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In ‘3 Idiots’, Raju and Farhan got into Imperial College of Engineering (ICE), the top college in the country but performed poorly in studies. Reddit answers why.
Raju and Farhan’s academic abilities have been questioned by Reddit and X users. (Vinod Chopra Films)
In 3 Idiots (2009), a Rajkumar Hirani directorial, we learn about three students who find themselves in a shared hostel room situation at the prestigious Imperial College of Engineering (ICE). It’s quickly established that Farhan, played by R. Madhavan, is married to wildlife photography, but his fate has been sealed to the top-tier college to fulfil his Abba‘s wishes. Raju (Sharman Joshi), the second roommate, burns the midnight oil but fares poorly in examinations. He is constantly burdened by the fear of failure placed on him because of his parents’ fighting financial battles, along with an unwed sister at home. The third idiot in this rollercoaster tale is the curious genius, Rancho (Aamir Khan), a carefree student who is hungry to learn and just genuinely happy to be there.
As Rancho continues to excel with every passing semester, Boman Irani’s character, Virus, sternly warns both Raju and Farhan to stay away from Rancho because he neither has financial burdens nor struggles academically. The college director believes that the two idiots, who routinely find themselves in sticky situations, are destined to fail while they watch Rancho speedrun to success. He also had the safety net of “rich dad” if things were to go south for him, Virus reminds.
16 years after the movie released to a massive success in India and abroad, an innocuous post made on Reddit has made the Bollywood fans revisit the subplot of the movie and collectively ponder — if Raju and Farhan were really “stupid”, how did they even get into one of the top colleges in the country?
Posted on a subreddit about Btech, the question was debunked almost instantly.
Were They Idiots?
The short answer is no. Raju and Farhan were academically sound because they secured good grades in school, cracked the entrance tests, and earned a seat for themselves at the ICE.
“Top tier college mein top pe rehna is much much harder than getting into one (It’s easier to get into a top-tier college than stay at top in one),” wrote a Reddit user in response to the OP’s now-viral question.
Another user reasoned that the duo of Raju and Farhan didn’t work hard enough, which was indicative in their poor grades.
“They were not dumb, they were not just working hard after getting into college. I’m from a top-tier-ameer-baap-ki-bigdi-aulad university and one student from my batch made it to MIT. I know a lot of people/ organisations do not believe in it (IIMs, Trading firms, etc.) but what matters the most is not your past, it is your present. Make most of it (sic).”
“More like unserious or mentally drained to focus on college studies. Come to think of it, Raju’s lack of academic focus didn’t make sense given how bad of a situation his family was in. Farhan’s was an understandable quarrel between passion and societal pressure,” added a third. This was countered by a user who believed Raju lived under the weight of expectations, which reflected in his poor grades.
“Raju definitely didn’t lack academic focus, he was scared of not being able to fulfill expectations placed on him. Resorting to rote learning and superstition. The interview scene wasn’t about him get a job but about him finally getting enough confidence to say I’ll be able to do something good with my life even if I get rejected (sic).”
The viral 3 Idiots question was asked on X as well, where it received plenty of responses.
“School life is way different than college where you’re suddenly exposed to a broader vew [view] of the world. You might be a topper of your school, but then you see people much much better than you in your college life and you feel you’re not as good as you or the people from your earlier life thought you to be, (sic)” wrote an X user before adding, “That fear of not being good enough along with the performance pressure to keep up with the expectations can take a huge toll on a person. And the expectations here are not just from the others, the expectations from self also haunt you. You might get buried under these expectations and scumb [succumb] to the fear of not living upto the standards that you’ve set for yourself (sic).”
Anurag Verma, News Editor at News18.com, works independently for the Viral section. Bollywood, Cricket, Science, Tech, YouTube, Reddit, Meme Origins and everything Pop-culture are his forte. He covers humourous…Read More
Anurag Verma, News Editor at News18.com, works independently for the Viral section. Bollywood, Cricket, Science, Tech, YouTube, Reddit, Meme Origins and everything Pop-culture are his forte. He covers humourous… Read More
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