Hichki and Other Recent Bollywood Movies with Uncommon Disability

Bollywood may have got its borrowed and majorly paraphrased term from Hollywood due its its uncanny ability to be churning same good-over-bad, happy-go-lucky, romantic family dramas but time and again the Indian Film Industry has witnessed some L'extraordinaire magnifique on out-of-the-box subjects, handled with utmost honesty without hampering the art and yet sustaining the core Bollywood entertainment flavor.

As the extremely talented Rani Mukerji gets ready for her comeback with Hichki, a film reportedly about a girl with uncommon disability which makes her uncontrollably jump and shout while she talks, we take a look at some memorable Hindi films that also touched upon similar topic of uncommon disability with award winning outcome.

1) Margarita With a Straw (2015)

Kalki Koechlin plays the role of a girl suffering from cerebral palsy .

Directed by Shonali Bose, the film narrates the struggle of a cerebral palsy-affected girl (played by Kalki) with the normal activities in her life.


Kalki received a Special Jury Award at the 2016 Nation Film Awards.

2) Piku (2015)

Directed by Shoojit Sircar, Piku starred Deepika Padukone as the titular protagonistbut it was Amitabh Bachchan playing her grumpy, aging father Bhashkot Banerjee who has problems with chronic constipation and teces every problem to his bowel movements. These habits often leads to quarrels with the servants, something which is shown in a very light hearted manner in the film, which also starred Irrfan Khan.

At the 63rd National Film Awards in 2016, Piku won the awards for Best Actor (Bachchan), Best Original Screenplay and Best Dialogues.

3) Barfi (2012)

Priyanka Chopra played an autistic girl in Anurag Basu's Barfi!

Autism affects about 1-2 people per 1,000. It is a disorder of neural development and is usually first noticed in children from the age of three. While, Ranbir Kapoor in the film played the role of a deaf and mute man.

The film received critical acclaim, with critics praising the performances, the direction, the screenplay, the cinematography, the music and the positive portrayal of physically disabled people. Even though the story was about Ranbir's character Barfi, Priyanka's brilliant portrayal of Jhilmil, Barfi's autistic childhood friend and wealthy heiress of her grandfather's fortune, received huge critical and audience acclaim. The film won multiple awards at the award ceremonies, including many for Priyanka Chopra.

4) Paa (2009)

Amitabh Bachchan played a 13-yr-old progeria patient.

Inspired by real- life progeria patient Sampson Gordon Berns, Paa narrated a father- son story where the son, played by Big B, suffered from a rare genetic disorder that leads to quick acceleration of the ageing process. The role required major preparation as he had to undergo several hours of prosthetic make- up and the first look of Bachchan as the 13-yr old protagonist left everyone spellbound.

Amitabh Bachchan received his third National Film Award for Best Actor at the 57th National Film Awards for his performance and his fifth Filmfare Best Actor Award.

5) Ghajini (2008)

Aamir Khan played a patient of Anterograde amnesia.

Inspired by the Hollywood hit Christopher Nolan's Memento and a rehash of a Tamil blockbuster by the same name, A. R. Murugadoss' psychological thriller cast Aamir as a victim of anterograde amnesia ( or short- term memory loss). The disease was unheard of in Bollywood until the film released.

Upon its release, it became the highest-grossing movie of that year and the first Hindi film to cross the ₹100 crore mark. Though Aamir was universally praised for a never seen before transformation by an actor in Indian Cinema, the movie was also criticised by some for being too violent.

6) My Name is Khan (2008)

Shah Rukh Khan is a patient of Asperger's syndrome.

The film highlighted B- Town's favourite underdog victory theme. Only, the hero in this film was an underdog as he suffered from a disease that makes the patient socially less interactive and communicative. Viewers instantly drew closer to SRK's character who emerged as a hero despite facing religious bias & his ailment.

Upon its release, the film broke many box office records. My Name Is Khan was the highest-grossing Bollywood film overseas at the time, which was then overtaken by 3 Idiots. The now-impossible-to-imagine-jodi of Director Karan Johar and his lead actors Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol won the top honors at the 2011 Filmfare Awards.

7) Taare Zameen Par (2007)

In Taare Zameen Par Aamir Khan had created a huge impact by portraying the problems of dyslexic children. Directed and produced by Aamir Khan, the film started nation-wide debates and discussions on dyslexia and the need of parents and teachers and the schools to re-think about the educational system, a never before phenomenon.

The film explores the life and imagination of Ishaan, an 8-year-old dyslexic child. Although he excels in art, his poor academic performance leads his parents to send him to a boarding school. Ishaan's new art teacher suspects that he is dyslexic and helps him to overcome his disability. Taare Zameen Par 

TZP was honored with Best Film on Family Welfare at the 55th National Film Awards.

8) Black (2005)

In Black Amitabh Bachchan played the role of a Alzheimer patient,

Alzheimer is a progressive and fatal brain disorder that destroys brain cells, causing memory loss and problems with thinking and behavior severe enough to affect work, lifelong hobbies or social life.

Directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, after delivering the magnum opus Devdas in 2002, Black starred Rani Mukerji and Amitabh Bachchan and the story revolved around a deafblind girl, and her relationship with her teacher who himself later develops Alzheimer's disease. The film draws inspiration from Helen Keller's life and struggle. Black was a sweeping critical and commercial success and was the 2nd highest grossing Bollywood film worldwide in 2005.

Bachchan won his 2nd Best Actor National Award at the 53rd National Film Awards, even as the movie was declared Best Feature Film in Hindi.