3 Idiots

2023-12-23T05:00:47Z

2409:40C0:1033:4E4C:8000:0:0:0:

{{short description|2009 Indian Hindi film by Rajkumar Hirani}}
{{Use Indian English|date=March 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2022}}
{{Infobox film
| name = 3 Idiots
| image =
| caption = Theatrical release poster
| director = [[Rajkumar Hirani]]
| story = {{Plainlist|
* '''Adapted Story:'''
* Abhijat Joshi
* Rajkumar Hirani
* '''Original Story:'''
* Chetan Bhagat
}}
| screenplay = {{plainlist|
* [[Abhijat Joshi]]
* Rajkumar Hirani
}}
| based_on = ''[[Five Point Someone|Five Point Someone: What NOT to do at IIT!]]'' by [[Chetan Bhagat]]
| producer = [[Vidhu Vinod Chopra]]
| starring = {{plainlist|
* [[Aamir Khan]]
* [[R. Madhavan]]
* [[Sharman Joshi]]
* [[Kareena Kapoor]]
* [[Boman Irani]]
* [[Omi Vaidya]]
* [[Mona Singh]]
* [[Javed Jaffrey]]
* [[Parikshit Sahni]]
* [[Amardeep Jha]]
}}
| narrator = R. Madhavan
| cinematography = C. K. Muraleedharan
| editing = Rajkumar Hirani
| music = '''Score:''' Sanjay Wandrekar Atul Raninga [[Shantanu Moitra]] '''Songs:''' [[Shantanu Moitra]]
| studio = [[Vinod Chopra Films]]
| distributor = [[Reliance Entertainment|Reliance BIG Pictures]]
| released = 25 December 2009 ([[India]])
| runtime = 171 minutes<ref name="Runtime">{{Cite web |date=17 December 2009 |title=''3 IDIOTS'' (12A) |url=https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/3-idiots-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc00mjixnzk |access-date=5 October 2012 |website=[[British Board of Film Classification]]}}</ref>
| country = [[India]]
| language = [[Hindi]]
| budget = [[Indian rupee|₹]]55 [[crore]]<ref>{{Cite news |date=26 August 2012 |title=Business of Rs 100-cr films: Who gets what and why |work=[[The Economic Times]] |url=http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2012-08-26/news/33386102_1_box-office-movie-rotten-tomatoes/2 |access-date=22 February 2015}}</ref><ref name="exchange" />
| gross = ₹400.61 crore <ref>{{cite web |title=3 Idiots Box Office Collection |url=https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/movie/3-idiots/box-office/ |website=[[Bollywood Hungama]] |access-date=30 July 2022}}</ref>
}}
'''''3 Idiots''''' (stylized as '''''"3 idiots"''''') is a [[List of Hindi films of 2009|2009]] [[Cinema of India|Indian]] [[Hindi]]-language coming-of-age [[comedy drama]] buddy film written, edited and directed by [[Rajkumar Hirani]], co-written by [[Abhijat Joshi]], produced by [[Vidhu Vinod Chopra]] under the production banner of [[Vinod Chopra Films]]<ref>{{Cite news |date=21 July 2020 |title=Chetan Bhagat Accuses Vidhu Vinod Chopra of 'Driving Him Close to Suicide' After 3 Idiots, Calls Out 'Elite Critics' |publisher=India.com |url=https://www.india.com/entertainment/bollywood-news-chetan-bhagat-accuses-vidhu-vinod-chopra-of-driving-him-close-to-suicide-after-3-idiots-calls-out-elite-critics-4091009/}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=21 July 2020 |title=Vidhu Vinod Chopra "Drove Me Close To Suicide," Claims Writer Chetan Bhagat |publisher=NDTV |url=https://www.ndtv.com/entertainment/vidhu-vinod-chopra-drove-me-close-to-suicide-claims-writer-chetan-bhagat-2266452}}</ref> and distributed by [[Reliance Entertainment|Reliance BIG Pictures]]. Released in [[India]] on 25 December 2009, adapted loosely from [[Chetan Bhagat]]'s 2004 novel ''[[Five Point Someone|Five Point Someone: What NOT to do at IIT!]]'' and considered to be a [[cult film]] in the [[Hindi cinema]]<ref>{{Cite news |date=15 October 2016 |title=NL interviews (Part 2): Chetan Bhagat on feminism and One Indian Girl |publisher=News Laundry / You tube channel |url=https://www.newslaundry.com/2016/10/16/nl-interviews-part-2-chetan-bhagat-on-feminism-and-one-indian-girl |access-date=10 November 2016}}</ref>, the film stars [[Aamir Khan]], [[R. Madhavan]] and [[Sharman Joshi]] in the titular roles, marking their reunion three years after ''[[Rang De Basanti]]'' (2006), while [[Kareena Kapoor]], [[Boman Irani]], [[Omi Vaidya]], [[Mona Singh]], [[Javed Jaffrey]], [[Parikshit Sahni]] and [[Amardeep Jha]] appear in pivotal roles. Narrated through two parallel dramas, one in the present and the other set ten years in the past, the story follows the friendship of three students at an [[Engineering education in India|Indian engineering college]] and is a satire about the social pressures under the Indian education system.<ref name="scmp">{{Cite news |date=9 September 2011 |title=3 Idiots (Film) |work=[[South China Morning Post]] |url=http://www.scmp.com/article/978499/3-idiots-film}}</ref><ref name="economic_china" /><ref name="kaist">{{Cite news |last=Chaerim Oh |date=4 December 2011 |title=Embrace Your Nerdiness with 3 Idiots |work=KAIST Herald |url=http://herald.kaist.ac.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=285 |url-status=dead |access-date=29 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120424035900/http://herald.kaist.ac.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=285 |archive-date=24 April 2012}}</ref> The film was remade in [[Tamil language|Tamil]] as ''[[Nanban (2012 film)|Nanban]]'' (2012), which also received critical praise and commercial success<ref name="nanban_ibn">{{Cite web |title=Will 'Nanban' repeat the magic of '3 Idiots'? – IBNLive.com |url=http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/entertainment/will-nanban-repeatmagic3-idiots_650433.html |access-date=5 March 2012 |publisher=[[CNBC]]}}</ref><ref name="nanban_hindustantimes">{{Cite web |date=14 January 2012 |title=Gautaman Bhaskaran's review: Nanban |url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/Entertainment/Reviews/Gautaman-Bhaskaran-s-review-Nanban/Article1-797009.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120312175929/http://www.hindustantimes.com/Entertainment/Reviews/Gautaman-Bhaskaran-s-review-Nanban/Article1-797009.aspx |archive-date=12 March 2012 |access-date=5 March 2012 |website=[[Hindustan Times]]}}</ref>, and in Mexican as ''3 Idiotas'' (2017).<ref name="auto">{{Cite web |title=3 idiotas se estrenará en el 2017 |url=https://www.debate.com.mx/show/3-idiotas-se-estrenara-en-el-2017-20160713-0024.html |website=EL DEBATE}}</ref>

''3 Idiots'' incorporated real Indian inventions created by Remya Jose,<ref name="jose2">{{Cite news |last=Raphael |first=Lisa |date=19 June 2014 |title=Watch This 14-Year-Old Girl's Washing Machine Hack in Action |publisher=Brit + Co. |url=http://www.brit.co/remya-jose-pedal-washing-machine/ |access-date=10 November 2016}}</ref> Mohammad Idris,<ref name="nif2">{{Cite web |title=Cycle operated horse shaver |url=http://nif.org.in/innovation/Cycle_Operated_Horse_Shaver/229 |access-date=10 November 2016 |website=nif.org.in |publisher=National Innovation Fund}}</ref> Jahangir Painter<ref name="mid2">{{Cite web |last=Sabnis |first=Vivek |date=28 December 2009 |title=The real brains behind 3 idiots |url=http://www.mid-day.com/news/2009/dec/281209-3-idiots-scooter-flour-mill-Inventions-Pune.htm |access-date=29 April 2010 |publisher=[[Mid-Day]] |location=Pune}}</ref> and Sonam Wangchuk, the latter of whom also inspired Khan's character.<ref name="telegraphindia2">{{Cite news |last=Menon |first=Shyam G. |date=19 July 2010 |title=What you did not watch in 3 Idiots – Rethink after Ladakh education initiative fell victim to bureaucracy and resentment |publisher=[[The Telegraph (Calcutta)]] |url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/1100719/jsp/frontpage/story_12700204.jsp|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100722043505/http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100719/jsp/frontpage/story_12700204.jsp|url-status=dead|archive-date=22 July 2010}}</ref> The film received widespread critical acclaim and commercial success and is considered to be among the greatest Bollywood films ever made;<ref name="rt">{{Cite web |title=Three Idiots |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/3_idiots/ |access-date=15 June 2020 |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]}}</ref> it was also the highest-grossing film in its opening weekend in [[India]], had the highest opening day collections for an [[Hindi cinema|Indian film]] up until that point, and also held the record for the highest net collections in the first week for a Hindi film. Eventually, it became one of the few Indian films at the time to become successful in East Asian markets such as China<ref name="overseas">{{Cite web |title=Three Idiots Creates History in China |url=http://www.boxofficeindia.com/boxnewsdetail.php?page=shownews&articleid=3866&nCat= |access-date=30 December 2011 |website=30 December 2011 |publisher=BoxOfficeIndia. Com |archive-date=7 January 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120107201817/http://www.boxofficeindia.com/boxnewsdetail.php?page=shownews&articleid=3866&nCat= |url-status=dead }}</ref> and Japan,<ref name="qz" /> eventually bringing its worldwide gross to {{INR|link=yes}}392 crore ($90{{nbsp}}million){{efn|name=Gross}}<ref name=":1" /><ref name="hollywoodreporter" /> — it was the [[List of highest-grossing Indian films|highest-grossing Indian film ever]] at the time and the highest grossing Indian film of the 2000s. It is also the [[List of highest-grossing Indian films|17th highest grossing Indian film of all time.]]<ref name="forbes" /> The film also had a social impact on attitudes toward [[education in India]],<ref name="Hussain" /> as well as in other Asian countries such as China.<ref name="economic_china" />

At the [[57th National Film Awards]], ''3 Idiots'' won 3 [[National Film Awards]], including [[National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment|Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment]]. Additionally, the film received 11 nominations at the [[55th Filmfare Awards]], including [[Filmfare Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]] (Khan), [[Filmfare Award for Best Actress|Best Actress]] (Kapoor) and [[Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]] (Madhavan and Joshi), and won a leading 6 awards (tying with ''[[Dev.D]]''), including [[Filmfare Award for Best Film|Best Film]], [[Filmfare Award for Best Director|Best Director]] (Hirani) and Best Supporting Actor (Irani). Overseas, it won the Grand Prize at Japan's Videoyasan Awards,<ref name="videoyasan" /><ref name="nikkatsu" /><ref name="qz" /> while it was nominated for Best Outstanding Foreign Language Film at the Japan Academy Awards<ref name="japan-hungama" /><ref name="japan-ibn" /> and Best Foreign Film at China's Beijing International Film Festival.<ref name="maoyan" />

== Synopsis ==
Two friends embark on a quest for a lost buddy. On this journey, they encounter a long forgotten bet, a wedding they must crash, and a funeral that goes, ridiculously out of control. As they make their way through the perilous landscape, another journey begins. Their inner journey through memory lane and the story of their friend - the impressible free-thinker Rancho, who is in unique way, touched and changed their lives. It is a story of their hostel days that swings between Rancho's romance with the spirited Pia, and his clash with an oppressive mentor, Viru Sahastrabuddhe. And then one day, suddenly, Rancho vanished. Who was he? Where did he come from? Why did he leave? The friend who influenced and inspired them to think creatively and independently, even as the conformist world called them "three idiots". Where is the original idiot now? Finally, in misty mountains with unparalleled beauty, the friends find the key to the secret.
== Plot ==
The film begins with a wildlife photographer, Farhan Qureshi ([[R. Madhavan]]), boarding an airplane from [[Delhi]] when he receives a phone call from Chatur Ramalingam ([[Omi Vaidya]]), his biggest rival from college, who claims to be knowing the whereabouts of his long-lost college friend, Ranchhoddas Shyamaldas Chanchad ([[Aamir Khan]]), also known as Rancho. Shocked at learning this, Farhan immediately fakes a heart attack to create an emergency landing of his flight and is rushed back to the airport in a wheelchair. Farhan later manages to escape from the airport in a taxi and meets with another college friend, Raju Rastogi ([[Sharman Joshi]]). Subsequently, the duo races to their former college campus, the Imperial College of Engineering (ICE), and meets up with Chatur, who reminds them both of the bet he had made with Rancho ten years ago, about who would end up more successful in the next ten years, and boasts to them both about him being the prosperous vice president of a reputable company in the [[United States]]. Frustrated, Farhan and Raju berate Chatur for wasting their time when Chatur reveals that he has located Rancho's home in [[Shimla]] and the three of them begin their journey from Delhi in search of Rancho.

Over a flashback ten years prior, it is shown that Farhan joined the prestigious ICE in his first year of college, since his father ([[Parikshit Sahni]]) forced him to pursue engineering despite his passion for wildlife photography, and immediately befriended his hostel roommate, the god-fearing Raju, who comes from an impoverished family and is afraid of both failure and job. While being ragged by the senior students, Farhan and Raju befriend their third roommate, the carefree Rancho, who comes from a wealthy family and is passionate about experimenting with different scientific theories. Rancho's easygoing approach to education always results in him being at odds with the director of the ICE, Dr. Viru Sahastrabuddhe ([[Boman Irani]]), who believes in a strict and competitive education system and is nicknamed "Virus" by the ICE students. When a senior student named Joy Lobo ([[Ali Fazal]]) is denied graduation by Virus on grounds of failure to follow his project deadline, Rancho recreates Joy's project of a drone camera with the help of Farhan and Raju in an attempt to cheer him up. Unfortunately, Joy commits suicide by hanging in his room before he can see the drone camera come to life, provoking Rancho to confront Virus about the extreme pressure placed on the ICE students but is rudely rebuffed. One night, the hungry trio gatecrashes a marriage ceremony to enjoy the dinner and befriends Virus' younger daughter, Pia ([[Kareena Kapoor]]), only to later realise that the marriage is for Pia's older sister, Mona ([[Mona Singh]]). Although initially upset by Rancho's behaviour, Pia falls in love with him after Rancho pranks her shallow, materialistic boyfriend, Suhas Tandon (Sanjay Lafont), in an attempt to demonstrate his obsession about money and status. As a result, Pia breaks up with Suhas after he rebukes her for wearing an antique watch which belonged to her late mother.

