Super 30 isn’t really super, but it doesn’t suck

That’s… not how the JEE Aspirants are

I’ve been sceptical of this film since the day it was announced. Bollywood isn’t really known for getting reality right. Not long before the movie was announced, I had read the biography and the true story behind Super 30, and I was really looking forward to how Bollywood makes this a masala film… I just didn’t imagine this. Sure, I expected that they’ll somehow get romance in the film even though Anand’s life had none, because a bollywood movie without romance?? That can’t happen, can it?! Somehow, they were able to keep the romantic plot in very limits, which wasn’t frustrating at all. The thing that was frustrating, or actually 2 things, were the climax & Hrithik Roshan.

You can not expect the Greek God of India to look like a poor Bihari teacher, regardless how good an actor he is. Just, no. It hadn’t made sense when the casting was announced, nor it does once I’ve watched the film. Till the very end, you tell yourself, oh that’s supposed to be Anand Kumar. One of the most disappointing performances Hrithik has given, with respect to acting & the accent. And, this is the guy who sang Senorita in Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara. Apart from Hritik, who was casted in a role made for Nawazuddin Siddiqui just for having bankability, others do put up an above average act for the film.

I don’t want to reveal what the climax is, but it’s stupid & unrealistic. After a really good first half, the movie goes into some really pointless directions post the interval, which are the reason I’m finding it hard to write a decent review. A lot of the truths are hidden from the film, which were true incidents according to the biography. This includes a very, very major part – The Ramanujan School of Mathematics. The reason the film didn’t even mention it is simple enough. This is this school which has been creating all controversies around Super 30 in real life. Including it wouldn’t have hurt But, not including this takes away the credibility of the film. Apart from this, and the climax, the plot is quite accurate to how things were in real life, with limited cinematic liberties.

The soundtrack, sound mixing, editing, direction & kind of all other factors are strictly average, just like the whole film. Jugraafiya is a beautiful track, but Basanti No Dance is a pointless stretch.

I’ve been a JEE 2019 Aspirant, so everything about JEE is really, really fresh in my mind. I want the director to know that it’s not possible for the best professors in IIT to solve JEE questions in 10 seconds, one after another. There are a lot of factual errors regarding the entrance exam the film is about, which though wouldn’t be noticed by general audience, I feel should’ve been researched well.

The story of Super 30 is something that should be made into a 10Cr budget film, starring Nawazuddin Siddiqui, and not what it was. Important factors, especially the struggles of the students themselves was missed out, trying to show a bigger budget picture. The story behind Super 30 is really inspiring, something the world should know, but not on the cost of it’s accuracy.

If you want to know the story of Anand Kumar & Super 30, this isn’t a bad film for that. But, I’d recommend the book or the documentary over this.

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