Student of the Year: A Deep Dive into Bollywood's High School Drama

Introduction

"Student of the Year" is a 2012 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy-drama film directed by Karan Johar, written by Rensil D'Silva, and produced by Dharma Productions and Red Chillies Entertainment. The film stars debutantes Sidharth Malhotra, Alia Bhatt and Varun Dhawan with an ensemble supporting cast consisting of Rishi Kapoor, Ronit Roy, Sahil Anand, Manjot Singh, Ram Kapoor and Farida Jalal, while former child artists Sana Saeed and Kayoze Irani, whose father Boman appears in a brief role, make their screen debuts as adults. The film revolves around the lives of students at St. Teresa's College, exploring themes of friendship, love, competition, and the pressures of youth. It received mixed reviews from critics with praise for its cast performances, technical aspects, direction and music, but criticized its script. At the 58th Filmfare Awards, Student of the Year received 4 nominations including Best Male Debut (Malhotra and Dhawan) and Best Female Debut (Bhatt), and won the R. D. Burman Award for upcoming musical talent (Neeti Mohan). A standalone sequel titled Student of the Year 2 was released on 10 May 2019 with Punit Malhotra as director and Tiger Shroff, Tara Sutaria and Ananya Pandey in the lead roles.

Plot Overview

At the esteemed St. Teresa's College, Rohan "Ro" Nanda is the handsome, rich, and popular younger son of its trustee, Ashok Nanda, an influential business tycoon. Ashok dislikes Ro’s passion for music and wants him to become a businessman like his elder son Ajay. Shanaya Singhania, a beautiful, rich, and popular girl at college, is Rohan’s girlfriend and feels dissatisfied with Ro's constant flirtations with her rival Tanya Israni. Abhimanyu "Abhi" Singh, a handsome new student from a middle-class family who idolizes Ashok, soon becomes the college's heartthrob. Abhi is an orphan whose grandmother is the only person he truly loves. He and Ro initially do not get along but soon become best friends after a football match. Ro introduces him to Shanaya, reminding him not to get involved with her, and Abhi maintains that he is uninterested.

At Ajay's wedding, Shanaya sees Ro flirting with Tanya and feels betrayed. She openly flirts with Abhi, who tacitly hints her off to make Ro jealous. Abhi starts falling for Shanaya but keeps his feelings to himself. Back at the school, the annual Student of the Year competition commences under Dean Yogendra "Yogi" Vashisht. The game rounds are a quiz test, a treasure hunt and a dance battle. Shanaya slowly develops feelings for Abhi over the course of the competition. The trio passes the quiz test and treasure hunt, but before the dance battle, Abhi's grandmother becomes ill and dies. After comforting Abhi, Shanaya and Abhi kiss in a tender moment, which Ro witnesses. Ro & Abhi fight, resulting in a fallout between him, Abhi, and Shanaya.

Following an intense confrontation regarding his future with Ashok back home, Ro becomes determined to win the competition. Shanaya and her best friend Shruti Pathak fall out over the competition, much like Ro and his longtime friend Jeet Khurana after Jeet asks Shanaya to be his dance partner. The final round of the competition is a triathlon consisting of swimming, cycling and long-distance running. Abhi, in the lead, slows down during the end after realizing how important the competition is for Ro, resulting in Ro winning the competition. However, Ro declines to accept the award, citing personal reasons. After Ro steps down, Yogi is heavily criticised by Ro and Abhi’s mutual friend Kaizad "Sudo" Sodabottleopenerwala, who rants about how the entire concept of the Student of the Year competition has always been rigged. He claims the competition broke their friendship of two years and was unfair to people like him, who were not as popular and attractive as Abhi or Ro. This causes Yogi to retire eventually.

Ten years later, Yogi, terminally ill and on his deathbed, requests to see the students from his last batch. Some arrive to meet him, along with former coach Karan Shah, and hold themselves responsible for the lively Dean's falling ill. Ro is now a rock musician, and Abhi is now an investment banker married to Shanaya. They run into each other when they visit Yogi; in an argument which initially starts off over their shared history and conduct with Shanaya, the two begin releasing the anger they have held back for the last ten years. Ro ultimately reveals he is greatly pissed off at what he considers an intentional move on Abhi's part to lose the triathlon; he reveals that he intentionally allowed him to win after noticing Ashok was happy to see his son losing, and it was his way of surpassing Ashok in stature. While bickering, they end up in a friendly banter, much like in college, and finally reconcile, rekindling their friendship. Yogi apologises to his former students and dies at peace.