Meanwhile, Virus warns Farhan and Raju about the effects of them being friends with Rancho by pointing out the modest financial situations of their families, provoking Raju to move in with Chatur, a [[Tamil people|Tamil]], Uganda-born, arrogant, competitive student who believes in learning by rote memorization but is not fluent in [[Hindi]]. Chatur is nicknamed "Silencer" by the ICE students as he consumes some memory-enhancing pills with the side-effect of silent but lethal flatulence. In an attempt to teach Chatur a lesson about memorization, Rancho and Farhan make obscene modifications, like "chamatkar" ("miracle") to "balatkar" ("rape") and "dhan" ("wealth") to "stan" ("bosoms"), to the script of Chatur's Teachers' Day speech. After a disastrous speech in front of Virus, the Minister of Education and the ICE professors, a humiliated and furious Chatur drunkenly challenges Rancho to meet with him after ten years and see who is more successful. On the night before their final examinations, Raju's paralyzed father suffers from a medical emergency, but Rancho enlists Pia's help and rushes Raju's father to the hospital on time via Pia's scooter. After learning from Pia and the doctor how the timely intervention saved his father's life, Raju realises his mistake and reconciles with Rancho and Farhan. At the end of their first year in the ICE, Rancho comes first in the class, while Farhan and Raju are last and second to last, respectively. During the yearly class photograph, Rancho makes a bet with Virus that if either Raju or Farhan gets a job from the on-campus interviews, Virus will shave off his moustache.

Back in the present, Farhan, Raju and Chatur arrive in Shimla to meet Rancho, but are extremely shocked to come across a completely different man ([[Javed Jaffrey]]) identifying himself as "Ranchhoddas Shyamaldas Chanchad", whose face is pasted over that of Rancho in their first year class photograph with an ICE degree of Rancho's name. When Farhan and Raju ask Chatur how he got Rancho's address, he reveals that he managed to do so when his secretary had come to Shimla to make a business deal with "Phunsukh Wangdu", a sensational scientist and inventor with 400 patents to credit. On learning this, Farhan and Raju confront the so-called "Ranchhoddas", who is initially reluctant to reveal anything and threatens the duo with a gun, but when Farhan and Raju turn the tables on him and threaten to flush his late father's ashes down the toilet, he explains that he is the real Ranchhoddas and the "Rancho" at the ICE was his family's gardener's son, who was incredibly intelligent and gifted and was adopted by the Chanchad family after being orphaned. While Ranchhoddas himself went to [[London]] for four years, his father ([[Arun Bali]]) paid for Rancho to attend the ICE on his son's name on condition that he cut off all contact with everyone there after graduating. Rancho, who was more interested in learning than in getting a degree, agreed but warned Ranchhoddas afterwards that "two idiots" would come searching for him one day. Ranchhoddas tells Farhan and Raju that he is grateful for what all Rancho did and provides them with his real address in Ladakh, where Rancho is promptly leading a simple life as a schoolteacher, and Farhan, Raju and Chatur begin their journey once again from Shimla in search of Rancho.

Back in the past, the trio is shown to be approaching graduation in their fourth year at the ICE. One night, Rancho points out to Farhan and Raju why they consistently place last; Farhan's passion is wildlife photography, not engineering, and Raju lacks self-confidence. When Farhan and Raju promise to confront their problems if Rancho confesses his feelings for Pia, the trio breaks into Virus' home in and Farhan and Raju urinate on his letterbox in a drunken state. During the trio's escape, however, Virus spots Raju and gives him an ultimatum the next day to either act as his witness in rusticating Rancho or being rusticated from the ICE himself. Neither wishing to disappoint his family nor betray his friend, a distraught Raju attempts suicide by jumping from height and passes into a coma, but successfully recovers over the next few months with the support and care of Rancho, Farhan and Pia, while Virus also rescinds his rustication. With a newfound perspective of his life, Raju confidently attends his on-campus interview and manages to secure a job in an engineering firm, while Farhan also convinces his father about his passion for wildlife photography and contentment with the job he secured with his role model, wildlife photographer Andre Istvan, in Hungary. According to the bet made by Rancho, Virus' private barber shaves off his moustache and in an attempt to protect his fragile ego, Virus drunkenly decides to sabotage Raju's chances of success by setting an unfairly difficult examination. However, Pia visits Rancho in a drunken state and provides him with the duplicate keys of Virus' office, encouraging him to copy the examination papers set by Virus for Raju.

The story forwards to the journey where Farhan and Raju suddenly remember Pia and decide to take her along with them to Rancho. As Chatur protests against the detour, stating that it would jeapordize his meeting with Phunsukh Wangdu, the duo ties him up inside the car trunk and gatecrashes Pia's marriage ceremony with Suhas in Manali. Farhan sneaks in to reunite with Pia while Raju disguises himself as a housekeeper for Suhas. Pia initially refuses to go with Farhan, despite hearing Suhas screaming at Raju for ruining his expensive marriage suit, leading Farhan to realise that their plan has worked. Raju escapes in the heat of the moment with the marriage suit, assuring Suhas that he will return it in mint condition, but instead proceeds to fill in as the bridegroom. As Pia finds this out, she grows concerned over public reaction to the ruse, causing Raju to reveal himself and confront Pia over her love for Rancho, even as Suhas arrives in a gown. As she spots Farhan at the entrance, with the car door opened, Pia breaks free from the bond and escapes with Farhan, Raju and Chatur in front of the shocked Suhas, Virus, Mona and all the marriage guests to go to Ladakh and meet Rancho.

The story rewinds to their final year at the ICE where Rancho and Farhan use the duplicate keys provided by Pia to break into Virus' office and are successful in copying the examination papers for Raju. Despite Raju refusing to use the examination papers, Virus discovers what happened and angrily has the trio rusticated from the ICE in the middle of the night, causing Pia to admit her role in the events and confront Virus over her brother's suicidal demise, which was misinterpreted by Virus as an accident, simply because his passion for literature and desire to become a writer was overruled by Virus, who was insistent on his son becoming an engineer. As the trio is leaving the campus in the middle of heavy rainstorms, they come across the now-pregnant Mona, who goes under labor pain in the moments following a distressed Pia has walking out of the house, and is unable to be driven to the hospital. Applying their knowledge of engineering, the trio brings Mona inside the table tennis room in the campus and successfully conducts her delivery, by modifying a vacuum cleaner into a makeshift venthouse, with the help of Pia (who is still in self-isolation) from the hospital through a video call and other students. Realising the fault in his ways and how genius Rancho is, a grateful Virus acknowledges him by handing him over a valuable space pen, which he promised to give only to his most extraordinary student, and rescinds the trio's rustications once again. Rancho, along with Farhan and Raju, tops the university in the final year, but abruptly leaves the graduation ceremony in a taxi without informing anyone and has never been heard of again.

Over the end of the flashback, Farhan, Raju, Pia and Chatur reach Ladakh and at the address provided by Ranchhoddas, they are astonished to find a thriving school that is probably run by Rancho. The group also meets Manmohan, formerly an errand boy at the ICE nicknamed "Millimeter" by the students, and now Rancho's personal assistant in Ladakh, who reveals that Rancho has keenly followed Farhan and Raju's careers. Finally, Farhan, Raju, Pia and Chatur have an emotional reunion with Rancho on a sandbar where Rancho admits that he is still in love with Pia and the two of them share a passionate kiss. Chatur condescendingly insults Rancho's apparent status as a schoolteacher and declares that he has won the bet. He proceeds to make Rancho sign the document of "Declaration of Defeat" and even states that he deserves Virus' space pen. As Chatur walks away in supposed victory, Farhan, Raju and Pia ask for Rancho's real name and he reveals himself, in a plot twist, to be Phunsukh Wangdu, the successful entrepreneur, whom Chatur's company is courting. Following this revelation, Rancho contacts Chatur, who is a few distance away from the group, and considers calling off the deal. A flabbergasted Chatur accepts defeat and Rancho, Farhan, Raju and Pia run away laughing. The film ends with a humiliated Chatur chasing after Rancho, Farhan, Raju and Pia and Farhan quoting Rancho's words on success; "Pursue excellence, and success will follow, pants down".

== Cast ==
=== Main ===
* [[Aamir Khan]] as Ranchhoddas Shyamaldas Chanchad (a.k.a. Rancho) / Phunsukh Wangdu; Pia's lover, Farhan and Raju's friend and Chatur's biggest rival in college. He is a carefree and intelligent student at the ICE, and is later revealed to be a successful scientist and inventor in [[Ladakh]], who works as a schoolteacher when he is not conducting research.
* [[R. Madhavan]] as Farhan Qureshi; Rancho, Raju and Pia's friend and Chatur's biggest rival in college. He has a passion for wildlife photography but decides to pursue engineering for his father's wish. He is later revealed to be a successful wildlife photographer in [[Delhi]], who has published books about his works.
* [[Sharman Joshi]] as Raju Rastogi; Rancho, Farhan and Pia's friend and a god-fearing student at the ICE who is afraid of both failure and job. He is later revealed to be living a prosperous lifestyle with his wife in [[Delhi]].
* [[Kareena Kapoor]] as Pia Sahastrabuddhe; Rancho's lover, Farhan and Raju's friend, Virus' younger daughter and Mona's younger sister. She is a medical student who gets attracted to Rancho after she shows her the materialistic side of her ex-boyfriend, Suhas.
* [[Boman Irani]] as Dr. Viru Sahastrabuddhe (a.k.a. Virus); He is Pia and Mona's father and the strict and controlling director of the ICE. He believes in a competitive cut-throat education system and his draconian teaching philosophy always contrasts with the lifestyle of the trio.
* [[Omi Vaidya]] as Chatur Ramalingam (a.k.a. Silencer); Rancho, Farhan and Raju's biggest rival in college and an Anglo-Indian, competitive student. He consumes some memory-enhancing pills to sharpen his mind and farts off in a silent but lethal way.
=== Supporting ===
* [[Mona Singh]] as Mona Sahastrabuddhe; Virus' older daughter and Pia's older sister
* [[Javed Jaffrey]] as the real Ranchhoddas Shyamaldas Chanchad
* [[Parikshit Sahni]] as Mr. Qureshi (nicknamed "Hitler Qureshi" by Rancho); Farhan's orthodox father
* [[Amardeep Jha]] as Mrs. Rastogi (nicknamed "[[Mother Teresa]]" by Rancho); Raju's hardworking mother
* Sanjay Lafont as Suhas Tandon; Pia's ostentatious and materialistic ex-boyfriend
* Rahul Kumar as Manmohan (a.k.a. Millimeter); an errand boy at the ICE
** [[Dushyant Wagh]] as grown-up Manmohan (a.k.a. Centimeter); Rancho's personal assistant in [[Ladakh]]
* Farida Dadi as Mrs. Qureshi; Farhan's loving mother
* Mukund Bhatt as Mr. Rastogi; Raju's paralyzed father and a former postmaster
* Chaitali Bose as Kamini Rastogi; Raju's unwed sister
=== Cameo Appearances ===
* [[Jayant Kripalani]] as Campus Interview Panel Head who conducts Raju's job interview
* [[Arun Bali]] as Shyamaldas Chanchad; Ranchhoddas' late father
* Rajeev Ravindranathan as Lead Ragging Senior at ICE
* Rajendra Patwardhan as Govind; Virus' private barber at the ICE
* [[Achyut Potdar]] as Machine class professor who is annoyed by Rancho's theory of an easygoing education system
* [[Ali Fazal]] as Joy Lobo; a senior student at the ICE
* Madhav Vaze as Mr. Lobo; Joy's widowed father
* Akhil Mishra as Librarian Dubey who helps Chatur prepare his Teachers' Day speech
* Atul Tiwari as Education Minister R. D. Tripathi who listens to Chatur's Teachers' Day speech in the auditorium
* [[Supriya Shukla]] as Matron in hospital with Pia

== Production ==

=== Development ===
{{Quote box
| quote="Chetan gave me this book to read and I wanted to make a film on it. But I knew right from the start that I could not make a film completely on the book, as it was very anecdotal and a film needs a plot. So I had decided to rewrite it in a screenplay format. You'll see that the film is very different from the book. After I wrote the script, I called Chetan and narrated it to him. I told him that if he did not like the script, I would stop the project. But he was okay with it".
| source = — [[Rajkumar Hirani]], about the connection with the film and the novel ''[[Five Point Someone]]'' by [[Chetan Bhagat]]<ref>[http://movies.rediff.com/slide-show/2009/dec/23/slide-show-1-rajkumar-hirani-on-3idiots.htm#contentTop "Aamir's dedication is mistaken as interference"], Rediff.com, 23 December 2009.</ref>
| align = right
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After the success of ''[[Lage Raho Munna Bhai]]'' (2006), the director [[Rajkumar Hirani]] and screenwriter [[Abhijat Joshi]] had plans for third instalment on the [[Munna Bhai (film series)|''Munna Bhai'' franchise]], titled ''Munnabhai Chale Amerika''. But Hirani felt exhausted working on consecutive films on the same format, and decided to work on fresh script outside the franchise.<ref>{{Cite web |date=10 September 2017 |title=Sanjay Dutt on Munna Bhai Chale America: 'Not happening, as I can't get a US visa'-Entertainment News , Firstpost |url=https://www.firstpost.com/entertainment/sanjay-dutt-on-munna-bhai-chale-america-not-happening-as-i-cant-get-a-us-visa-4027817.html |access-date=19 October 2021 |website=Firstpost |language=en}}</ref> While writing the first draft of the film, he thought of a new project rather than the new instalment from the film series, but he had concentrated more on the project and then worked on the former first. While thinking about how the project coming under fruition, he got the popular novel ''[[Five Point Someone]]'' by the author [[Chetan Bhagat]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ghosh |first=Sankhayan |date=2 January 2016 |title='While you are entertaining, you can't sell your soul' |language=en-IN |work=The Hindu |url=https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/%E2%80%98While-you-are-entertaining-you-can%E2%80%99t-sell-your-soul%E2%80%99/article13975252.ece |access-date=19 October 2021 |issn=0971-751X}}</ref> The latter gave this novel for Hirani to read, in order to have an idea about the script. Impressed by the novel, he decided to adapt the screenplay by making changes to the original novel and work on it as a feature film.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=An exclusive interview with Raju Hirani |url=https://movies.rediff.com/slide-show/2009/dec/23/slide-show-1-rajkumar-hirani-on-3idiots.htm |access-date=19 October 2021 |website=Rediff |language=en}}</ref>

