12th Fail is a 2023 Indian Hindi-language biographical drama film directed, produced and written by Vidhu Vinod Chopra.
It is based on the 2019 eponymous non-fiction book by Anurag Pathak about Manoj Kumar Sharma, who overcame extreme poverty to become an Indian Police Service officer.
[4] The film stars Vikrant Massey as Sharma, alongside Medha Shankr, Anant V Joshi, Anshumaan Pushkar and Priyanshu Chatterjee.
However, his brother is falsely accused of smuggling alcohol after hitting the local henchman of the MLA after he tries to have their passengers travel on a bus.
His paternal grandmother gives him all her savings as he sets out to study in Gwalior, but he loses all his belongings on the way to a woman who steals them while he dozes off in the bus he is travelling in.
Gauri Bhaiya is unable to clear his final attempt and opens a tea shop named "Restart" and also provides guidance to other UPSC aspirants.
Gauri moves Manoj to his own house and tells him to give up working odd jobs and focus completely on his studies.
In November 2022, filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra announced the film, based on the novel Twelfth Fail, by Anurag Pathak.
[25] Saibal Chatterjee of NDTV gave 3.5 stars out of 5 and said "Its an original depiction of an Indian Police Service (IPS) officer's life, 12th Fail is a thought-provoking and amusing film.
[27] Monika Rawal Kukreja of Hindustan Times stated in her reviews that 12th Fail is a must-watch to understand not only the hardships and emotions that UPSC students go through, but it also sheds light on the overall education in our system, something that Chopra won hearts at with 3 Idiots (2009).
[28] Shubhra Gupta of The Indian Express gave 3 stars out of 5 and wrote that "[d]espite the background music and the occasional mood spikes, 12th Fail stays, for the most part, a film that cleaves close to ground reality.
She adds, "[i]t's not just the main cast, but the numbers of the young who gather in the hot-spots rife with coaching centres, such as North Delhi’s Mukherjee Nagar: all these multitudes, crowding into tiny rooms, far away from their homes, cramming day and night to get through the exams in the hope of becoming something more than who they are, is such an India story.
"[30] Dhaval Roy of The Times of India gave 4 stars out of 5 and stated in his review that 12th Fail is an excellent film that is highly recommended, with nearly every scene over its 147 minutes leaving you feeling inspired and amazed.
[31] Bhavna Agarwal of India Today gave 4 stars out of 5 and wrote "Vikrant Massey passes with flying colours on performance sheet".
"[33] Sneha Bengani of CNBC TV18 reviewed the film, writing "Vikrant Massey powers through this remarkable story of perseverance".
The arc of Vidhu Vinod Chopra-directorial is a daily barrage of study load, tricky social dynamics, menial jobs for sustenance and raw spillage of emotions.
"[35] Sajesh Mohan of Onmanorama in his review wrote "The soundscape, meticulously crafted by Manav Shrotriya, amplifies the aches and joys of Manoj's journey.
The way Manav uses and reuses background noise fading in and out to isolate Manoj and his emotions even in crowded scenes adds a meditative focus.