Meet Naina’s rebellious and irreverent classroom!

Come March 23, and actor Rani Mukerji will be seen playing Naina Mathur, a teacher with a nervous system disorder in Hichki. The film highlights Naina’s story, who faces discrimination from society that believes that she can’t teach because of her Tourette syndrome, which forces an individual to make involuntary repetitive movements or sounds.

The story goes on to show how she coaches a motley group of students from not-so privileged socio-economic backgrounds and teaches them how to battle their personal and “societal hiccups”.

“Naina will tackle a bunch of 14 rebellious, disillusioned, anti-establishment and irreverent students hailing from a local basti (slum). The film explores the spirit of selfreliance and desire to succeed regardless of one’s condition in life,” says an insider.

Aatish, who helps his father run a cycle shop, in a way leads these aggressive youngsters in the film. Somewhat similar to Aatish is Pankaj, an angry and rebellious boy, cynical of Naina and her motives. Killam is the funny kid in the class, and has been marked out as a nonstarter by his family. But Aatish believes in Killam’s potential that makes him a firm loyalist of ringleader Aatish.

This group has its share of dreamers and smart minds, too. Young Tamannah has to play mother to her younger siblings, and has to cope with household tasks while continuing school. Ashwin is a happy-go-lucky budding music artist who raps and composes street poetry. He sees a creative partner in Raghu, another passionate musician and his closest friend. Arundhati is a daydreamer with her nose stuck in film magazines. She lends a sincere helping hand to her mother’s tiffin service, and has potential to shine academically.

There’s also Tara, who tackles the stark reality of a father who has deserted her mother. Tara’s sense of isolation, also stemming from the fact that she’s a migrant from UP, affects her. And then, there is Ravinder, a trickster who makes a quick buck with card games, but fails when it comes to math in school.

Rani Mukerji — as teacher Naina Mathur — with her notorious batch of students, in Hichki