''3 Idiots'' is considered to be the first of the two adaptations from the novel ''Five Point Someone'' — the second being ''[[Kai Po Che!]]'' (2013), which also drew inspiration from the novel ''[[The 3 Mistakes of My Life]]'' written by Bhagat.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Every time Chetan Bhagat made it to Bollywood – A Bollywood Hit! |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/every-time-chetan-bhagat-made-it-to-bollywood/a-bollywood-hit/slideshow/63829137.cms |access-date=19 October 2021 |website=The Economic Times}}</ref> In the third collaboration with Hirani after the ''Munna Bhai'' film series: ''[[Munna Bhai M. B. B. S.|Munna Bhai M.B.B.S.]]'' (2003) and ''Lage Raho Munna Bhai'' (2006), [[Vidhu Vinod Chopra]] produced the project under the production company [[Vinod Chopra Films]] (which earlier named [[Vinod Chopra Productions]]).<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=Vidhu Vinod Chopra chats with Abhijat Joshi in Unscripted: Conversations on Life and Cinema |url=https://www.cinemaexpress.com/stories/news/2021/jan/11/vidhu-vinod-chopra-chats-with-abhijat-joshi-in-unscripted-conversations-on-life-and-cinema-22198.html |access-date=19 October 2021 |website=[[Cinema Express]] |language=en}}</ref> Besides producing, Chopra further associated with Hirani and Joshi, by co-writing the screenplay. In his biography ''Unscripted: Conversations on Life and Cinema'', he discussed about the experiences as a co-writer being associated in the project.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Krishna |first=Navmi |date=19 February 2021 |title=Life, one script at a time: Vidhu Vinod Chopra on his new book, 'Unscripted' |language=en-IN |work=The Hindu |url=https://www.thehindu.com/entertainment/movies/life-one-script-at-a-time-vidhu-vinod-chopra-on-his-new-book-unscripted/article33872753.ece |access-date=19 October 2021 |issn=0971-751X}}</ref>

An official announcement regarding the film was made during early-2008, after working in the script for more than one-and-a-half year.<ref name=":8">{{Cite web |title=Shooting starts for Vinod Chopra's film, 3 Idiots |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/shropshire/content/articles/2008/08/29/bollywood_new_three_idiots_feature.shtml |access-date=19 October 2021 |website=www.bbc.co.uk |language=en-gb}}</ref> During the pre-production, Hirani went to multiple engineering colleges, including those under the [[Indian Institutes of Technology]] in [[Mumbai]] and [[Delhi]], to authenticate the lives of engineering students. In this he met, many students and took pictures along with them. He needed the references for the clothes used, their looks and things they brought as many IIT-students were older than the fictional characters.<ref name=":3" /> The film also had shared many anecdotes from his college life, since Hirani had used to study in hostel during his young period.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Dhaniwala |first=Mrigank |date=14 December 2009 |title='3 Idiots has sugar coated messages" – Raj Kumar Hirani |url=https://www.filmibeat.com/bollywood/features/2009/raj-kumar-hirani-interview-141209.html |url-status=live |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=Filmibeat |publisher=[[Bollywood Hungama]] |language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211021110138/https://www.filmibeat.com/bollywood/features/2009/raj-kumar-hirani-interview-141209.html |archive-date=21 October 2021 }}</ref> Hirani had carefully looked upon the notion in the lives of engineering students, as there are few things apart from drugs, sex and violence. However, Hirani had said that the film plays a satirical take on social pressures under an Indian [[education system]].<ref name="economic_china" /><ref name="kaist" /> Apart from that, the film also addresses the issue of tussle between parents and children, but in a "sugar-coated manner".<ref name=":4" /> During the promotions of the film, Hirani stated that "the film is completely different of the ''Munna Bhai'' film series; in terms of the characters, story and the environment. However, both the films fall in the same genre, where all three films are heartwarming stories with lovable characters making it feel good. Both films have true emotions in the heart, happiness, sadness and also leave a strong message to the audience in the ending that make us satisfy".<ref name=":3" />

=== Casting ===
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The casting of the lead actors was considered to be "complex", according to Hirani.<ref name=":3" /> He thought of many actors playing the lead roles, and also went on a six-month audition across the country. But, had thought of established actors playing the roles, since the film had two looks and the actors needed experience.<ref name=":3" /> He had plans for [[Shah Rukh Khan]] playing the lead character, Ranchoddas Chanchad.<ref>{{Cite web |title=When Shah Rukh Khan opted out of Rajkumar Hirani's Munna Bhai MBBS and 3 Idiots |url=https://www.zoomtventertainment.com/bollywood/article/when-shah-rukh-khan-opted-out-of-rajkumar-hiranis-munna-bhai-mbbs-and-3-idiots/580908 |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=www.zoomtventertainment.com |language=en}}</ref> Hirani tried to rope Khan after the latter, exited from the director's debut venture ''Munna Bhai M.B.B.S.'' (2003), for the titular role [[Munna Bhai]], which was later essayed by [[Sanjay Dutt]]. However, Khan refused being a part of the film due to his prior commitments.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Does Rajkumar Hirani choose actors according to the script? |url=https://www.pinkvilla.com/rooms/does-rajkumar-hirani-choose-actors-according-script |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=Pinkvilla |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine |last=IANS |date=13 December 2014 |title=Aamir was not the first choice for 3 Idiots: Hirani |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/movies/bollywood/story/aamir-was-not-the-first-choice-for-3-idiots-hirani-231069-2014-12-13 |access-date=20 October 2021 |magazine=India Today |language=en}}</ref> He approached [[Ranbir Kapoor]], then, a relatively newcomer, to play the lead role, but he opposed his part in the film. However, he agreed to play Varun Sahastrabuddhe having a short cameo in the film.<ref>{{Cite web |date=28 June 2018 |title=Did you know Rajkumar Hirani almost cast Ranbir Kapoor in 3 Idiots? |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/movies/bollywood/story/did-you-know-rajkumar-hirani-almost-cast-ranbir-kapoor-in-3-idiots-1271927-2018-06-28 |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=India Today |language=en}}</ref>{{Efn|Both [[Ranbir Kapoor]] and [[Anushka Sharma]] later worked with [[Rajkumar Hirani]] in ''[[PK (film)|PK]]'' (2014) and ''[[Sanju]]'' (2018), the latter was the biopic of [[Sanjay Dutt]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=27 June 2018 |title=Was Ranbir the first choice for 3 Idiots? |url=https://www.dnaindia.com/bollywood/report-was-ranbir-the-first-choice-for-3-idiots-2629609 |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=DNA India |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=30 April 2021 |title=Viral video: When Anushka Sharma auditioned for Kareena Kapoor Khan's role in '3 Idiots' |url=https://www.dnaindia.com/bollywood/report-birthday-special-viral-video-when-anushka-sharma-auditioned-for-kareena-kapoor-khan-role-in-3-idiots-rajkumar-hirani-aamir-khan-saw-during-pk-shoot-2888454 |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=DNA India |language=en}}</ref>|name="audition"}}

[[Aamir Khan]] was later finalized to play the lead role.<ref>{{Cite web |date=13 December 2014 |title=Aamir Khan was first choice for 'PK', not for '3 Idiots': Rajkumar Hirani |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/bollywood/aamir-khan-was-first-choice-for-pk-not-for-3-idiots-rajkumar-hirani/ |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}</ref> [[R. Madhavan]] and [[Sharman Joshi]] were also finalised for the other two leads {{En dash}} Farhan and Raju.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |date=25 December 2017 |title=8 years of 3 Idiots: 15 things about the film you did not know |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/bollywood/8-years-of-3-idiots-15-things-about-the-film-you-did-not-know/story-LHKFgAYEyjJ7NEaVJYL80H.html |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=Hindustan Times |language=en}}</ref> Originally, the roles initially went to [[John Abraham]] and [[Saif Ali Khan]], but the actors rejected the film due to date issues, and [[Arshad Warsi]] who also collaborated with Hirani in the two films, in ''Munnai Bhai'' film series, despite being auditioned, could not take up the role.<ref name=":5" /> Before R. Madhavan was cast, [[Bangalore]]-based Rajeev Ravindranathan shot for his character for two months before his scenes were removed in favor of casting a "known face". Ravindranathan later played a college senior.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Sampath |first=Parinatha |date=29 January 2013 |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/hindi/bollywood/news/sridevi-has-some-sort-of-superpower-rajeev-ravindranathan/articleshow/18221482.cms |title=Sridevi has some sort of superpower: Rajeev Ravindranathan |work=[[The Times of India]]|access-date=6 July 2022}}</ref> On being questioned about casting older actors, to play college students as the main lead, Hirani said in an interview to [[Rediff.com|''Rediff'']], stating that "the actors chosen have that quality which he wanted for the film apart from the body language, mannerisms and innocence portrayed on-screen".<ref name=":3" />

The team approached [[Sanjay Dutt]], whom Hirani worked in the ''Munna Bhai'' film series, to play the role of the main antagonist Dr. Viru Sahastrabuddhe, but due to various reasons, the role went to [[Boman Irani]].<ref name=":7">{{Cite web |date=25 December 2019 |title=Boman Irani Reveals How He Prepared for His Role in 3 Idiots on Film's 10 Year Anniversary |url=https://www.news18.com/news/movies/boman-irani-reveals-how-he-prepared-for-his-role-in-3-idiots-on-films-10-year-anniversary-2435547.html |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=News18 |language=en}}</ref> The character name was considered to be unique due to the look, lisp and mannerisms portrayed, and also got the nickname "Virus", as students give names to their professors and principals in their school and college life. For the preparation of his role, Boman used to wear costumes made by cheap fabric, designed by an old tailor, who stitches clothes for [[Parsis]] in [[Dadar]] ([[Mumbai Suburban district|North-Central Mumbai]]).<ref name=":3" /> He used to wear the shirt with [[velcro]] being attached, and a hook tie, with the same look, he attended the shoot to prepare for his role.<ref name=":7" /> Initially, Boman was hesitant to act in that film and had recommended his co-actor [[Irrfan Khan]] for Viru Sahastrabuddhe, but his refusal prompted Boman to take up the role.<ref>{{Cite web |date=18 May 2020 |title=Exclusive: Boman Irani reveals that he had rejected 3 Idiots and recommended Irrfan Khan for the role of Virus |url=https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/news/features/exclusive-boman-irani-reveals-rejected-3-idiots-recommended-irrfan-khan-role-virus/ |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=Bollywood Hungama |language=en}}</ref> This was revealed by Boman after Khan's death in April 2020.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Boman Irani Recommended Irrfan Khan For The Role Of Virus In 3 Idiots |url=https://www.ndtv.com/entertainment/boman-irani-recommended-irrfan-khan-for-the-role-of-virus-in-3-idiots-2231975 |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=NDTV.com}}</ref>

After talks with [[Kajol]] fell through,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Here's why Kajol rejected Kareena Kapoor Khan's role in 3 Idiots |url=https://www.filmfare.com/news/bollywood/heres-why-kajol-rejected-kareena-kapoor-khans-role-in-3-idiots-41114.html}}</ref> [[Kareena Kapoor]] played the role of Pia Sahastrabuddhe, Rancho's (Aamir) love interest and a medical student.<ref name=":3" /> While, Hirani refused about the original casting for her role in the film in his interview,<ref name=":3" /> it has been regarded that [[Anushka Sharma]] was originally considered for the role.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Viral: Anushka Sharma's Audition For Aamir Khan's 3 Idiots |url=https://www.ndtv.com/entertainment/viral-anushka-sharmas-audition-for-aamir-khans-3-idiots-2424330 |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=NDTV.com}}</ref> In April 2021, an old video of Anushka's audition for the film went viral on the internet.<ref>{{Cite web |date=29 April 2021 |title=Did you know Anushka Sharma auditioned for Kareena Kapoor's role in 3 Idiots but Rajkumar Hirani saw it after PK? |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/bollywood/did-you-know-anushka-sharma-auditioned-for-kareena-kapoor-s-role-in-3-idiots-but-rajkumar-hirani-saw-it-after-pk-101619705491879.html |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=Hindustan Times |language=en}}</ref> Anushka, then a newcomer, shared monologues recited by [[Gracy Singh]] from ''Munna Bhai M.B.B.S.'' for the audition process, supposing to be her debut in films, but was ultimately rejected by the producers.<ref>{{Cite web |date=11 June 2021 |title=When Anushka Sharma showed her 3 Idiots audition tape to Aamir Khan, Rajkumar Hirani and left them surprised |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/bollywood/when-anushka-sharma-showed-her-3-idiots-audition-tape-toaamir-khan-rajkumar-hirani-and-left-them-surprised-7352159/ |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}</ref> She later made her debut in the [[Yash Raj Films]]' production ''[[Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi]]'' (2008), being cast opposite [[Shah Rukh Khan]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=29 April 2021 |title=Throwback: Anushka Sharma's Failed audition for 3 Idiots can't be missed – watch video |url=https://www.bollywoodlife.com/videos/entertainment/throwback-anushka-sharmas-failed-audition-for-3-idiots-cant-be-missed-watch-video-1819359/ |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=Bollywood Life |language=en}}</ref>{{Efn|name="audition"}} [[Omi Vaidya]], an American actor was cast for the role Chathur Ramalingam (Silencer)".<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-12-24 |title=On 3 Idiots' 10-year anniversary, Omi Vaidya reflects on that iconic Chatur speech |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/bollywood/on-3-idiots-10-year-anniversary-omi-vaidya-reflects-on-that-iconic-chatur-speech/story-3Cn45PkVnVhLIR3gda7Q2J.html |access-date=2021-10-20 |website=Hindustan Times |language=en}}</ref> [[Ali Fazal]], then, a rookie actor, played a small role as Joy Lobo in the film.<ref>{{Cite web |title=I slipped into depression when I started with 3 Idiots – Ali Fazal |url=https://www.filmfare.com/news/bollywood/i-slipped-into-depression-when-i-started-with-3-idiots-ali-fazal-49075.html |access-date=2021-10-20 |website=filmfare.com |language=en}}</ref> While speaking about his role, Fazal stated that "he went into depression as the character arc seemed to mirror a tragic real-life incident".<ref>{{Cite web |date=24 June 2021 |title=Ali Fazal reveals his 3 Idiots role sent him into a depression, recalls calling Rajkumar Hirani: 'I was crushed' |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/bollywood/ali-fazal-reveals-his-3-idiots-role-sent-him-into-a-depression-recalls-calling-rajkumar-hirani-i-was-crushed-101624524268706.html |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=Hindustan Times |language=en}}</ref>{{Efn|[[Ali Fazal]], later appeared in several Indian and [[Hollywood, Los Angeles|Hollywood]] projects, and also gained breakthrough by the Indian web series ''[[Mirzapur (TV series)|Mirzapur]]''.}} [[Javed Jaffrey]], played a cameo appearance as real Ranchoddas Chanchad.<ref name=":13">{{Cite web |last=Rangan |first=Baradwaj |date=27 December 2009 |title=3 Idiots |url=http://www.newindianexpress.com/entertainment/reviews/article87588.ece |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151127143622/http://www.newindianexpress.com/entertainment/reviews/article87588.ece |archive-date=27 November 2015 |website=[[The New Indian Express]]}}</ref>

