''Chalk n Duster'' is a 2016 Indian

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

about commercialization of the Indian private education system, starring

Shabana Azmi Shabana Azmi (born 18 September 1950) is an Indian actress of Hindi film, television and theatre. One of India's most acclaimed actresses, Azmi is known for her portrayals of distinctive, often unconventional female characters across several ge ...

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Zarina Wahab Zarina Wahab is an Indian actress who predominantly worked in Hindi and Malayalam films. Known for critically acclaimed roles in ''Chitchor'' and '' Gopal Krishna'' in Hindi and Malayalam cinema with films like ''Madanolsavam'', ''Chamaram'', ...

Girish Karnad Girish Karnad (19 May 1938 – 10 June 2019) was an Indian actor, film director, Kannada writer, playwright and a Jnanpith awardee, who predominantly worked in South Indian cinema and Bollywood. His rise as a playwright in the 1960s marked the ...

and

Divya Dutta Divya Dutta (born 25 September 1977) is an Indian actress and model. She has appeared in Hindi and Punjabi cinema, in addition to Malayalam and English-language films. She has received many awards including a National Film Award, a Filmfare Aw ...

. The film talks about teachers' and students' communication, and highlights the problem of teachers and students in an educational system which is changing day by day. The film was directed by Jayant Gilatar, written by Ranjeev Verma and Neetu Verma and produced by Amin Surani. Upon release, the film received mixed reviews from critics. The ''Hindustan Times'' said, "It’s a well told ethics versus greed story". The film was made tax free in Delhi, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

Plot

Vidya is one of the senior staff members at this fair to middling educational institution, which has thus far functioned smoothly under the able hands of Principal Indu Shastry (Zarina Wahab). Everything changes with the appointment of the new principal. The teachers face unpleasant surprises when the popular and considerate Indu is replaced by the ambitious and cut-throat Kamini, who aspires to upscale this middle-class school. Teachers' chairs are removed from the classrooms, the tea is no longer free and subjects are juggled so that, for example, the overweight Hindi teacher is now assigned physical training spoiling the whole dynamics of the school. All of this is too much for the good-hearted Vidya, who suffers a heart attack after a sudden and unfair dismissal. In solidarity, her friend and colleague Jyoti decides to take on Kamini and the misdirected board of trustees, led by Anmol (Arya Babbar). This entails using a TV channel as a platform for reminding viewers that teachers need support, recognition and more pay. The drama ends with a recovered Vidya and Jyoti taking on a ''Who Wants to Be A Millionaire''-style quiz to win 5 crore rupees. The trade-off is that if they lose, they will have to accept their termination and leave their profession respectively. Vidya and Jyoti use their talents and win the quiz battle. Unwillingly, the trustee Anmol signs the bank cheque of 5 crore rupees. The principal Kamini apologizes to Vidya and Jyoti publicly on the TV show. At the end, Vidya reveals that she will be handing over the money to former principal Indu to build a school where no teacher will be discriminated against and students will have a good education for less cost.

Cast

as Vidya Sawant *

as Jyoti Thakur *

as Kamini Gupta, Principal of Kantaben High School *

Upasna Singh Upasana Singh (born 29 June 1975) is an Indian actress and stand-up comedian. Singh is known for her role as a deaf-mute in the 1997 film '' Judaai''. Later on, she got famous for her negative portrayal in ''Son Pari'' as Cruella/Kalipari, a ...

as Manjeet *

as Manohar Sawant *

as Indu Shastry *

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as Sunil Thakur, Jyoti's Husband *

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as Naresh Patel, Principal of DGM School *

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as Anmol Parekh, Kantaben High School's Trustee *

Richa Chaddha Richa Chadda (born 18 December 1986) is an Indian actress who works in Hindi films. After debuting in a small role in the comedy film ''Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!'' (2008), Chadda's breakthrough came in 2012 with a supporting role in the noir gangs ...

as Bhairavi Thakkar, News Reporter *

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IAS officer *

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as Naresh Patel's daughter *

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Host Of The Quiz Contest (Special Appearance) * Karan Singh Chhabra * Kabir Arora * Akshita Arora * Naveen Sharma * Salman Shaikh as Deepak Rajgaur * Ranjeev verma * Neetu verma * Yug * Jasbir Thandi

Soundtrack

Reception

According to Meena Iyer of ''

Times of India ''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English language, English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, t ...

'' ''Chalk N Duster'' has its heart in the right place. Made with an intention of showcasing the worms in the current education system, this film can be lauded to some degree - and gave it a 2.5/5 rating.

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, 4600778 2016 films 2016 drama films Indian drama films 2010s Hindi-language films Films about educators Films set in schools Schools in fiction Films about the education system in India 2010s high school films Films scored by Sandesh Shandilya Sony Pictures Networks India films Hindi-language drama films Columbia Pictures films Sony Pictures films