The much awaited trailer of Rani Mukerji's Hichki is finally out. Staying true to the title, Mukerji's character has a speech deficiency, though it is much more than a hichki (hiccup). Mukerji’s character suffers from the tourette syndrome (TS), a neurological disorder characterized by repetitive, stereotyped, involuntary movements and vocalizations called tics. But that’s only half the battle that Naina Mathur (Mukerji) has to overcome.
Can a woman with a speech defect become a teacher? Well, Naina Mathur believes she is born to be one. With regular students from an elite school ruled out, the school principal entrusts Naina with the task of teaching 14 poor children who are admitted by the school under the Right to Education Act. For the school and its principal Mr Wadia, teaching these children is not a social service but an unwanted obligation.
Naina not only needs to overcome her syndrome, but she also has the task of teaching an unruly class. However, Naina is not one of those who give up, and says, "There are no bad students, only bad teachers."
Hichki not only addresses a person’s speech defect, but it also hopes to expose the class divide between the well-to-do and the poor kids in schools. The class divide was subtly highlighted in Saket Chaudhary’s Hindi Medium (2017) earlier, but it would be unfair to compare that film with director Siddharth P Malhotra's Hichki.
Rani Mukerji has played a physically challenged character before in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Black (2005) for which she picked up the Filmfare Best Actress award. Going by the trailer, it looks like she is set to give another memorable performance.
A few days ago, Mukerji, in an interview with well-known film critic and author Anupama Chopra, said she wants to do films that her fans will be proud of. While the seasoned actress has not shut the door on mainstream commercial cinema, it is quite clear that she is going to be picky about the stories she selects.
Malhotra, who earlier directed We Are Family (2010), has managed to cut out a crisp, entertaining trailer that spells out its purpose very clearly.
Standing true to the film's punchline — What is life... without a few hiccups — Naina Mathur makes you laugh with her hichki and sad with her pain.
Hichki promises entertainment and Rani Mukerji is likely to leave you speechless.
Click here to predict the film's box-office performance.