=== Filming ===
The rehearsals for the film began prior to the shoot, followed by script reading and look tests.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Shooting for 3 Idiots underway |url=https://www.rediff.com/movies/2008/aug/28look1.htm |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=www.rediff.com}}</ref> After extensive pre-production works, [[principal photography]] for the film began on 28 July 2008, with scenes featuring the supporting cast being shot first.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Rajkumar Hirani's 3 Idiots goes on floors |url=http://www.indiafm.com/news/2008/07/28/11730/index.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080804233117/http://www.indiafm.com/news/2008/07/28/11730/index.html |archive-date=4 August 2008 |publisher=indiafm.com}}</ref> On 29 August 2008, shooting for the key schedule began with the principal cast members.<ref name=":8" /> The first scene was shot in an aircraft with Madhavan, which was the first shooting schedule for this film in [[Mumbai]]. The team left to [[Ladakh]], for a 20-day schedule with the crew and cast comprising Khan and Kapoor.<ref name=":8" /> The climax was being shot at the [[Pangong Tso]] lake in Ladakh.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Ladakh's Pangong Lake: The place where 3 Idiots' ending with Aamir Khan, Kareena Kapoor was shot |work=The Economic Times |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/travel/ladakhs-pangong-lake-the-place-where-3-idiots-ending-with-aamir-khan-kareena-kapoor-was-shot/articleshow/45451322.cms?from=mdr |access-date=20 October 2021}}</ref> The team took a break following Aamir Khan's activities in the promotions and post-production works of ''[[Ghajini (2008 film)|Ghajini]]'' (2008).<ref name=":9">{{Cite web |title=Shooting 'Three Idiots' is like holidaying |url=http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/uncategorized/shooting-three-idiots-is-like-holidaying-for-aamir-khan_100143291.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120321022923/http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/uncategorized/shooting-three-idiots-is-like-holidaying-for-aamir-khan_100143291.html |archive-date=21 March 2012 |access-date=11 February 2009 |publisher=the indian.com}}</ref>
[[File:IIMB Ground.JPG|alt=Ground and hostel blocks at IIM Bangalore|thumb|The [[Indian Institute of Management Bangalore|Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore]] served as Imperial College of Engineering, for this film.]]
In December 2008, the entire cast and crew, including Khan, Madhavan, Joshi and Hirani, headed to [[Indian Institute of Management Bangalore|Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore]] campus which served as Imperial College of Engineering. To prepare for the roles, the crew members stayed at the institution's dormitory blocks and at the college hostel.<ref>{{Cite web |date=26 November 2018 |title=Did you know that Aamir Khan and the entire crew of '3 Idiots' had stayed in an IIM-B hostel for a couple of months? |url=https://www.bollywoodbubble.com/bubble-diaries/nostalgia/aamir-khan-and-the-entire-crew-of-3-idiots-had-stayed-in-iim-b-hostel-for-a-couple-of-months/ |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=Bollywood Bubble |language=en}}</ref> Though Khan saw the pictures of the location, he decided to see the location for real and wanted to stay at the hostel, in order to get through the role.<ref>{{Cite web |date=16 January 2009 |title=Three idiots at IIM-B |url=https://bangaloremirror.indiatimes.com/bangalore/cover-story/three-idiots-at-iim-b/articleshow/22242020.cms |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=Bangalore Mirror |language=en}}</ref> Khan regularly met the students during the morning and evenings and shared the experiences of studies and way of life. Apart from that, the team eventually mingled with the students while Khan also involved in many indoor and outdoor games.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Three Idiots: We sneak into IIM-B campus! |url=https://www.sify.com/movies/three-idiots-we-sneak-into-iim-b-campus-imagegallery-movies-jdwmVgebcchsi.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211021110138/https://www.sify.com/movies/three-idiots-we-sneak-into-iim-b-campus-imagegallery-movies-jdwmVgebcchsi.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=21 October 2021 |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=[[Sify]] |language=en}}</ref> While shooting for the film, the team made extra precautions with none of the shooting process might affect the routine class sessions.<ref name=":9" /> It was the first film to be shot at the [[Indian Institutes of Management]] Group, and the university granted an academic pay-off for itself.<ref name=":10">{{Cite web |date=19 January 2009 |title=Lights, camera, action... all at IIM Bangalore |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india/lights-camera-action-all-at-iim-bangalore/story-Sw1eBZs3qxHhnwJFVKIAQI.html |access-date=20 October 2021 |website=Hindustan Times |language=en}}</ref> After shooting being completed the makers will film a documentary on the institution.<ref name=":10" /> Few parts in [[Bangalore]] were doubled as New Delhi for the film. The entire shooting process was completed within February 2009.{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}} The entire film was shot in reverse, with the present-day scenes being shot first and the college scenes were shot later.<ref name=":5" />

[[C. K. Muraleedharan]] was the cinematographer for ''3 Idiots'', after collaborating with Hirani for ''Lage Raho Munna Bhai'' (2006). He used [[Arricam LT|Arricam Lite (LT) camera]] for shooting the film, which consisted of [[Angénieux retrofocus|Angenieux Optimo]] [[Anamorphic format|Anamorphic Lenses]] and [[Carl Zeiss AG|Zeiss]] Master Prime Lenses, with the film had a distributed aspect ratio of [[2.39:1]].{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}} Rajkumar Hirani also undertook supervision of editing the film. For the scene where the leads get drunk and break in Virus' house, Aamir suggested that the actors might get drunk in reality so as to make it look convincing, but, however, the actors went on numerous retakes, which even led the stock of film roll being exhausted. The actors continued to do retakes, until the new rolls have been bought, so as to keep them busy.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The 3 Idiots Drunk Scene Wasn't Just For Reel: "Not Often Do You Get To See Madhavan Like That" |url=https://www.ndtv.com/entertainment/the-3-idiots-drunk-scene-wasnt-just-for-reel-not-often-do-you-get-to-see-madhavan-like-that-2454466 |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=NDTV.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2 June 2021 |title=Sharman Joshi says Aamir Khan suggested they all get drunk for this 3 Idiots scene, here's what happened |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/bollywood/sharman-joshi-says-aamir-khan-suggested-they-all-get-drunk-for-this-3-idiots-scene-here-s-what-happened-101622531697044.html |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Hindustan Times |language=en}}</ref> The pregnancy scene was initially supposed to be placed in Hirani's debut film ''Munna Bhai M.B.B.S.'' (2003), but as he felt that the placement was irrelevant in the film, the team decided against doing so, and then was used in this film.{{Citation needed|date=June 2022}} The hospital scenes were shot at [[Fortis hospital|Fortis Hospital]] ([[Noida]]).<ref name=":5" />

The film uses real inventions, with brains behind these innovations include Remya Jose, a student from [[Kerala]], who created the pedal operated washing-machine;<ref name="jose2" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Jose |first=Remya |title=Remya Jose's pedal operated washing machine / exercise machine |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhlUVdbU9Lk |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/VhlUVdbU9Lk |archive-date=21 December 2021 |url-status=live|access-date=10 November 2016 |publisher=Remya Jose |via=YouTube}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Sreelakshmy |first=V.U. |date=3 February 2015 |title=Innovative Pedal Power Machines |url=http://www.ecoideaz.com/innovative-green-ideas/pedal-power-machines |access-date=10 November 2016 |website=ecoideaz.com/innovative-green-ideas/pedal-power-machines |publisher=Ecoideaz}}</ref> Mohammad Idris, a barber from Hasanpur Kalan in [[Meerut]] district in [[Uttar Pradesh]], who invented a bicycle-powered horse clipper;<ref name="nif2" /> and Jahangir Painter, a painter from Maharashtra, who made the scooter-powered flour mill.<ref name="mid2" /> The character Phunsuk Wangdu drew inspiration from [[Ladakh]]i inventor [[Sonam Wangchuk (engineer)|Sonam Wangchuk]], a mechanical engineering graduate from the [[National Institute of Technology, Srinagar]].<ref name="telegraphindia2" /><ref>{{Cite news |date=3 August 2018 |title=Secmol founder Sonam Wangchuk wins Magasaysay Award |work=National Herald |url=https://www.nationalheraldindia.com/national/secmol-founder-wins-magasaysay-award-sonam-wangchuk |access-date=25 March 2020}}</ref>

== Music ==
{{Main|3 Idiots (soundtrack)}}
The film's soundtrack is composed by [[Shantanu Moitra]] with lyrics penned by [[Swanand Kirkire]]. It marked Moitra's second consecutive collaboration with [[Rajkumar Hirani]] after ''[[Lage Raho Munna Bhai]]'' (2006), whose music album was successful.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=25 November 2009 |title=College days were an inspiration for '3 Idiots' music: Composer, lyricist |url=https://zeenews.india.com/entertainment/musicindia/college-days-were-an-inspiration-for-3-idiots-music-composer-lyricist_47287.html |access-date=19 October 2021 |website=Zee News |language=en}}</ref> Besides composing the songs, Moitra also composed the film score with Sanjay Wandrekar and Atul Raninga. The album was created with the inspiration of Moitra's college days, with the songs been written in consideration on the mindset of youngsters in India.<ref name=":0" />

The album features five original compositions. Two tracks from the album were remixed, despite Moitra not liking the trend of remixing film songs.<ref name=":12">{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIHQI2R0qCI |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/vIHQI2R0qCI |archive-date=21 December 2021 |url-status=live|title=Shantanu Moitra talks about his work {{!}} PK {{!}} 3 Idiots {{!}} Sonu Nigam |date=5 May 2017 |type=Interview |website=[[Bollywood Hungama]] |place=India |access-date=19 October 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref> [[Sonu Nigam]] rendered five out of seven tracks from the album. Other singers performing vocals to the songs are [[Shaan (singer)|Shaan]], [[Shreya Ghoshal]], [[Suraj Jagan]], Jaive Samsun, the lyricist Kirkire and composer Moitra themselves, recording for the soundtrack. One of the tracks "Give Me Some Sunshine" was sung by one of the lead actors, [[Sharman Joshi]], in his maiden attempt in playback singing. The music album was released online (instead of a launch event),<ref name=":22">{{Cite web |date=29 November 2009 |title=Aamir Khan unhappy with 3 Idiots chat & online music launch? |url=https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/news/bollywood/aamir-khan-unhappy-with-3-idiots-chat-online-music-launch/ |url-status=live |access-date=19 October 2021 |website=Bollywood Hungama |language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211028173153/https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/news/bollywood/aamir-khan-unhappy-with-3-idiots-chat-online-music-launch/ |archive-date=28 October 2021 }}</ref> by the film's official website on 27 November 2009,<ref>{{Citation |title=3 Idiots |date=27 November 2009 |url=https://open.spotify.com/album/5RpLgeHQA69nLrBzxELRxP |language=en |access-date=19 October 2021}}</ref> with a video chat featuring the cast and crew members.<ref name=":14">{{Cite web |date=27 November 2009 |title=Aamir's new trick: Releases 3 Idiots music online |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/music/aamir-s-new-trick-releases-3-idiots-music-online/story-usGlSba6LodKRD5Y5dwmeI.html |url-status=live |access-date=19 October 2021 |website=Hindustan Times |language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211028175131/https://www.hindustantimes.com/music/aamir-s-new-trick-releases-3-idiots-music-online/story-usGlSba6LodKRD5Y5dwmeI.html |archive-date=28 October 2021 }}</ref> [[T-Series (company)|T-Series]] purchased the music rights of the film at an amount of {{INRConvert|120|m|year=2009|mode=historical}}.<ref>{{Cite web |date=25 July 2009 |title=T-Series acquires the music rights of 3 Idiots |url=https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/news/bollywood/t-series-acquires-the-music-rights-of-3-idiots/ |access-date=19 October 2021 |website=Bollywood Hungama |language=en}}</ref><ref name="planetbollywood">{{Cite web |title=3 Idiots : Big Procures Worldwide Rights (Sans Satellite & Home Video) for 65 Crore! |url=http://planetbollywood.com/displayArticle.php?id=n083109031345 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141107095130/http://planetbollywood.com/displayArticle.php?id=n083109031345 |archive-date=7 November 2014 |access-date=8 August 2014 |website=Planet Bollywood News}}</ref>

The album received positive reviews from critics, with praise directed towards Moitra's composition and the quality of the album. In addition, the soundtrack became the highest-selling Bollywood soundtrack of 2009, according to the trade website ''[[Box Office India]]'', despite the sales of conventional music CDs being declined.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |title=Music Hits 2000–2009 (Figures in Units) |url=http://www.boxofficeindia.com/showProd.php?itemCat=286&catName=MjAwMC0yMDA5&PHPSESSID=108b9056cd4ca14236f9c6119d34dcce |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080215081557/http://www.boxofficeindia.com/showProd.php?itemCat=286&catName=MjAwMC0yMDA5&PHPSESSID=108b9056cd4ca14236f9c6119d34dcce |archive-date=15 February 2008 |access-date=14 March 2021 |publisher=Box Office India}}</ref> Due to the internet boom, it became the "most downloaded Bollywood music album of the year".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Future is digital: Audio labels – Times of India |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/tamil/movies/news/future-is-digital-audio-labels/articleshow/6063400.cms |access-date=19 October 2021 |website=The Times of India |language=en}}</ref> "Aal Izz Well" was listed as one of the "Top 10 Bollywood Songs of 2009" and became a sensation amongst the youngsters.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Top 10 Bollywood songs of 2009 – Times of India |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/hindi/music/news/top-10-bollywood-songs-of-2009/articleshow/5391997.cms |access-date=19 October 2021 |website=The Times of India |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Top 10 Bollywood songs of 2009 |url=https://www.sify.com/movies/top-10-bollywood-songs-of-2009--imagegallery-bollywood-jmossbcfcbhsi.html |url-status=dead |access-date=19 October 2021 |website=[[Sify]] |language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211030000056/https://www.sify.com/movies/top-10-bollywood-songs-of-2009--imagegallery-bollywood-jmossbcfcbhsi.html |archive-date=30 October 2021 }}</ref> The soundtrack further fetched a number of accolades is considered as one of Moitra's best albums, along with ''[[Parineeta (2005 film)|Parineeta]]'' (2005) and ''[[Lage Raho Munna Bhai]]'' (2006).

