Notwithstanding the few cynics, Rajkumar Hirani’s 3 Idiots has no haters and is sort of a modern classic. So much so that in a recent podcast, former Google CEO Sundar Pichai drew parallels to the motor scene from 3 Idiots to articulate his point that “real success comes from understanding things in a deeper way.”

At one level, 3 Idiots is the story of friendship—of Farhan Qureshi and Raju Rastogi going in search of their disappeared best friend and classmate, Rancho. But beyond the depth of this friendship, the reason for its global resonance and impact was due to its bold portrayal of the malaise of social and educational systems—systems which often confuse ruthlessness for rigour and price for value. 

But how do we understand Education as a social practice ?What is the role of Competition and Efficiency in it ? To understand this, we look at the distinction made by the Scottish philosopher Alasdair MacIntyre between external and internal goods of a social practice. 

Let’s go find the spirit of education, one where there is space for Sunshine, for Rain, and  for Second Chances. Let’s do the right thing for the right reason.