PROJECT

IN
ENGLISH FOR
ACADEMIC AND
PROFESSIONAL
PURPOSES
SUBMITTED BY: JOSUA MICLAT
SUBMITTED TO: SHARMAIN CAPUNGGAN
Introduction
An Indian movie called "3 Idiots" is on the lives of three engineers who attended the Imperial College of
Engineering, one of India's top universities. The movie name doesn’t sound so pleasing as they have
used an unfavorable word. “Idiot”, a stupid person or a person of low intelligence. It’s used for negative
feedback on a specific person, but in this case or in this movie to be exact, the word idiot was used in a
different way. Coming from various backgrounds, the three proclaimed “idiots”, Farhan Qureshi, Raju
Rastogi, and Rancchoddas Shyamaldas Chanchad also known as “Rancho”, will become the trio of one of
the best universities in India. The story circulates about the life of these three idiots as a college student
but will mainly circle inside the wisdom and knowledge of Rancho. His intelligence and wittiness seemed
entertaining to all his classmate and friends but he believed in hands-on learning and tend to give
unorthodox answers in class, resulting in him coming conflict with his professors including the
institution’s director Professor Viru Sahastrabuddhe widely known as ViruS. ViruS's traditional and strict
philosophies on education contrast sharply with Rancho's carefree love of learning. Meanwhile, Chatur
nicknamed “Silencer", is an arrogant Ugandan Tamil student with little knowledge of Hindi, who is
obsessed with topping the exams and invariably learns by rote. Standing by their new beliefs as inspired
by Rancho, the three friends will face obstacles that will test their loyalty and determination.

Body
The story plot had all the twist and turns. It was unexpected because of the escalation of some scenes
and then de-escalate all of a sudden. I had mixed emotions watching the movie. Regardless, the plot was
still perfect for the portrayal of the movie.
Some honorable mention in the movie:
Farhan Qureshi’s point of view

Farhan Qureshi is studying engineering to pursue his father's wishes. But his one real passion though is
wildlife photography. As said by his father to Rancho during a confrontation, they have invested all their
money in Farhan's studies. They didn't buy a car or an extra air conditioner (only Farhan's room had AC)
because they prioritized Farhan's study needs. Coming from a struggling middle class family, Farhan is
pressured to finish engineering to compensate the sacrifice of his family. But in the course of the story,
Farhan adopts the outlook of Rancho to pursue one's true passion. He gathers the courage to take a
stand and convinces his father to believe in his dream of becoming a photographer. Farhan
demonstrates the lesson of courage to believe in your passion and follow your happiness, and not just to
live for the approval of others, as seen in the words of his father when they argued over his career
change, "The world will laugh. They will say that you reached the final year and quit." But in the end of
their quarrel, the final response of Farhan's father demonstrated and taught us humility, open-
mindedness, the willingness to understand, and the untiring love of a parent.

Raju Rastogi’s point of view

Raju Rastogi comes from a poor family. Raju's father is a retired post master who had become a
paralytic. His mother is a retired school teacher. Most of their income went to his father's medication.
The scene in Raju's house depicted a poverty-stricken family with a paralytic father who "lay on a small
bed", a coughing mother, a sofa with springs coming out, a dripping roof, and "a sister waiting to get
married" (because they had no dowry to give for her marriage). Raju was always afraid and so relied on
lucky charms for a less scary future. Later, Raju will face a possible expulsion from college which can only
be revoked if he witnessed for Mr. Virus, the college director, for the expulsion of his friend, Rancho.
Not wanting to betray his friend nor face his parents' heartbreak with his getting expelled, Raju attempts
suicide and ends up in a comma. But with the constant care and support of his mother and friends, Raju
recovers and gains new found confidence as influenced in him by Rancho. With this, he will impress
corporate agents in one job interview and get hired. In the story, Raju gets a chance to cheat to pass a
difficult exam but refuses to, and chooses to make it with "his own ability". Raju's character
demonstrated valuing genuine friendships, courageous honesty, and earning your way fairly.

