Paathshaala

Paathshaala, पाठशाला, is a 2010 Bollywood film that stars Shahid Kapoor, Ayesha Takia, Ali Haji and Nana Patekar and is directed by Milind Ukey. The film revolves around kids set in a school campus. It comments on the Indian education system and its shortcomings. Kapoor plays an English and music teacher in the film. It is inspired by the Marathi movie Shaala also directed by Milind Ukey. The film opened on 16 April 2010 to mixed reviews.


Plot

The story begins with a new English teacher Rahul Prakash Udyavar (Shahid Kapoor) joining Swaraswati Vidya Mandir school, situated in the Mumbai suburbs. He strikes instant rapport with students and teachers alike.
When Rahul Udyawar unifies the teachers (Ayesha Takia, Sushant Singh) against the atrocities of school management, the Principal Aditya Sahay (Nana Patekar) defends the management decision. This comes as a shocker to the teachers as Mr. Sahay is known for his dedication as an educator for the last 32 years which has built the school's high reputation. The situation becomes graver as school management becomes overambitious with its growth and involves media planners in the extracurricular activities. This demands the involvement of students in TV reality shows and many other media PR activities used for building up the school image in public which starts reflecting on the students' stress levels. The pressure on young minds increases incredibly, leading to unexpected and grim consequences.
Caught in the web of commercialization and internal rebellion, the school's situation becomes so explosive that it finally becomes a national issue.


Cast

Shahid Kapoor as Rahul Udyawar
Ayesha Takia as Anjali
Nana Patekar as Principle Aditya Sahay
Sushant Singh as Chauhan Sir
Saurabh Shukla as Sharma
Dwij Yadav
Master Ali Haji


Production

Most of the film was shot at Film City in Mumbai where the set of the Saraswati Vidya Mandir school was constructed.


]Music

The audio CD of the film was released in March 2010, and it contains 10 songs, including five original songs, four remixes, and one theme song.
"Aye Khuda" (Salim Merchant)
"Khushnuma" (Vishal Dadlani)
"Bekarar" (Lucky Ali)
"Mujhe Teri" (Tulsi Kumar, Hanif Sheikh, Akansha Lama)
"Teri Marzi Aye Khuda" (Kailash Kher)
"Aye Khuda - Remix" (Salim Merchant)
"Mujhe Teri - Remix" (Tulsi Kumar, Hanif Sheikh, Akansha Lama)
"Teri Marzi Aye Khuda - Remix" (Kailash Kher)
"Bekarar - Remix" (Lucky Ali)
"Paathshaala - Theme"


Critical reception

Paathshaala received mixed reviews from by top critics in India. It received 3.5/10 at ReviewGang . It has received 3 out of 5 from Indiatimes [4] The Times of India also gave the film 3 out of 5 saying, "Go for some serious viewing".. AOL India's Noyon Jyoti Parasara gave the film a mere 1.5 out of 5 and said, "Paathshaala’ does not have a screenplay. And it has bad dialogues made only worse by loud acting by most of the cast."  Indiafm's Taran Adarsh gave the film 2 out of 5 saying, "On the whole, PAATHSHAALA is a well-intentioned film, but lacks clarity thanks to an uninspiring screenplay".
[edit]Box office

The movie received a grand opening all over India. Jaipur, Jodhpur, and Udaipur started with 40–50 percent which went higher in subsequent shows. In Hyderabad, Punjab and Indore too it opened to 50-60 percent and is expected to go up show wise. In Mumbai Cinemax, Fun Republic and Fame Adlabs also received a good turnover on the opening day. Paathshaala grossed around 10 crore nett over its first week. The film started slow but managed to pick at places on Saturday and remained steady on the lower side over the weekdays. Although the film's second week was initially projected to earn more at the box office, earnings dropped 50% and the film was declared a "Below Average".
Source:wikipedia