College in Cinema

While there are endless options for entertainment these days, cinema is doubtlessly one of the most popular. Movies have always created a strong influence on young minds, especially on teenagers. As students, they are impacted by watching diverse movies of different genres and languages, all having their own messages and purposes.

Colleges in: Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na’ (2008), ‘Student of The Year’ (2012), or even ‘3 Idiots’(2009)

​Apart from being great stress-relievers, films provide the youth with valuable inspiration and ideas for experiences they may or may not have lived yet. They begin to form expectations for their future. This includes college and student-life. References to the college experience can befound throughout popular media such as music, movies, and more. Most of these expectations are formed from the movies one sees depicting college life; ‘Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na’ (2008), ‘Student of The Year’ (2012), or even ‘3 Idiots’(2009). These coming-of-age stories allow for all kinds of settings and scenarios that one is navigating through.​

University life includes moments that form your identityand capabilities. However, oftentimes these films portray campus life in a contrast to reality. We need to be able to see media that shows the struggles, mistakes, lessons, and challenges of those ages and not just the cliques, parties, and fights. Schwartz (1963) looked at education as portrayed in films from 1931-61, where he examined over 400 films and noted that "all aspects of the portrayal of education found in films have implications for the state of public knowledge about, and attitudes toward, the educational institution"; basically, that the portrayal was largely unfavourable.

These idealistic depictions of the college experience pose a threat to students, as they may feel pressure to act or think a certain way, otherwise they’re “wasting their golden years”. It is vital to remind everyone that there is more to college than the red solo cup often portrayed in film.

Writeup by: Sheeza Shoeb