life comfortable in the jail but fails. However, one day, he learns that students who study for 10th boards are exempted from doing any work. So, he decides to sit for the same. The superintendent , Jyoti Deshwal sees this as one of his schemes to avoid work but has to allow him for the same -thanks to the right to education act. Will Ganga Ram Chaudhary, who is mocked for his lack of education be able to complete the challenge and fulfil his mother’s dream of passing the boards? Also, will Bimla Devi hand over the reins to her husband or will her ambitious nature drive a wedge between the two?

Scrutiny: This is a movie which tries to highlight the importance of education in a person’s life. To a person, education might be his or her way of climbing a social ladder and a way to earn respect as well as status. This is well reflected by the character of Gangaram’s secretary Tandon who is an IAS officer by profession. While, on the other hand , some view education as a waste of time until and unless they realize their importance. This is the case of Gangaram Chaudhary who initially is pretty ignorant about the field of education. But change begins to take place when he starts preparing for his tenth board exams seriously. The movie tries to highlight the point that no matter how powerful a man might be , but without education he or she is not subject to change in behaviour.

The movie also highlights the adage,”Power corrupts but absolute power corrupts absolutely” through the character of Bimla Devi who occupies the seat temporarily but refuses to give up the seat and instead plots ways to make her permanent.This also highlights another key point in the field of politics- and that is there are no permanent friends or enemies in the field of politics.

The positives of the movie are : wonderful histrionics by Abhishek Bacchan , Nimrat Kaur and Yami Gautam with a special mention for Arun Kushwaha who shines as Ghanti. The innovative learning techniques adopted by Gangaram Chaudhary to ace his 10th board exams and the determination which he has to achieve his goal no matter the obstacles thrown at him. The negatives are – the story is somewhat predictable and some scenes just make you laugh in disbelief as they tend to come from some other parallel universe.

The sentiment: A light-hearted movie which can be enjoyed with your family with some interesting twists is how I would like to sum up this experience. This one can surely lighten up your mood in this festival of democracy. And who knows might inspire you to take your studies seriously or give you some political goals to achieve. 😅😂

Rating: ***

Quote–Unquote: “Itihaas se na sikhane wale
khud itihaas ban jate hai.“(Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it”)

Que: What is the party symbol of the party from which Gangaram Chaudhary contests his election in the second half?
a. Elephant

b. Sickle

c. Fan

d. Pencil