== Release ==

=== Statistics ===
''3 Idiots'' released on 25 December 2009 over 1550 prints and 1760 screens in [[India]],<ref>{{Cite news |title=3 Idiots releases with highest ever print & screen count |publisher=BusinessofCinema |url=http://businessofcinema.com/bollywood-news/3-idiots-releases-with-highest-ever-print-screen-count/30196 |access-date=28 December 2011}}</ref> which was considered to a "wide domestic release for a Bollywood film" at that time, according to trade analysts.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jhunjhunwala |first=Udita |title=Reliance's 3 Idiots breaks box office records for Hindi film |url=https://www.screendaily.com/reliances-3-idiots-breaks-box-office-records-for-hindi-film/5009361.article |url-status=live |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Screen |language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150403042359/http://www.screendaily.com/reliances-3-idiots-breaks-box-office-records-for-hindi-film/5009361.article |archive-date=3 April 2015 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=100-crore club is past, Its 150-crore club for 'Chennai Express' |url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-08-11/news-interviews/41268470_1_100-crore-club-chennai-express-150-cr |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130811225433/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-08-11/news-interviews/41268470_1_100-crore-club-chennai-express-150-cr |archive-date=11 August 2013 |access-date=11 August 2013 |website=[[The Times of India]]}}</ref> Major [[Multiplex (movie theater)|multiplexes]] allotted more than 95% of screens for the film, prior to the release.<ref name=":15">{{Cite news |last=Ambwani |first=Meenakshi Verma |title=It's three cheers for 3 Idiots, Aamir on opening day |work=The Economic Times |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/media/entertainment/its-three-cheers-for-3-idiots-aamir-on-opening-day/articleshow/5379182.cms?from=mdr |access-date=21 October 2021}}</ref> It also had a wide-overseas release with about 344 prints in 415 screens.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Talaash: Is Aamir Khan's film a hit even before the release? |url=http://ibnlive.in.com/news/talaash-is-aamir-khans-film-a-hit-even-before-the-release/307969-8-66.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121201231403/http://ibnlive.in.com/news/talaash-is-aamir-khans-film-a-hit-even-before-the-release/307969-8-66.html |archive-date=1 December 2012 |access-date=25 April 2013 |website=CNN-IBN}}</ref> However, ''[[Bollywood Hungama]]'' and ''[[The Times of India]]'' reported that the film had got about 342–366 screens.<ref>{{Cite web |title=3 Idiots on a record-breaking spree across the world – Times of India |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/hindi/bollywood/box-office/3-idiots-on-a-record-breaking-spree-across-the-world/articleshow/5391904.cms |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=The Times of India |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":16">{{Cite web |date=24 December 2009 |title='3 Idiots' opens across 1766 screens in 32 countries |url=https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/news/box-office-special-features/3-idiots-opens-across-1766-screens-in-32-countries/ |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Bollywood Hungama |language=en}}</ref> The film's wide-release in about 32 countries, excluding India — [[United States]], [[Canada]], [[United Kingdom]], [[United Arab Emirates]], [[South Africa]], [[East Africa|East]] and [[West Africa]], [[Fiji]], [[Belgium]], [[Netherlands]], [[Mauritius]], [[Malaysia]], [[Singapore]], [[Australia]] and [[New Zealand]] — was noted by trade analysts, that it may slow down the business of [[James Cameron]]-directorial ''[[Avatar (2009 film)|Avatar]]'' (2009), released prior a week, had broken all box-office records.<ref name=":16" /> Producer Vinod Chopra stated that, a multiplex in Australia reduced shows for ''Avatar'', in order to get huge number of shows for this film.<ref name=":15" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=28 December 2009 |title=Reliance Big Pictures release"3 Idiots"-a Vidhu Vinod Chopra production, a Raj Kumar Hirani film starring Aamir Khan rewrites Indian Cinema Box Office History |url=https://www.relianceentertainment.com/reliance-big-pictures-release3-idiots-a-vidhu-vinod-chopra-production-a-raj-kumar-hirani-film-starring-aamir-khan-rewrites-indian-cinema-box-office-history/ |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Reliance Entertainment |language=en-US}}</ref>

Following its success, the film was screened in the [[East Asia]]n markets; the film was released in [[Taiwan]] on 17 December 2010,<ref name=":17">{{Cite web |last=Narayanan |first=Vivek |date=19 December 2011 |title=Why '3 Idiots' was a rage in Taiwan |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/why-amp393-idiotsamp39-was-a-rage-in-taiwan/articleshow/11162370.cms |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=The Times of India |language=en}}</ref> followed by [[Hong Kong]] on 1 September 2011.<ref name="hkfilmart" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=27 September 2011 |title=3 Idiots rakes in big at Hong Kong |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/bollywood/3-idiots-rakes-in-big-at-hong-kong/story-eCDe589MhIiXjZVMWFjwxJ.html |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Hindustan Times |language=en}}</ref> In China, it was released as ''San Ge Shagua'' ("Three Idiots"),<ref name="economic_china" /> on 15 December 2011.<ref name="economictimes" /> In [[South Korea]], it was released on 29 December 2011.<ref name="kaist" /> Along with the original Hindi version, a [[Mandarin Chinese]] dubbed version was also released, with the popular actress [[Tang Wei]] voicing Kapoor's role,<ref name="hindu_china">{{Cite news |last=Krishnan |first=Ananth |date=2 January 2012 |title=Success of 3 Idiots breaks China's Bollywood Great Wall |work=[[The Hindu]] |location=Beijing, China |url=http://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/Success-of-3-Idiots-breaks-Chinas-Bollywood-Great-Wall/article13349901.ece |access-date=29 March 2012}}</ref> and [[Huang Bo]] voicing Khan's role.{{Efn|Khan and Bo later collaborated again on ''[[Secret Superstar]]''}}<ref>{{Cite news |date=25 January 2018 |title=黄渤献唱《神秘巨星》主题曲阿米尔汗飙山东话 |publisher=Sina Corp |url=http://ent.sina.com.cn/m/c/2018-01-25/doc-ifyqwiqk3852226.shtml}}</ref> In January 2013, the film was distributed by Apex Entertainment and CJ Entertainment to release the film in the Korean markets and was released on 25 January 2013.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bhat |first=Varada |date=16 August 2011 |title=After Taiwan, 3 Idiots to hit Korean market this weekend |work=Business Standard India |url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/after-taiwan-3-idiots-to-hit-korean-market-this-weekend-111081600069_1.html |access-date=21 October 2021}}</ref> Following its success in other [[Cinema of Asia|Asian markets]], Japanese distributor [[Nikkatsu]] announced plans to release the film in Japan.<ref>{{Cite web |date=17 October 2011 |title=Indian films set to make inroads in Japan? |url=http://in.lifestyle.yahoo.com/indian-films-set-inroads-japan-092639925.html |access-date=29 March 2012 |publisher=[[Yahoo! News]]}}</ref> It was released there in June 2013,<ref name="qz" /> under the Japanese title {{nihongo|''Kitto, Umaku Iku''|きっと、うまくいく||lit. "It'll go well"}}.<ref>{{Cite web |title=きっと、うまくいく |url=https://filmarks.com/movies/53954 |access-date=27 January 2018 |website=Filmarks |publisher=[[Culture Convenience Club]] |language=ja}}</ref>

=== Screenings ===
In November 2009, Aamir Khan invited hundreds of people to watch the first half of the film exclusively in a basis of [[Non-disclosure agreement|Non-disclosure Agreement]]. ''3 Idiots'', thereby being the first film in [[Bollywood]] to use this clause, which was prevalent in [[Cinema of the United States|Hollywood]]; the lead actor asked people to share the opinions about the film.<ref>{{Cite web |date=7 November 2009 |title=Aamir gets public reaction for 3 Idiots! |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india/aamir-gets-public-reaction-for-3-idiots/story-uyPEIjgDREpKLBs1KqxrzI.html |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Hindustan Times |language=en}}</ref> The premiere show for the film was held in Mumbai on 23 December 2009.<ref name=":18">{{Cite web |date=24 December 2009 |title=Aamir invites new friends for 3 Idiots premiere |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india/aamir-invites-new-friends-for-3-idiots-premiere/story-2sm81N7ukiKicZDb1jURoJ.html |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Hindustan Times |language=en}}</ref> Along with the film's cast and crew, the event saw the presence of [[Anil Kapoor]], [[Shah Rukh Khan]], [[Salman Khan]], [[Saif Ali Khan]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Khans get together for 3 Idiots |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/entertainment/photo/khans-get-together-for-3-idiots-363146-2009-12-24 |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=India Today |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=SRK, Salman attend 3 Idiots premiere |url=https://www.sify.com/movies/srk-salman-attend-i3-idiotsi-premiere-imagegallery-bollywood-jmymrQggfdgsi.html |url-status=dead |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=[[Sify]] |language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211021110139/https://www.sify.com/movies/srk-salman-attend-i3-idiotsi-premiere-imagegallery-bollywood-jmymrQggfdgsi.html |archive-date=21 October 2021 }}</ref> and other named celebrities, including Hirani's earlier collaborators such as Sanjay Dutt, [[Vidya Balan]], [[Arshad Warsi]] and [[Dia Mirza]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=The three Khans come together for 3 Idiots |url=https://www.ndtv.com/photos/entertainment/the-three-khans-come-together-for-3-idiots-6492 |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=NDTV.com}}</ref> [[Amitabh Bachchan]] who had earlier confirmed his presence at the premiere ultimately did not turn up in the end. The special premiere in [[United States]] and [[Canada]] were held on 24 December, prior to the Indian release.<ref name=":16" /> On 30 January 2010, a special screening of the film was conducted to the veteran actor [[Dilip Kumar]].<ref name=":19">{{Cite web |last=Banerjee |first=Soumyadipta |date=30 January 2010 |title=Special screening of '3 Idiots' for Dilip Kumar |url=https://www.dnaindia.com/entertainment/report-special-screening-of-3-idiots-for-dilip-kumar-1341211 |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=DNA India |language=en}}</ref> He constantly followed the news of the film and wanted to watch it in a theatre, but due to his health condition, he could not get out of his home. Later, Chopra and Hirani expressed Dilip's wish and agreed to conduct a private screening for the actor.<ref name=":19" /> Chopra said that he "really moved after seeing the film and felt nostalgic".<ref name=":19" /> Later, he urged to discuss about the film and its making with Chopra and Hirani at the former's apartment in Bandra, with the discussion went on for two hours.<ref name=":19" />

On 19 May 2010, the film was screened at the [[Headquarters of the United Nations]] in [[New York (state)|New York]], with Rajkumar Hirani and the film's team attending the screening.<ref>{{Cite web |date=15 May 2010 |title=Special screening of 3 Idiots for UN |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/entertainment-others/special-screening-of-3-idiots-for-un/ |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}</ref> The members of the [[United Nations]], came in touch with the producer regarding the screening of the film, following its influence in youngsters about the [[Indian education]] system.<ref>{{Cite web |date=19 May 2010 |title='3 Idiots' screened at the United Nations |url=https://www.deccanherald.com/content/70395/3-idiots-screened-united-nations.html |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Deccan Herald |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=19 May 2010 |title=UN laps up special screening of 3 Idiots |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/movies/bollywood/story/un-laps-up-special-screening-of-3-idiots-74609-2010-05-19 |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=India Today |language=en}}</ref> More than 700 invitees, including non-Indians, turned up for the screening, despite the hall had capacity for about 600-650 people.<ref name=":20">{{Cite web |title=Aamir Khan's '3 Idiots' Screened at the UN |url=https://www.outlookindia.com/newswire/story/aamir-khans-3-idiots-screened-at-the-un/682544 |url-status=live |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Outlook India|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210611122046/https://www.outlookindia.com/newswire/story/aamir-khans-3-idiots-screened-at-the-un/682544 |archive-date=11 June 2021 }}</ref> A two-hour long post-screening session was conducted to the attendees to focus on "how the film has impacted mindsets".<ref name=":20" /> The film was screened at the [[Indian Film Festival of Melbourne]] in March 2010, to bridging the cultural gap between India and Australia, following the [[Violence against Indians in Australia controversy|Violence against Indians in Australia during late-January 2010]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=11 March 2010 |title=3 Idiots to be screened in Australia |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/movies/bollywood/story/3-idiots-to-be-screened-in-australia-69114-2010-03-11 |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=India Today |language=en}}</ref> It may also help Bollywood markets to screen their film in Australia.<ref>{{Cite web |date=10 March 2010 |title='3 Idiots' to be screened in Australia to help improve ties |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/entertainment-others/3-idiots-to-be-screened-in-australia-to-help-improve-ties/ |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=10 March 2010 |title='3 Idiots' screening in Australia to help improve ties |url=https://www.deccanherald.com/content/57314/3-idiots-screening-australia-help.html |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Deccan Herald |language=en}}</ref> The film was screened at the Aruba International Film Festival held on 10 June 2010.<ref>{{Cite web |date=26 May 2010 |title=3 Idiots to be screened at Aruba International Film Festival |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/movies/bollywood/story/3-idiots-to-be-screened-at-aruba-international-film-festival-75184-2010-05-26 |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=India Today |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=10 October 2012 |title=India, Japan to start joint study on LNG pricing |url=https://zeenews.india.com/business/news/international/india-japan-to-start-joint-study-on-lng-pricing_62125.html |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Zee News |language=en}}</ref>

At the Indian Film Festival of London, held during 25–29 August 2010, the film was screened along with Chopra's other five films — ''[[An Encounter with Faces]]'' (1978); ''[[Parinda]]'' (1989); ''[[1942: A Love Story]]'' (1993) and ''[[Eklavya: The Royal Guard]]'' (2007), while further honouring an award for Chopra.<ref name=":21">{{Cite web |title=Vidhu Vinod Chopra to be honoured in London |url=https://www.rediff.com/movies/report/vidhu-vinod-chopra-to-be-honoured-in-london/20100602.htm |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Rediff |language=en}}</ref> A charity screening of the film was also held with the proceedings being contributed to [[UNICEF]].<ref name=":21" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=2 June 2010 |title=Vidhu Vinod Chopra's Retrospective at the Indian Film Festival of London |url=https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/news/bollywood/vidhu-vinod-chopras-retrospective-at-the-indian-film-festival-of-london/ |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Bollywood Hungama |language=en}}</ref> At the inauguration of [[Vidhu Vinod Chopra]] film festival, to honour the director-producer, ''3 Idiots'' along with the director's other films, ''Eklavya: The Royal Guard'', ''[[Mission Kashmir]]'' and the [[Munna Bhai (film series)|''Munna Bhai'' film series]], were screened at the festival on 30 March 2012.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Vidhu Vinod Chopra film festival kicks off |url=https://www.ndtv.com/entertainment/vidhu-vinod-chopra-film-festival-kicks-off-604236 |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=NDTV.com}}</ref> ''3 Idiots'' became one of the few Indian films screened at the inaugural Indian Film Festival held in [[Ho Chi Minh City]] ([[Vietnam]]) in December 2015.<ref>{{Cite web |date=19 December 2015 |title=Vietnam hosts first Indian Film Festival, will screen '3 Idiots', 'Jodha Akbar' |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/bollywood/vietnam-hosts-first-indian-film-festival-will-screen-3-idiots-jodha-akbar/ |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}</ref> The film was further screened at the inaugural Himalayan Film Festival held during 24–28 September 2021 in [[Ladakh]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Films & filmmakers from Ladakh to be in focus at the first Himalayan film fest – Times of India |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/hindi/bollywood/news/films-filmmakers-from-ladakh-to-be-in-focus-at-the-first-himalayan-film-fest/articleshow/86459834.cms |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=The Times of India |language=en}}</ref>

=== Marketing ===
Aamir Khan used innovative marketing strategies for the promotions of the films, in order to gain wide exposure among audience.<ref name=":23">{{Cite web |date=18 December 2009 |title=Aamir's using unique publicity tricks for promoting "3 Idoits" |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/entertainment-others/aamirs-using-unique-publicity-tricks-for-promoting-3-idoits/ |url-status=live |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=The Indian Express |language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170904113101/http://indianexpress.com:80/article/entertainment/entertainment-others/aamirs-using-unique-publicity-tricks-for-promoting-3-idoits/ |archive-date=4 September 2017 }}</ref> Anil Arjun, the CEO of [[Reliance MediaWorks]] which produced and distributed the film had stated that, a 40-member team was put in place to market the film four months prior to the release. He said that "the campaign was made such a way that it appeals to all category of viewers — people who are going to multiplexes in metros and single screens in small towns". The film was shown to all stakeholders and the company employees prior to the release, and a 360-degree marketing campaign was made after the release, which covered digital, outdoor, brand partnerships, public relations and merchandise.<ref name=":24">{{Cite web |title=The story behind the amazing marketing of 3 idiots |url=https://business.rediff.com/slide-show/2010/aug/06/slide-show-1-the-story-behind-the-amazing-marketing-of-3-idiots.htm |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Rediff |language=en}}</ref>

