3 Idiots was not my biopic, says a totally ‘fed up’ Wangchuk

Sonam Wangchuk, who is famously known as ‘the real-life Phunsukh Wangdu from 3 Idiots’ , is “fed up” of answering questions about the character or the film. “[3 Idiots] was not a biopic that was based on me; it was just ‘inspired’. Let it be just that — a story for entertainment,” says Wangchuk, who was in Delhi recently to attend a fundraiser for his latest initiative, the Himalayan Institute of Alternatives, Ladakh.

The Ladakhi educationist is averse to using 3 Idiots in any way for publicity or funds. “You don’t have to reinforce this obsession the nation has,” he says. “[The country] is not doing well in terms of inventions — na chamatkaar na avishkaar ho rahe hain, kyunki sab toh filmein kar leti hain,” he adds with a laugh. “[People think that] ‘why do we need to do anything, when our heroes are there to do everything... in films?’ I don’t want to reinforce that.” Wangchuk’s fame springs from his innovative school, the Students’ Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh, whose campus runs on solar energy and uses no fossil fuels for cooking, lighting, or heating. It also nurtures the cultural heritage of Leh Ladakh. While the school was founded in 1988, its founder became renowned across India when it was revealed that the quirky, brilliant character of Wangdu (played by Aamir Khan) was based on him. Wangchuk isn’t dismissive about the idea of a wellresearched film based on his life, but the 51-year-old feels that the movies shouldn’t distract people. “Chamatkaaravishkaar sach mein karne ki zaroorat hai” he says. “If [a biopic] helps the things I’m passionate about, then I’m okay with it.” India’s education system needs an overhaul, he says: “We need to reground ourselves and see how evolution has taught us... Teenagers [now] become violent, because the energy designed by nature to face the real world is captured. It then comes out in the form of breaking things. We blame them, but our system is bad.”

PHOTO: WASEEM GASHROO/HT Educationist Sonam Wangchuk inspired the character played by Aamir Khan (inset) in 3 Idiots