Going to School in India

“I go to school because I want to do something with my life.” “No one in my family has ever been to school before.” “If I was able to fly anywhere, I would fly to school.” Going to School in India, a collection of nineGoing to School in India excellent short films, introduces viewers to these speakers: Zahida (age 12), who goes to a school in the middle of a lake in Kashmir; Veera Veni (9), who lives on a boat in Uttar Pradesh with her family; and Haider (12), whose shriveled legs cannot blunt his enormous grin or his love for the school he goes to in his wheelchair. Adapted from a book by the same name, these riveting films were made both to answer Western students who wonder what it's like to be a kid in India, as well as to help motivate Indian children to attend school, which is presented here as relevant and fun. Each 8-10 minute film highlights one child and his or her unique school through first-person narration combined with breathtakingly gorgeous photography, excellent original music, and adroit editing. Most of the students (many of whom are enrolled in government-run schools in very poor regions) want to become teachers themselves, and even Saddam (11), who lives on the streets of Mumbai when not attending school literally on a bus, or Gamlesh (12), who goes to school at night because she must work during the day, know that their future successes are dependent on schooling. Never maudlin and always hopeful, Going to School in India is a beautifully-produced thematic compilation that is highly recommended. Editor's Choice. Aud: I, J, P. (E. Gieschen)