The "butt chairs" used by the actors in the film, were placed at leading multiplex chains for public viewing.<ref name=":25">{{Cite web |date=3 December 2009 |title=Aamir's unique marketing strategy for 3 Idiots! |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/aamir-s-unique-marketing-strategy-for-3-idiots/story-0XAQytJqRsqych8VIG9cWO.html |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Hindustan Times |language=en}}</ref> The makers teamed up with [[Zapak]].com for digital promotions,<ref>{{Cite web |date=3 December 2009 |title=3 Idiots partners Zapak.com for digital marketing |url=https://businessofcinema.com/bollywood-news/3-idiots-partners-zapakcom-for-digital-marketing/30048 |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Businessofcinema.com |language=en-US}}</ref> with firstly the official website titled ''idiotsacademy.com'' was launched and the lead cast came with [[video chat]]ting to the fans.<ref name=":25" /> The website designed keeping in mind the college atmosphere and few special added features.<ref name=":23" /> The team later interacted with fans through video conference during the online music launch.<ref name=":14" /> A two-promotional tour was conducted by Khan, where he would travel across India.<ref name=":23" /> On the website, an [[alternate reality game]] called "Track Aamir" was launched, to track the whereabouts of the actor during this tour. The site had over 600,000 unique visitors within two weeks.<ref name=":24" /> During this tour, Aamir Khan invited 24 friends personally to attend the premiere held in Mumbai, prior to the release of the film.<ref name=":18" /> Prior to the release promos for the film was unveiled in an event attended by the lead actors and the crew associated in the film, and press conferences streamed in seven countries.<ref name=":25" /> The online promos, trailer, video songs and interviews were released in [[YouTube]].<ref name=":25" />

[[Reliance Life Insurance]] started a campaign based on the song "All Is Well" and promoted it in television channels, radio stations and hoardings featuring the lead actors of the film.<ref name=":24" /> The makers started marketing alliances with [[Pantaloons Fashion & Retail|Pantaloons Fashion and Retail]], to launch their exclusive apparel and accessories collection. The special T-shirts with Khan's scribblings as designs imprinted on it, was available in 45 Pantaloons stores, which were priced {{Indian Rupee|399}}.<ref name=":24" /> The collection also included replicas of T-shirts, garments and jewellery used by the leads in the film.<ref name=":25" /> As a part of promotions in Facebook, the handle called "Pucca Idiot" was launched prior to the release, which generated 10,000 followers within 24 hours.<ref name=":24" /> In [[PVR Cinemas]], the film's marketing team painted on washrooms, with the slogan "You are an idiot".<ref name=":24" /> Another promotional event titled "Sabse Big Idiot" was held, with the leads being present at [[92.7 Big FM]], asking viewers to show their idiocy.<ref>{{Cite web |title=3 Idiots found on Big 92.7 FM |url=http://www.radioandmusic.com/content/editorial/news-releases/3-idiots-found-big-927-fm |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=www.radioandmusic.com |language=en}}</ref> As a part of outdoor promotions, carried by Primesite Marketing Agency, innovations in hoardings, bus shelters, bus backs, platform signages and mobile vans attracted audiences. Stickers with the film's logo was pasted in 10,000 auto rickshaws that moved in cities.<ref name=":25" />

Trade analysts believed that the unique promotional activity helped in the massive success of the box-office breaking several records, and also creating a nationwide impact.<ref name=":24" /> At the [[Business Standard]] Brand Derby summit, held at the [[The Leela Kempinski|Leela Kempinski]] hotel in [[Gurgaon]] on 16 July 2010, the film topped the 2009 Brand Derby, due to the unique promotions of the film.<ref name=":24" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Sheikh |first=Aminah |date=21 December 2009 |title=3 Idiots makes smart moves on marketing |work=Business Standard India |url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/management/3idiots-makes-smart-moves-on-marketing-109122100060_1.html |access-date=21 October 2021}}</ref>

=== Piracy ===
In addition to encourage people watching the film in theatres, Reliance MediaWorks' marketing team managed to destroy more than 2.1 million illegal downloads.<ref name=":24" /> The team had its core-group working in India, United States and United Kingdom, tracked and destroyed pirated versions of the film in physical and online formats, and also issued trade notices, warning letters specific to prospective infringing sites and outlets across the overseas sectors.<ref name=":24" /> On 26 December 2009, a day after the film's release, the social service branch conducted a raid near [[Bandra]] station and over 2500 [[Copyright infringement|pirated]] [[Compact disc|CD]]s and [[DVD]]s, with 69 DVDs of this film, along with other films ''[[Avatar (2009 film)|Avatar]]'' and ''[[Paa (film)|Paa]]'', were seized.<ref>{{Cite web |date=5 February 2010 |title=Ishqiya, Rann, Veer, 3 Idiots: Piracy basted |url=https://www.filmibeat.com/bollywood/news/2010/ishqiya-3-idiots-pirated-050210.html |url-status=live |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Filmibeat |language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211021110139/https://www.filmibeat.com/bollywood/news/2010/ishqiya-3-idiots-pirated-050210.html |archive-date=21 October 2021 }}</ref> In New Delhi, the sales of pirated DVDs of the film were stopped after a subsidiary company of Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (R-ADAG), levied a complaint to the officials to take actions against movie piracy.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2 January 2010 |title=Reliance traces pirated DVDs of '3 Idiots', files case |url=https://www.deccanherald.com/content/44500/reliance-traces-pirated-dvds-3.html |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Deccan Herald |language=en}}</ref> After the raid conducted by the police in several locations across Mumbai, former [[Indian Police Service|IPS]] officer [[Aftab Ahmed Khan]], said that "We execute everything keeping the system in mind. We have the support of the local police so there is no question of going against the system. Piracy always existed in some form or the other. But we are getting the facts and figures only now as there are industry body who are working together to bring this menace in the forefront. To curb piracy in the long run we will have to constantly work towards means and ways to fight it."<ref>{{Cite web |date=9 January 2010 |title=AA Khan talks about confiscating piracy DVD's of 3 Idiots |url=https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/news/features/aa-khan-talks-about-confiscating-piracy-dvds-of-3-idiots/ |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Bollywood Hungama |language=en}}</ref>

=== Television and home media ===
The television rights of the film were purchased by [[Sony Pictures Networks India|Sony Pictures Networks]] for {{INRConvert|22|c|year=2009|mode=historical}}, which was the highest bid during that time.<ref name=":26">{{Cite web |last=Bansal |first=Shuchi |date=11 January 2010 |title='3 Idiots' looks to cash in on TV rights |url=https://www.livemint.com/Home-Page/msimz9mQ5Vp4UAZnRvEEKK/82163-Idiots8217-looks-to-cash-in-on-TV-rights.html |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=mint |language=en}}</ref> The film made its television debut on 25 July 2010, with promotions for the television premiere cost {{INRConvert|2.2|l|year=2010|mode=historical}} and had attracted 12 popular sponsors to market the film.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bhushan |first=Ratna |title=3 Idiots most expensive movie on TV, Sony selling ad slots @ Rs 2.2 L/10 sec |work=The Economic Times |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/media/entertainment/3-idiots-most-expensive-movie-on-tv-sony-selling-ad-slots-rs-2-2-l/10-sec/articleshow/6140676.cms?from=mdr |access-date=21 October 2021}}</ref> It drew an audience of 39{{nbsp}}million viewers in India,<ref name="hollywoodreporter" /> and had attracted a TVR of 13.1 at the metro cities [[Delhi]], [[Mumbai]] and [[Kolkata]] and an overall TVR of 10.1 domestically.<ref name="hindustantimes.com">{{Cite web |date=5 August 2010 |title=3 Idiots strikes gold on small screen |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/tv/3-idiots-strikes-gold-on-small-screen/story-cnWcMGWJvdetEHcmguf2dP.html |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Hindustan Times |language=en}}</ref> The cumulative reach of the film was uplifted to 30.5%.<ref name="hindustantimes.com" /> It also helped the broadcaster, [[Sony Max|Sony MAX]] to the third position among the general entertainment channels during that month.<ref>{{Cite web |date=13 August 2010 |title=3 Idiots takes Sony to No.3 |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/news-archive/web/3-idiots-takes-sony-to-no-3/ |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}</ref>

On 27 August 2010, [[Reliance Big Entertainment]] launched the standard DVD and [[Video CD|VCD]] editions of the film through [[Reliance Big Entertainment|Reliance Big Home Video]]. It was coincided at an event held during [[Grand Hyatt Mumbai|Grand Hyatt]] at [[Mumbai]], with the presence of the cast and crew members and was broadcast live on [[Facebook]] and [[Twitter]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Reliance BIG Home Video launches '3 Idiots' DVD & VCD |url=https://www.indiainfoline.com/article/news-business/reliance-big-home-video-launches-‘3-idiots’-dvd-vcd-with-3-idiots-113101404358_1.html |url-status=live |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=www.indiainfoline.com |language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211021110138/https://www.indiainfoline.com/article/news-business/reliance-big-home-video-launches-%E2%80%983-idiots%E2%80%99-dvd-vcd-with-3-idiots-113101404358_1.html |archive-date=21 October 2021 }}</ref> Later, on 1 October 2010, Reliance Big Home Video launched the premium version of the VCD and DVD, that included a 24-page sticker book and special "idioticomic" book, priced at {{Indian Rupee|499}}.<ref name=":27">{{Cite web |date=1 October 2010 |title=Premium version of 3 Idiots DVD launched |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/news-archive/web/premium-version-of-3-idiots-dvd-launched/ |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}</ref> It eventually sold 75,000–80,000 copies upon its launch, thereby generating a revenue of {{Indian Rupee}}30 –40million (US$400,000 –530,000).<ref name=":27" /> A month later, the special [[Blu-ray]] disc edition was launched on 5 November 2010.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Mukherjee |first=Surajeet Das Gupta & Sharmistha |date=9 August 2010 |title=3 Idiots also make a wise move on DVDs |work=Business Standard India |url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/3-idiots-also-make-a-wise-move-on-dvds-110080900009_1.html |access-date=21 October 2021}}</ref>

In order to curb piracy, producer Chopra and Hirani stated that the film will be released and downloaded legally through [[YouTube]] on 25 March 2010, twelve weeks after its theatrical release.<ref name=":28">{{Cite web |date=23 December 2009 |title=Now, download 3 Idiots legally! |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india/now-download-3-idiots-legally/story-w58LZN4bLhFVslsRK7tiON.html |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Hindustan Times |language=en}}</ref> It was attempted for the people who cannot afford to go to multiplexes or single screens, thereby 3 Idiots becoming the first Indian film to have a legal release on YouTube.<ref name=":28" /> However, the film did not release as planned on that day due to copyright issues.<ref>{{Cite news |title=3 Idiots gets a YouTube release |work=The Economic Times |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/media/entertainment/media/3-idiots-gets-a-youtube-release/articleshow/9100418.cms?from=mdr |access-date=21 October 2021}}</ref> Officially, it was released on YouTube in May 2012, but its access has since been restricted.<ref>{{Cite web |title=3 idiots |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yto4_QFoLdA |access-date=14 May 2012 |via=YouTube}}{{cbignore}}{{Dead Youtube links|date=February 2022}}</ref> However, it has been made available for online streaming on multiple platforms such as [[Netflix]], [[Amazon Prime Video]] and [[Sony LIV]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=3 Idiots |url=https://reelgood.com/movie/3-idiots-2009 |publisher=Reelgood.com|language=en}}</ref>

== Reception ==
''3 Idiots'' received widespread critical acclaim upon release from both domestic and international critics, with praise directed towards its direction, themes, humor, story, screenplay, soundtrack and performances of the cast.

=== India ===
Subhash K. Jha stated: "It's not that ''3 Idiots'' is a flawless work of art. But it is a vital, inspiring, and life-revising work of contemporary art with some heart imbued into every part. In a country where students are driven to suicide by their impossible curriculum, ''3 Idiots'' provides hope. Maybe cinema can't save lives. But cinema, sure as hell, can make you feel life is worth living. ''3 Idiots'' does just that, and much more. The director takes the definition of entertainment into directions of social comment".<ref>{{Cite web |date=26 December 2009 |title=Subhash K Jha speaks about ''3 Idiots'' |url=http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/celebrities/features/type/view/id/583/ |access-date=21 November 2010 |website=[[Bollywood Hungama]]}}</ref> [[Nikhat Kazmi]] of ''[[The Times of India]]'' gave it four and a half stars and suggests that, "The film is a laugh riot, despite being high on fundas […] Hirani carries forward his simplistic 'humanism alone works' philosophy of the ''Munnabhai'' series in ''3 Idiots'' too, making it a warm and vivacious signature tune to 2009. The second half of the film does falter in parts, especially the childbirth sequence, but it doesn't take long for the film to jump back on track."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Nikhat Kazmi |date=24 December 2009 |title=3 Idiots review |url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/movie-reviews/hindi/3-Idiots/movie-review/5373913.cms |access-date=21 November 2010 |website=The Times of India}}</ref>

Mayank Shekhar of the ''[[Hindustan Times]]'' gave the film three and a half out of five stars and comments that "this is the sort of movie you'll take home with a smile and a song on your lips."<ref>{{Cite web |date=24 December 2009 |title=3 Idiots review |url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/Review-3-Idiots/H1-Article1-490233.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110830022823/http://www.hindustantimes.com/Review-3-Idiots/H1-Article1-490233.aspx |archive-date=30 August 2011 |access-date=21 November 2010 |website=Hindustan Times}}</ref> [[Taran Adarsh]] of ''[[Bollywood Hungama]]'' gave ''3 Idiots'' four and a half out of five stars and states: "On the whole, ''3 Idiots'' easily ranks amongst Aamir, Rajkumar Hirani and Vidhu Vinod Chopra's finest films. Do yourself and your family a favour: Watch ''3 Idiots.'' It's emotional, it's entertaining, it's enlightening. The film has tremendous youth appeal and feel-good factor to work in a big way."<ref>{{Cite web |title=3 Idiots review |url=http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/movies/review/13910/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101104160008/http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/movies/review/13910/index.html |archive-date=4 November 2010 |access-date=21 November 2010 |website=[[Bollywood Hungama]]}}</ref> Kaveree Bamzai of ''[[India Today]]'' gave ''3 Idiots'' five stars and argues that "it's a lovely story, of a man from nowhere who wanted to learn, told like a fairy tale, with the secret heart carrying its coded message of setting all of us free."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kaveree Bamzai |date=24 December 2009 |title=3 Idiots: Laugh. Cry. Fly. Go watch it |url=http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/76291/3+Idiots:+Laugh.+Cry.+Fly.+Go+watch+it..html?complete=1 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100114010140/http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/76291/3%2BIdiots%3A%2BLaugh.%2BCry.%2BFly.%2BGo%2Bwatch%2Bit..html?complete=1 |archive-date=14 January 2010 |access-date=21 November 2010 |website=India Today}}</ref>