Cast and Characters

Sidharth Malhotra as Abhimanyu "Abhi" Singh: A middle-class orphan who becomes the college's heartthrob. He idolizes Ashok Nanda and develops a close friendship and rivalry with Rohan.
Alia Bhatt as Shanaya Singhania: A beautiful and popular girl, Rohan's girlfriend, who finds herself caught between Rohan and Abhimanyu.
Varun Dhawan as Rohan "Ro" Nanda: The rich and popular son of a business tycoon, torn between his passion for music and his father's expectations.
Rishi Kapoor as Dean Yogendra "Yogi" Vashisht: The flamboyant and gay dean of St. Teresa's, whose Student of the Year competition sparks rivalry and drama.
Ronit Roy as Coach Karan Shah: The football coach at St. Teresa's.

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Sahil Anand as Jeet Khurana: Rohan's friend.
Manjot Singh as Dimpy: A student at St. Teresa's.
Ram Kapoor as Ashok Nanda: Rohan's father, an influential business tycoon.
Farida Jalal as Abhi's Grandmother: The only family Abhimanyu has.
Sana Saeed as Tanya Israni: Shanaya's rival.

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Kayoze Irani as Kaizad "Sudo" Sodabottleopenerwala: A student who criticizes the Student of the Year competition.

Production

The first official trailer was released on 2 August 2012. Most parts of the film were shot in Kashmir and Forest Research Institute, Dehradun. The external view of the school is that of the Kasiga School, Dehradun. The hospital scenes were filmed outside The Lalit, Grand Palace, Srinagar. Parts of the film were also shot in Thailand. Rob Miller, who had previously worked with Shah Rukh Khan on Chak De! India, was involved in the production.

Tata Motors, the on-ground promotion partner for the film, launched the 'Nano Student of the Year' contest judging students on academics, culture, sports, and social life. The makers partnered with FedEx Express announcing a special 'FedEx Student Offer' and launch of 'FedEx International Student of the Year' campaign.

Music

The soundtrack was composed by Vishal-Shekhar with the lyrics penned by Anvita Dutt Guptan.

Reception

Critical Response

Taran Adarsh of Bollywood Hungama gave 4/5 stars and wrote "Student of the Year is a love story that traverses the trodden path. But KJo is an artisan with intellect and taste and he ensures that the script is spruced up and modernized with such elan that it doesn't offend the spectator's wisdom or intelligence." He added, "This is an escapist cinema at its best! Raita Tandon of Filmfare gave 4/5 stars, stating that the "world is surreal and spectacular yet it has moments that will bring you back to reality and warm the cockles of your heart. Anupama Chopra of Hindustan Times gave 3/5 stars and wrote "Karan Johar's forte is excess. He creates fantastical worlds brimming with beautiful people and expensive things and yet anchors them in high emotion. His films work as both designer-porn and soap-opera." She also praised the performance of the cast. Saibal Chatterjee of NDTV gave 2.5/5 stars, commenting that "Student of the Year definitely isn't the film of the year. Ananya Bhattacharya of Zee News gave 2/5 stars, saying that "Student of the Year is worth a watch only for the debutantes. Critics were skeptical over the success of the much-hyped film.

Box Office

Student of the Year was released on 19 October 2012 in India and emerged as a commercial success at the box office.

Themes and Analysis

Friendship and Rivalry

The film explores the complexities of friendship, particularly in a competitive environment. The bond between Rohan and Abhimanyu is tested by their rivalry in the Student of the Year competition and their shared feelings for Shanaya. The film suggests that true friendship can withstand competition and misunderstandings, as seen in their eventual reconciliation.

The Pressure of Expectations

Rohan's character highlights the pressure faced by young people to meet their parents' expectations. His father's disapproval of his passion for music and desire for him to become a businessman creates conflict and drives Rohan's determination to win the competition.

The Nature of Competition

The Student of the Year competition serves as a microcosm of the larger competitive world. The film questions the value of such competitions, as highlighted by Sudo's rant about how the competition broke friendships and was unfair to those who were not popular or attractive.

Stereotypes and Clichés

Some critics pointed out the film's reliance on stereotypes and clichés, with characters representing typical "high school kids." The film's portrayal of the gay dean, Yogendra Vashisht, also drew criticism for perpetuating stereotypes about gay people.

The Fantasy World of Karan Johar

Karan Johar is known for creating fantastical worlds in his films, filled with beautiful people, expensive things, and high emotion. "Student of the Year" is no exception, with its grand boarding school setting, designer labels, and glamorous characters. While some appreciate this escapist cinema, others find it unrealistic and lacking in substance.

Controversies and Criticisms

Portrayal of Homosexuality

The character of Dean Yoginder Vashisht and the jokes about homosexuality in the film drew criticism for perpetuating negative stereotypes. Some felt that the film implied that gay people cannot be happy and will die lonely.

Glorification of Elitism

The film's focus on rich and privileged students and its portrayal of a glamorous and unrealistic school environment led to accusations of glorifying elitism.

Legacy

Despite mixed reviews, "Student of the Year" launched the careers of Sidharth Malhotra, Alia Bhatt, and Varun Dhawan, who have since become successful actors in Bollywood. The film's music and fashion trends also had an impact on popular culture.

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