Rancchoddas Shyamaldas Chanchad’s (Rancho) point of view

He was introduced a gifted as student with a practical mind, a noble character, and an outlook that
didn't agree with the school system and the family traditions in the story. Rancho didn't bother to
compete for grades or adopt to the college's dog-eat-dog system. Professor Virus despised Rancho and
how Rancho outwitted him in most of their arguments. Professor Virus thought that grades and the
favor of his teachers didn't bother Rancho because he was a rich man's son. If he doesn't graduate on
time, he could afford to come back the following year. Rancho, Raju and Farhan will become best of
friends. In the movie, we see how the attitudes and outlook of Raju and Farhan are reformed by
Rancho's friendship and by the excellence he exhibited in his studies and projects. Rancho would also
later win the respect of Professor Virus. This is after the professor experiences for himself Rancho's
nobility and witness Rancho's gift with machines when his daughter would give birth in a table-tennis
room. This incident will change the way the director perceived Rancho. Despite the hurdles Rancho
faced at ICE, he earns the engineering degree and graduates as the top student. He then vanishes, to be
sought after by his friends 10 years later. As they searched for Rancho, they are surprised to discover
Rancho's true identity. Rancho is really the son, not of a rich man, but of a rich man's gardener. Since
childhood, Rancho already displayed so much desire to learn. Because his father's boss wanted a good
reputation for his son-the real Rancchoddas Chanchad-the rich man proposed to send Rancho to school
to earn an engineering degree using his son's name. Finally finding Rancho, his friends learn his real
name, Phunsukh Wangdu, now a renowned scientist who is sought all over the world. We learn a lot
from Rancho's free spirit. He refused to imprison himself in competition and expectation. He was
excellent but his purpose is not for recognition or just to impress others. He lived the desires of his
heart, which machines and great are friendships. His mantra, "Aal izz well. Aal izz well" also known as
“all is well”, reminds us that we cannot control situations, but we can control our attitude and
perspective. Rancho also talks a lot. He does a lot of explaining and convincing to his friends. But he
backed up his words with weightier deeds of love, kindness, and sacrifice. And I think that is what the
writer intended to convey-that his deeds more than his words are what really won the people around
him. In real life, I believe that the qualities of Rancho-nobility and excellence without conceit-are
attainable through passion combined with faith in God.

Professor Viru Sahastrabudhhe’s (Virus) point of view

Professor Viru Sahastrabudhhe (Virus), director of ICE, he is the adversary" of Rancho and the one sets
the "compete or die" System at ICE. By excellence he meant being ahead of everyone else. He despised
Rancho who opposed to his beliefs. However, Rancho always outsmarted him. In the story, Professor
Virus is the figurative "murderer". His extreme conviction to always push oneself to the limit provoked
three suicide incidents in the story-that of Raju, of another student named Joy, and of his own son (as a
backstory). At first, Mr. Virus thought his son's death was just an accident. Later, he will learn that his
son committed suicide because he wanted to quit engineering and become a writer instead. After
learning this, and after Rancho performs the emergency birth delivery of Prof. Virus' daughter (as
mentioned earlier), Prof. Virus outlook changes as well as his perception of Rancho. Here, we learn that
the best way to a man's heart is through "junior" (or daughter). Also, we are reminded again of the
importance of communication. Prof. Virus didn't know that his son detested engineering so much that
he preferred to commit suicide.

Chatur Ramalingam’s (Silencer) point of view

He was called as such because he drank pills that would make him pass gas. He would take these pills
nearing the exams so when he passes gas, the unpleasant odor would distract his roommates from
studying well. He thought this would give him a better chance of topping the exams. Chatur was also
excellent. In fact, he was second in score rank to Rancho. But Chatur was always miserable, because like
Prof. Virus, getting ahead of everyone was his ultimate goal. Chatur reminds me of the story of a frog
who wanted to be the highest "jumper" in his pack so he cut the hind legs of the other frogs. From
Chatur's bad example, we are reminded of a good lesson that says, the only person you need to be
better than is the person you were yesterday. Towards the end of the story, Chatur, along with Raju and
Farhan, finds Rancho 10 years later. Thinking that Rancho became a primary school teacher, Chatur
mocks Rancho's work and salary. Another good lesson here is to not be quick to speak, judge, or boast
as Chatur did who belittled Rancho just before finding out who Rancho had actually become. Rancho,
who is actually the renowned scientist, Phunsukh Wangdu, and who had 400 patents to his name, is the
same man he's looking for to woo and get to sign a multi-million-dollar deal with his company.

Conclusion
Overall, 3idiots is a truly engaging film. The story is brilliant and the lessons to be learned are immense.
We see the importance of extending a little understanding and consideration and the danger of holding
it back. A little understanding could mean a lifetime of happiness; and depriving it could lead to serious
depressions, miseries, and even death. I believe that the life stories of the characters in this movie are
very relatable-peer pressure, poverty, and family's expectations. But the story is also very liberating-
don't be a prisoner of expectations and competitions. Be free to live your dream.