Sonia Chopra of [[Sify]] gave the film 3 stars and said "Though a bit too calculated and designed, 3 Idiots is still an ok option for the significant message, interesting cast and scattered breezy moments."<ref>{{Cite web |title=3 Idiots has a Munnabhai hangover |url=http://www.sify.com/movies/3-idiots-has-a-munnabhai-hangover-review-bollywood-14925000.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140317020848/http://www.sify.com/movies/3-idiots-has-a-munnabhai-hangover-review-bollywood-14925000.html |archive-date=17 March 2014 |access-date=19 December 2011 |website=[[Sify]]}}</ref> [[Rajeev Masand]] of ''[[CNN-IBN]]'' gave the film three out of five stars and states: "Going home after watching ''3 Idiots'' I felt like I'd just been to my favorite restaurant only to be a tad underwhelmed by their signature dish. It was a satisfying meal, don't get me wrong, but not the best meal I'd been expecting."<ref>{{Cite web |last= |date=3 February 2010 |title=3 Idiots review: CNN-IBN |url=http://ibnlive.in.com/news/masands-movie-review-3-idiots-satisfying-but-not-the-best/107739-8.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091228093155/http://ibnlive.in.com/news/masands-movie-review-3-idiots-satisfying-but-not-the-best/107739-8.html |archive-date=28 December 2009 |access-date=21 November 2010 |website=CNN-IBN}}</ref> Shubhra Gupta from ''[[The Indian Express]]'' also gave it 3 stars, stating "''3 Idiots'' does not do as much for me. The emotional truth that shone through both the '''Munnabhai''<nowiki/>' movies doesn't come through strongly enough."<ref>{{Cite news |last=Gupta |first=Shubhra |date=25 December 2009 |title=3 Idiots |work=[[The Indian Express]] |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/movie-review/3-idiots/ |access-date=18 February 2012}}</ref> Raja Sen of ''[[Rediff]]'' gave the film two out of five stars and states: "Rajkumar Hirani's one of the directors of the decade, a man with immense talent and a knack for storytelling. On his debut, he hit a [[Century (cricket)|hundred]]. With his second, he hit a triple century. This time, he fishes outside the off stump, tries to play shots borrowed from other batters, and hits and misses to provide a patchy, 32*-type innings. It's okay, boss, ''chalta hai''. Even [[Sachin Tendulkar|Sachin]] has an off day, and we still have great hope."<ref>{{Cite web |date=24 December 2009 |title=Rediff review |url=http://movies.rediff.com/report/2009/dec/24/review-three-idiots.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101106121348/http://movies.rediff.com/report/2009/dec/24/review-three-idiots.htm |archive-date=6 November 2010 |access-date=21 November 2010 |website=Rediff.com}}</ref>

=== Overseas ===
{{Rotten Tomatoes prose|score=100|count=13|average=7.44|consensus=|ref=yes |access-date=18 July 2022}} Derek Elley of ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' wrote that "''3 Idiots'' takes a while to lay out its game plan but pays off emotionally in its second half." Robert Abele of ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' wrote that there's an "unavoidable ''[[joie de vivre]]'' (symbolised by Rancho's meditative mantra 'All is well') and a performance charm that makes this one of the more naturally gregarious Bollywood imports." Louis Proyect described it as a "fabulous achievement across the board. A typical Bollywood confection but also a social commentary on a dysfunctional engineering school system that pressures huge numbers of students into suicide."<ref name="rt" />

The film was praised by critics in East Asia and Southeast Asia. ''[[South China Morning Post]]'' wrote that the film "wraps a heavy message in light comedy. It is satire at its best, a powerful indictment of India's education system in which students cram for exams while stifling their dreams."<ref name="scmp" /> Chaerim Oh of ''[[KAIST]] Herald'' wrote that "the film never harshly denounces the educational system but instead uncovers disturbing truths and unseen consequences of tremendous pressure upon students" and that "if you don't end up crying like I did (or won't admit that you did), you'll still enjoy the movie."<ref name="kaist" /> In Japan, Yuri Wakabayashi of ''[[:ja:映画.com|Eiga]]'' also gave the film a positive review.<ref>{{Cite web |date=8 May 2013 |title=きっと、うまくいく : 映画評論・批評 |url=http://eiga.com/movie/77899/critic/ |website=[[:ja:映画.com|Eiga]] |language=ja-JP}}</ref>

== Box office ==

=== Pre-release ===
The film was made at the budget of {{INRConvert|55|c|year=2009|mode=historical}}, while [[Indo-Asian News Service]] estimated the budget to be around {{Indian Rupee}}35–45 crore (US$4.6–6.0 million).<ref name=":29">{{Cite news |last=Sinha |first=Aminah Sheikh & Ashish |date=5 January 2010 |title=3 Idiots makes B'wood history |work=Business Standard India |url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/3-idiots-makes-b-wood-history-110010500087_1.html |access-date=21 October 2021}}</ref> In August 2009, [[Reliance Big Pictures]] acquired the worldwide distribution rights of the film, along with the [[Hrithik Roshan]]-starrer ''[[Kites (film)|Kites]]'' (2010) for {{INRConvert|140|c|year=2009|mode=historical}}.<ref name=":30">{{Cite news |last=Nag |first=Ashoke |title=Reliance Big Pictures acquires distribution rights of biggest blockbusters |work=The Economic Times |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/media/entertainment/reliance-big-pictures-acquires-distribution-rights-of-biggest-blockbusters/articleshow/4937434.cms?from=mdr |access-date=21 October 2021}}</ref> Individually, the worldwide theatrical rights were sold for about {{INRConvert|65|c|year=2009|mode=historical}}.<ref name=":29" /> After its theatrical run, the producers of the film negotiated deals with leading satellite television channels, with [[Sony Pictures Networks India|Sony Pictures Networks]] acquiring the film for {{INRConvert|22|c|year=2009|mode=historical}}, a record during that period.<ref name=":26" /> The music rights were sold to [[Super Cassettes Industries]] (T-Series) for {{INRConvert|12|c|year=2009|mode=historical}}.<ref name=":29" /> Excluding the print and advertisement costs, the film made a business {{INRConvert|99|c|year=2009|mode=historical}}, even before the theatrical release.<ref name=":29" />

The makers entered into tussles with the distributors as Khan insisted to sell the film's distribution rights at a tune of {{INRConvert|100|c|year=2009|mode=historical}}; the distribution rights of the actor's previous film ''[[Ghajini (2008 film)|Ghajini]]'' (2008) was sold for {{INRConvert|93|c|year=2008|mode=historical}}.<ref name=":31">{{Cite news |last=Raghavendra |first=Nandini |title=3 Idiots: The Road not taken |work=The Economic Times |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/business-of-bollywood/3-idiots-the-road-not-taken/articleshow/5379246.cms?from=mdr |access-date=21 October 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title='3 Idiots' to rake it in, set to get additional prints |url=https://www.moneylife.in/article/3-idiots-to-rake-it-in-set-to-get-additional-prints/2984.html |url-status=live |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Moneylife |language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210124191203/https://www.moneylife.in/article/3-idiots-to-rake-it-in-set-to-get-additional-prints/2984.html |archive-date=24 January 2021 }}</ref> Following the financial turmoil, which affected the footfalls and earnings in multiplexes and single-screens, the stakeholders were not ready to buy the film for a huge amount, and reduce the price for distribution.<ref name=":31" /> After much deliberations, the theatrical rights were being sold at a tune of {{Indian Rupee}}40 –45 crore (US$5.3 –6.0 million).<ref name=":30" /> [[Reliance Big Entertainment|Reliance Big]] had also levied the deal to {{INRConvert|20|c|year=2009|mode=historical}} for [[home video]] release.<ref name=":30" />

''3 Idiots'', eventually topped online polls of the "most-awaited film of the year", with the extensive marketing campaign and pre-release contributed to it.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Preview: 3 Idiots |url=https://www.sify.com/movies/preview-i3-idiotsi-imagegallery-bollywood-jlvpoOfedbisi.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211021110141/https://www.sify.com/movies/preview-i3-idiotsi-imagegallery-bollywood-jlvpoOfedbisi.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=21 October 2021 |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=[[Sify]] |language=en}}</ref> The advance bookings of the film eventually topped to 40–45%, with major multiplexes showing advance bookings rates uplifted to more than 90% in the opening day.<ref name=":15" /> Amitabh Vardhan, CEO of [[PVR Cinemas]] and Alok Tandon of [[INOX Leisure Limited]], stated that "looking at the pre-release hype, the film will have the best openings of a movie this year in terms of theatrical revenues",<ref name=":15" /> while trade analyst [[Taran Adarsh]] stated that "it could be easily one of the biggest blockbusters of the year".<ref name=":15" />

=== Box office ===
The film's worldwide lifetime gross was {{INR|link=yes}}459{{nbsp}}[[crore]] (US$90{{nbsp}}million),{{efn|name=Gross|''3 Idiots'' worldwide gross: {{INR}}459 crore (US$90 million)<ref name="hollywoodreporter" />
*Domestic: {{INR}}273.82 crore<ref>{{Cite web |title=Top India Grossers All Time |url=https://www.boxofficeindia.com/india-total-gross.php |access-date=12 November 2017 |publisher=[[Box Office India]]}}</ref> (US$57.05 million)<ref>{{Cite web |year=2009 |title=Yearly Average Rates (48 INR per USD) |url=https://www.ofx.com/en-gb/forex-news/historical-exchange-rates/yearly-average-rates/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170713183556/https://www.ofx.com/en-gb/forex-news/historical-exchange-rates/yearly-average-rates/ |archive-date=13 July 2017 |access-date=13 November 2017 |website=[[OFX (company)|OFX]]}}</ref>
*Overseas: US$30.5 million<ref name="ibtimes">{{Cite news |last=Hooli |first=Shekhar |date=1 May 2017 |title=Baahubali 2 overseas box office collection: Rajamouli's film beats Chennai Express, Kabali's lifetime record in 1st weekend |work=[[International Business Times]] |url=http://www.ibtimes.co.in/baahubali-2-overseas-box-office-collection-rajamoulis-film-beats-chennai-express-kabalis-725036}}</ref> ({{INR}}186.142 crore)<ref name="exchange">{{Cite web |year=2013 |title=Exchange Rates (61.03 INR per USD) |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2076.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150215024949/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook//fields/2076.html |archive-date=15 February 2015 |access-date=16 November 2017 |website=[[The World Factbook]] |publisher=[[Central Intelligence Agency]]}}</ref>
}}<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |date=27 February 2018 |title=Deepika Padukone's Padmaavat beats Aamir Khan's Dhoom 3 and Salman Khan's Tiger Zinda Hai at the box office |work=[[Times Now]] |url=http://www.timesnownews.com/entertainment/box-office/article/deepika-padukone-padmaavat-beats-aamir-khan-dhoom-3-and-salman-khans-tiger-zinda-hai-at-the-box-office/202889}}</ref><ref name="hollywoodreporter">{{Cite news |date=11 August 2010 |title=Q&A: Aamir Khan |work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/qampa-aamir-khan-26582}}</ref> making it the [[List of highest-grossing Indian films|highest-grossing Indian film]] at the time.<ref name="forbes">{{Cite news |last=Cain |first=Rob |date=11 October 2017 |title=It's Another Diwali Clash of Titans As Ajay's 'Golmaal' Takes on Aamir's 'Superstar' |work=[[Forbes]] |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/robcain/2017/10/11/its-another-diwali-clash-of-titans-as-ajays-golmaal-takes-on-aamirs-superstar/}}</ref><ref name="boxofficeindia">{{Cite web |title=Chennai Express Crosses Ek Tha Tiger Worldwide In Ten Days |url=http://www.boxofficeindia.com/boxnewsdetail.php?page=shownews&articleid=5979&nCat= |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105220137/http://boxofficeindia.com/boxnewsdetail.php?page=shownews&articleid=5979&nCat= |archive-date=5 November 2013 |access-date=8 August 2014 |publisher=Box Office India}}</ref> The film was listed in [[Guinness World Records]] for the record of highest box office film gross for a [[Bollywood]] film.<ref>{{Cite web |date=24 July 2015 |title=List of movies that have been inducted into Guinness World Records |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/education-today/gk-current-affairs/story/movies-in-guinness-world-records-284458-2015-07-24 |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=India Today |language=en}}</ref> As of 2020, the collections are equivalent to {{INRConvert|980|c|year=2020|mode=historical}}, adjusted to inflation.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Thombare |first=Suparna |date=23 July 2019 |title=Which is the Highest Grossing Indian Film of All Time? |url=https://www.thequint.com/entertainment/bollywood/ten-highest-grossing-bollywood-films-of-all-time-inflation |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=TheQuint |language=en}}</ref> The success of the film was attributed to the content and the extensive pre-release promotions, which led to an increase in the huge number of footfalls.<ref name=":29" />

The film created the highest collection record for paid previews with [[Indian rupee|{{INR}}]]2.75 crore that time, which was broken by ''[[Chennai Express]]'' (2013).<ref>{{Cite web |date=22 September 2013 |title=Boxofficeindia.com |url=http://www.boxofficeindia.com/boxnewsdetail.php?page=shownews&articleid=5937&nCat |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130922174013/http://www.boxofficeindia.com/boxnewsdetail.php?page=shownews&articleid=5937&nCat |archive-date=22 September 2013 |access-date=31 August 2020}}</ref> In its four-day first weekend, the film netted {{INRConvert|38|c|year=2009}}, and broke the record held by ''[[Ghajini (2008 film)|Ghajini]]'' (Aamir's previous film) for the first weekend collections.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Dabangg breaks India records |publisher=Film Business Asia |url=http://www.filmbiz.asia/news/dabangg-breaks-india-records |url-status=dead |access-date=28 November 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131110152151/http://www.filmbiz.asia/news/dabangg-breaks-india-records |archive-date=10 November 2013}}</ref> By the first week, the film netted {{INRConvert|79|c|year=2009}}, again breaking the box office record held by ''Ghajini''.<ref>{{Cite news |title=My Name plays on but Idiots shifts bar |work=[[The Telegraph (Kolkata)|The Telegraph]] |url=http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100224/jsp/nation/story_12144926.jsp |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100228162655/http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100224/jsp/nation/story_12144926.jsp |url-status=dead |archive-date=28 February 2010 |access-date=28 November 2011}}</ref> ''3 Idiots'' had nett grossed {{INRConvert|56|c|year=2009}} in its second week, {{INRConvert|30.3|c|year=2009}} during the third week, {{INRConvert|16|c|year=2009}} in its fourth week and {{INRConvert|9.75|c|year=2009}} in fifth to make a total of {{INRConvert|202|c|year=2009}} in five weeks.{{Citation needed|date=June 2022}} ''3 Idiots'', thereby became the first Indian film ever to collect this huge amount, hence established the [[100 Crore Club|{{INRConvert|200|c|year=2009|mode=historical}} Club]].{{Citation needed|date=June 2022}} Its final domestic gross in India was {{INRConvert|273|c|year=2009}}.{{efn|name=Gross}}

