12th Fail

Manoj as a character is such an idealist that Vikrant somehow seems like the best fit for the role. Massey has delivered his career best as Manoj. There is a thin line between being an idealist and pretending to be one, Massey treads carefully and doesn’t overplay his role even once. There is a sense of innocence-like-quality to Manoj, who doesn’t know anything better. He grew up with his idealist father, so it is no rocket-science to see Manoj has this ‘steel-like-confidence. Vikrant shoulders the entire film on his own, which is commendable. He doesn’t lose touch with Manoj even once, and there is absolutely no way to stop harping about his acting prowess.Â

There is a double take moment: A film like 12th Fail, directed by Vidhu Vinod Chopra, gets into Prakash Jha's Hindi heartland territory and emerges with his cinematic abilities, polished and gleaming.

At 147 minutes, 12th Fail never stretches to a point that it gets boring or preachy. It keeps the tension, chaos, hustle and that pace intact, which make it an engaging watch. Chopra ensures that in every subplot or track he introduces, there's a story of its own and not at once, any of them look forced in the screenplay. Be it Manoj's friend Pandey, a government servant's son, or Manoj's mentor Gauri bhaiya (Anshuman Pushkar), who after failing to fulfil his dream of becoming an IPS, devotes his life to training others and getting them to restart in life - everyone has a story if their own, narrated with nuances. Chopra has kept the dialogues simplistic, but they hit you hard and leave a lasting impact.

A few portions sag, and I had to work at wrapping my head around the fact that the very bright Shraddha believes for so long that Manoj is more educated than he actually is: it would have been apparent the moment he opens his mouth. There’s also the all-knowing voiceover, truly such a tired device: why underline things we can see with our own eyes? But the inspiring story of Manoj Kumar Sharma, whose success is not just his own, but of each person who helps him reach his destination, and who clings to his hard-won belief that honesty is the best policy, and that corruption is not always the default option, is the balm that our cynical times need.