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Hic-hic-hiccup!

You've been cooped at home with a swollen ankle. Your pupils are permanently dilated from watching the pick of your favourite movie scenes on your phone. You are tempted to dump your diet and pop some corn in the microwave. The withdrawal symptoms are kicking in and it's time to take action. As I scroll through the options I realise that the only viable choice is Rani Mukherjee's Hichki.

Indifference is the looming feeling as I sit in the darkened movie hall for the horrifying tobacco ads to roll off and the movie to begin. A newborn baby would have figured out the plot from the promos so it's really only execution to look forward to.

A teacher, a class of underachievers and unconventional teaching methods tho transform the clad. An evil teacher and an unsupportive father who will both learn their lesson before the end credits roll on. The only difference with Hichki is that the teacher, Naina Mathur, played charmingly by Rani Mukherjee, suffers from Tourette Syndrome which causes strange sounds to burst from her throat without warning or control. Undeterred by rejections from 18 schools, Naina is determined to teach. She is finally hired by her own alma mater. But, that is the start of another obstacle course for her.

The class assigned to her, 9F, is a rogue class. Made upUnfortunatelywho were originally enrolled at the nearby municipal school, they have been inducted in this school because of the government's Right to Education initiative. The group SRS itself as different from the rest of the students and find out difficult to fit in. That, some of the teaches and students are not exactly happy to have them in their school does not help either. The second half of the story revolves around Naina's struggle to get 9F over the final exam obstacle.

It is a predictable plot. All that has to go wrong does, before it all ends well. It is the Rani Mukherjee show all the way and she does not put a foot wrong. The kids do their bit in a satisfactory manner. There are a few emotional moments that tug at the heart strings and squeeze tears into the eyes.

Unfortunately, the film stays in the watchable category and does not rise to the not-to-be-missed category. There is nothing that is wrong yet there is not enough that is fabulous.

A teacher-student relationship is easy to identify with, we've all had them. Most of us have had at least one teacher who impacted our life trajectory, I've had two. The first one was my grade 3 English teacher Ms. D'cruz. Bespectacled, with short grey hair that curled in at the nape and dressed in printed nylon calf-length dresses she made me fall in love with words and the stories they spun. A love that only grew with time

Years later, I attended a 6-session writing workshop that brought me within the periphery of Renu Balakrishnan and effectively changed my life. It was in her workshop that I revived what I thought was an adolescent infatuation to a lifelong romance - my love for words. And more than ten years later, she continues to be the staunchest  supporter of my writing endeavours and life decisions.

Here's to teachers!

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