Directed by Ishrat R. Khan, the 2023 Guthlee Ladoo revolves around the story of Guthlee and Ladoo. Guthlee’s desire to rise above his class and status and attain a position in society through education has been portrayed in the film. The film stars famous faces like Sanjay Mishra and Kanchan Pagare. However, the lead, Dhanay Seth (a child actor), stole the limelight with his exceptional acting skills. The struggles of the Dalits to gain basic privileges like the right to education have been shed light on. Will Ladoo be able to live his dreams of getting the opportunity to study? Will Mangru be able to support his son’s dreams? Let’s find out!
Spoilers Ahead
How Did Guthlee Struggle To Educate Himself?
Guthlee’s insatiable quest for education led him to sneak into the compound of the local school. He was always driven out of the premises by the authorities, but he never failed to come back the next day. He used to peer into the classrooms to get knowledge on various subjects. Being a Dalit and from a very poor family, he did not have access to education but never gave up on his thirst for knowledge. He was not allowed inside the class and would often be shooed away by the educators, as he was considered to belong to the untouchable segment of society. The standards that society had set hampered his life and his desire to get a basic education. Despite his requests to the headmaster, Harishankar, to get him admitted to his school, he was never given the opportunity. However, when Harishankar later saw his zeal for education, he wanted to put him in his school, but his hands were tied as a result of instructions from his higher authority. Guthlee was constantly reminded by the upper segment of society that he was born into a Dalit household and would die in the gutter. Despite society’s rantings about him belonging to a lower caste, Guthlee never gave up hope and tried his level best to educate himself.
What Happened To Ladoo?
Ladoo, another underprivileged child, was always seen tagging along with Guthlee whenever he went to school. However, he was not as interested in education as Guthlee was, but Guthlee somehow managed to take him along, trying to bribe him with sweets. Later, Ladoo is persuaded by his father to go and work with him so that they can earn some extra money for their household. When Ladoo tried resisting, saying that his father often stank of sewage, he told Ladoo that working in the drains would help kill the bacteria in his nose, and then he would never get any stink. The irony that a father was trying to convince his child to work as a laborer brings to light his financial state and lack of opportunities. When Ladoo went to work with his father, he accidentally fell into a gutter and died a miserable death. The insensitivity of society, where they turn a blind eye to the death of a child belonging to the lower caste, brings out the selfish mindset of the people around us.
How Did Mangru Support His Son?
Mangru was very upset by the incident and thought that the same could have happened to his son. He had come across a high-ranking official in an office who belonged to their own cast, but education had changed his life. He thought that educating Guthlee could change his future and that he wouldn’t have to have the same profession as his forefathers. He approached Harishankar and requested that he give his son admission to the school. Harishankar, however, knew that he couldn’t help them, but gave him false hope anyway, saying he would look into the matter.
After Ladoo’s death, Mangru gathered the people from his community and tried to explain to them the importance of education. He told them that the way they were leading their lives should not be the case for their children, so that no more children like Ladoo would have to lose their lives. When he gathered people from his community and went to the local school to get their children admitted, they were driven out of the premises. He saw that even Harishankar did not support them in times of crisis. He was so depressed that after coming back home, he asked Guthlee to go and clean the lavatory at the school. The scene where Guthlee goes to the school to clean the toilet moves Harishankar, and he decides to help him out.
Did Harishankar Support Guthlee?
Harishankar arranged for a sports event for the children, in which he also involved the media. Harishankar announced that Chaube would provide free education to one child from the Dalit community if he could win a running race against the other children. When Chaube tried to stop him from making the announcement, he told him that taking this step would help improve his image in front of the media. When Guthlee is about to participate in the race, other children’s parents try to pull Guthlee down by saying that he cannot stand in the same starting line as their children because of his lower class, and he is then made to stand behind all the other children. Chaubey also tried sabotaging the game by making Guthlee wear shoes that were of a bigger size so that he would trip and fall during the race.
Guthlee’s mother told him that to the other children, the race was just a sport, but winning it would change his life forever. Guthlee was determined to win the race for the sake of his studies, as he knew if he could win this one last battle, then his future could shine as bright as a star. After he started running, he tripped and fell once, but rose up with even more determination to win the race. He left all the other participants behind when he started running again and eventually managed to win the race. Harishankar had seen Guthlee’s ultimate zeal to get an education and tried to do as much as he could to make his life better. Initially, Harishankar was reluctant to even drink water in a Dalit household, but when he saw the injustices faced by them on a regular basis, he could not help but support their cause. Harishankar had set the path that Guthlee was to tread on, and now it was up to Guthlee as to what he would choose for his career and life in the long run.
Final Thoughts
The film brings out the injustices of society and the discrimination based on social class and strata. Set on the outskirts of a village in Rajasthan, the film portrays the real conditions of those areas. A child is prevented from getting his basic right to education just because he belongs to a sweeper community. We also see several other instances of discrimination when we see people of the higher castes beating up people of the lower castes for merely touching their belongings. They are treated like animals and are not given the right to speak for their own rights. The subject of this movie can be compared to other brilliant films like Article 15 and Jai Bhim. This is a real issue that might seem unrealistic to many out there, but it has been occurring on the outskirts of many Indian states.