''3 Idiots'' became the then [[List of highest-grossing Indian films in overseas markets|highest-grossing Indian film in overseas markets]], with an overseas gross of US$30.5 million ({{INR}}186 crore) until it was beaten by ''[[Dhoom 3]]'' (2013).{{efn|name=Gross}} Its first weekend opening collection overseas was $4 million.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Talaash Is Excellent Overseas |date=5 December 2012 |url=http://businesstoday.intoday.in/story/talaash-overseas-box-office-collection-jab-tak-hai-jaan/1/190417.html |access-date=7 December 2012 |publisher=BT Online Bureau}}</ref><ref name="Overseas opening">{{Cite web |title=Talaash beats 3 Idiots record at overseas box office |url=http://www.boxofficeindia.com/overdetail.php?page=shownews&articleid=5172&nCat= |access-date=5 December 2012 |publisher=[[Box Office India]]}}</ref> It set record collections for Indian-produced films in territories such as the [[United States]]<ref name="highest">{{Cite news |date=6 January 2010 |title=Aamir Khan's '3 Idiots' becomes Bollywood's biggest grosser |work=The Independent |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/aamir-khans-3-idiots-becomes-bollywoods-biggest-grosser-1859492.html |url-status=dead |access-date=21 November 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100115174801/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/aamir-khans-3-idiots-becomes-bollywoods-biggest-grosser-1859492.html |archive-date=15 January 2010}}</ref> and [[Australia]].<ref name="mojo3" /> In the United States, the film earned $6.5 million since its opening,<ref name="highest" /><ref name="mojo3">{{Cite web |title=3 Idiots (2009) |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=3idiots.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100507171808/http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=3idiots.htm |archive-date=7 May 2010 |access-date=29 April 2010 |website=Box Office Mojo}}</ref> in addition to over $2.5 million in the United Kingdom, over $2 million in Canada, and nearly $1 million in Australia.<ref name="mojo3" /> ''3 Idiots'' has the biggest first week total in the US with around $3 million over its first four days.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Don 2 Second Biggest First Week Grosser Ever in US |url=http://www.boxofficeindia.com/boxnewsdetail.php?page=shownews&articleid=3871&nCat= |access-date=5 December 2012 |publisher=[[Box Office India]]}}</ref>

''3 Idiots'' became a success in East Asian markets, which was unusual for an Indian film at that time.<ref name="economic_china" /> The film had a fragmented but wide release in East Asian markets including [[China]], [[South Korea]] and [[Hong Kong]].<ref name="dhoom3idiotsoverseas">{{Cite web |date=1 January 2014 |title=Dhoom 3 Set For All Time Record Overseas |url=http://www.boxofficeindia.com/overdetail.php?page=shownews&articleid=6354&nCat= |publisher=[[Box Office India]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140105151547/http://www.boxofficeindia.com/overdetail.php?page=shownews&articleid=6354&nCat= |archive-date=5 January 2014 |access-date=1 January 2014}}</ref> The film had the longest showing period at cinemas in [[Taiwan]], for more than two months from December 2010, breaking the record of ''[[Avatar (2009 film)|Avatar]]'' (2009) with over [[New Taiwan dollar|NT$]]10 million (US$629,024)<ref name="mojo3" /> grossed. ''3 Idiots'' was the first aired Indian film in [[Hong Kong]], where it grossed [[Hong Kong dollar|HK$]]22 million at the box office during its showing from 1 September 2011 through January 2012,<ref name="hkfilmart">{{Cite web |date=January 2012 |title=時代廣場戲院不敵貴租搬遷明年重開 |url=http://www.hkfilmart.com/newsread.asp?newsid=4198 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130616005211/http://www.hkfilmart.com/newsread.asp?newsid=4198 |archive-date=16 June 2013 |access-date=5 March 2012 |publisher=hkfilmart.com}} [https://translate.google.com/translate?sl=zh-CN&tl=en&js=n&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.hkfilmart.com%2Fnewsread.asp%3Fnewsid%3D4198 Alt URL]</ref> the equivalent of US$3.02 million.<ref name="boi-note">{{Cite web |title=PK – Movie |url=https://boxofficeindia.com/movie-story.php?movieid=2482 |access-date=3 February 2018 |publisher=[[Box Office India]]}}</ref><ref name="mojo3" /> It was the 14th highest-grossing film of 2011 at the Hong Kong box office.<ref>{{Cite web |title=2011 Hong Kong Yearly Box Office Results |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/intl/hongkong/yearly/?yr=2011&p=.htm |access-date=8 December 2017 |website=[[Box Office Mojo]]}}</ref> In South Korea, the film grossed {{KRW|3,416,415,900}}<ref>{{Cite web |year=2016 |title=KOFIC 영화관 입장권 통합전산망 : 영화정보 |url=http://www.kobis.or.kr/kobis/business/mast/mvie/searchMovieList.do |access-date=25 April 2018 |website=[[Korean Film Council]] |language=ko}}</ref> (US$3,084,647).<ref>{{Cite web |year=2011 |title=Historical Exchange Rates Tool & Forex History Data (1107.555 KRW per USD) |url=https://www.ofx.com/en-gb/forex-news/historical-exchange-rates/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180619140101/https://www.ofx.com/en-gb/forex-news/historical-exchange-rates/ |archive-date=19 June 2018 |access-date=25 April 2018 |website=[[OFX (company)|OFX]]}}</ref> The film was number-one at the South Korean box office for five weeks,<ref name="kaist" /> drawing an audience of 459,686 viewers.<ref>{{Cite web |date=11 September 2016 |title=세 얼간이 |url=http://movie.daum.net/moviedb/main?movieId=55287 |access-date=10 February 2018 |website=[[Daum (web portal)|Daum]] |language=ko}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Frater |first=Patrick |date=30 July 2015 |title=Aamir Khan's 'PK' Heads for September Release in Korea |work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |url=https://variety.com/2015/film/asia/aamir-khans-pk-release-in-korea-1201553130/}}</ref>

In China, where it is known as 《{{lang|zh|三傻大闹宝莱坞}}》 ("3 idiots make a scene in Bollywood"),<ref name="economic_china">{{Cite news |last=Vasi |first=Nazia |date=15 October 2011 |title=Why Chinese identify with Aamir Khan's 3 Idiots, Rancho & All Izz Well |work=[[The Economic Times]] |url=http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2011-10-15/news/30283532_1_three-idiots-films-hong-kong |access-date=29 March 2012}}</ref> the film grossed {{INRConvert|11|c|year=2011|mode=historical}} in 2 weeks in December 2011,<ref name="economictimes">{{Cite news |last=Chumbhale |first=Ameya |date=29 December 2011 |title=3 Idiots wins over Chinese, collects Rs 11 crore in two weeks |work=[[The Economic Times]] |url=http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/media/entertainment/3-idiots-wins-over-chinese-collects-rs-11-crore-in-two-weeks/articleshow/11286751.cms |access-date=29 December 2011}}</ref><ref name="overseas" /> eventually crossing the $3 million mark within a month, as of 5 January 2012.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hazlewood |first=Phil |date=5 January 2012 |title=Bollywood looks east to tap Chinese market |work=[[Mint (newspaper)|Mint]] |url=http://www.livemint.com/2012/01/05152937/Bollywood-looks-east-to-tap-Ch.html |access-date=29 March 2012}}</ref> Upon its release in the Japanese market in June 2013, it went on to collect around [[Japanese yen|¥]]100 million ({{INR}}6.1 crore) in its first two weeks of run – that makes the film the highest-grossing Hindi film ever in Japan. By the end of 2013, it had grossed ¥150{{nbsp}}million<ref>{{Cite journal |date=February 2014 |title=2014年2月下旬決算特別号 |journal=[[Kinema Junpo]] |issue=1656 |page=212}}</ref> (US$1.6 million) in Japan,<ref name="qz">{{Cite news |date=11 December 2014 |title=Japan is going gaga over Bollywood |work=[[Quartz (publication)|Quartz]] |url=https://qz.com/310502/japan-is-going-gaga-over-bollywood/}}</ref> before ending its run with a lifetime total of {{¥|170 million}} ({{US$|{{To USD|170|JPN|year=2013}} million|long=no}}) in Japan.<ref>{{cite news |title=Aal Izz Not Well? ‘RRR’ overtakes Aamir Khan’s ‘3 Idiots’ to become 3rd-highest grossing Indian film in Japan |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/aal-izz-not-well-rrr-overtakes-aamir-khans-3-idiots-to-become-3rd-highest-grossing-indian-film-in-japan/articleshow/95375310.cms |access-date=9 March 2023 |work=[[The Economic Times]] |date=8 November 2022}}</ref> The film's final gross in East Asian markets was US${{formatnum:11,333,671|}} ({{INR|69.2 crore}}).<ref name="exchange" />

== Accolades ==
{{Main|List of accolades received by 3 Idiots}}

''3 Idiots'' won 58 accolades from Indian film awards; among these are six [[Filmfare Awards]] including [[Filmfare Best Film Award|Best Film]] and [[Filmfare Best Director Award|Best Director]], three [[National Film Awards]] including [[National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment|Best Popular Film]], ten [[Star Screen Awards]], seventeen [[IIFA Awards]], five [[Global Indian Music Academy Awards|GIMA Awards]], two [[Apsara Awards]] and seven Bollywood Hungama Surfers Choice Movie Awards. In addition, the film received a nomination and award for Worst Song to the track "All Izz Well" at the [[Ghanta Awards]], despite the track being a nationwide sensation among the younger generation.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Ghanta Awards 2011 |url=http://theghantas.com/the-ghanta-awards-archives/the-ghanta-awards-2011/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130731063909/http://theghantas.com/the-ghanta-awards-archives/the-ghanta-awards-2011/ |archive-date=31 July 2013 |access-date=5 May 2020 |website=Ghanta Awards}}</ref>

In China, it was nominated for the Best Foreign Film prize at the first [[Beijing International Film Festival]] in 2011.<ref name="maoyan">{{Cite web |title=三傻大闹宝莱坞 |url=https://maoyan.com/films/43 |access-date=1 March 2018 |website=[[Maoyan]]}}</ref> In Japan, it was nominated in the [[Japan Academy Prize for Outstanding Foreign Language Film|Best Outstanding Foreign Language Film]] category at the [[37th Japan Academy Prize|37th]] [[Japan Academy Prize (film)|Japan Academy Awards]] in 2014;<ref name="japan-hungama">{{Cite web |date=27 January 2014 |title=3 Idiots to race for Japan Academy Awards |url=http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/news/2382254/3-Idiots-to-race-for-Japan-Academy-Awards |website=[[Bollywood Hungama]]}}</ref><ref name="japan-ibn">{{Cite web |date=27 January 2014 |title=Aamir Khan's '3 Idiots' nominated for Japan Academy Awards |url=http://ibnlive.in.com/news/aamir-khans-3-idiots-nominated-for-japan-academy-awards/448063-8-66.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140129033801/http://ibnlive.in.com/news/aamir-khans-3-idiots-nominated-for-japan-academy-awards/448063-8-66.html |archive-date=29 January 2014 |website=[[IBN Live]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=27 January 2014 |title=3 Idiots nominated for Japan Academy Awards |url=http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/3-idiots-nominated-for-japan-academy-awards/1/340066.html |website=[[India Today]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=26 January 2014 |title=Film 3 Idiots nominated for 37th Japanese Academy Awards 2014 |url=http://news.biharprabha.com/2014/01/film-3-idiots-nominated-for-37th-japanese-academy-awards-2014/ |access-date=27 January 2014 |publisher=Biharprabha News |agency=Indo-Asian News Service}}</ref> the award was eventually won by ''[[Les Misérables (2012 film)|Les Misérables]]''. In addition, ''3 Idiots'' won the Grand Prize at the 4th Videoyasan Awards,<ref name="videoyasan">{{Cite web |year=2014 |title=第４回ビデオ屋さん大賞 |url=http://www.kinenote.com/main/feature/videoyasan04/ |access-date=14 December 2017 |website=[[:ja:KINENOTE|KINENOTE]]}}</ref><ref name="nikkatsu">{{Cite web |date=25 March 2014 |title=『きっと、うまくいく』が、第4回ビデオ屋さん大賞の《大賞》を受賞しました！ |url=http://www.nikkatsu.com/news/201403/001723.html |website=[[Nikkatsu]] |language=ja-JP}}</ref> held by a Japanese organisation of home video retailers in 2014;<ref name="qz" /> ''3 Idiots'' was selected as 2013's best video release, beating thousands of films, [[anime]] and television shows,<ref name="nikkatsu" /> including domestic Japanese and foreign [[Cinema of the United States|Hollywood]] productions.<ref name="qz" />

== Controversies ==

=== Chetan Bhagat story credit ===

{{Quote box
| quote = Initially, I did sit down with Raju and Abhijat while they were deciding to make a film based on '5 Point Someone'. I even went to IIT with Abhijat a couple of times. But it was just not possible for me to be involved at every stage of the screenplay writing process since I was in Hong Kong at that time, working full-time, and busy writing other books. Moreover, Abhijat is based in the USA, Raju was in the US for quite a while working on the screenplay but it was not practical for me to do that […] The film retains the soul of the book. ''3 Idiots'' is different from the book but at the same time, it does borrow many things from the book. The core theme and message of the film are coming from the book itself. And that's why the makers have officially credited the film as 'Based on a novel by Chetan Bhagat.'
| source = [[Chetan Bhagat]], explaining about the novel's connection with the film, in an interview a day after its release.<ref name="Bhagatint">[https://www.filmibeat.com/bollywood/features/2009/chetan-bhagat-interview-261209.html “3 Idiots retains the soul of Five Point Someone”], Chetan Bhagat interview, ''One India''. Retrieved 21 October 2021</ref>
| align = left
| width = 25%
}}
A controversy developed a few days after the release, however, over the fact that Chetan's credit, "Based on the novel ''Five Point Someone'' by Chetan Bhagat" appeared in the closing credits rather than in the opening ones.<ref name="akinterview">{{Cite web |title=Interview:Aamir Khan |url=http://www.glamsham.com/movies/interviews/02-aamir-khan-interview-011005.asp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101123200554/http://glamsham.com/movies/interviews/02-aamir-khan-interview-011005.asp |archive-date=23 November 2010 |access-date=21 November 2010 |publisher=Glamsham.com}}</ref> At that time, Bhagat stated that he "was expecting an opening credit and I was quite surprised on not seeing it. They had bought the rights, made the payment, and committed to a credit in the contract. It's there, but it's not about it being there, it's about the placement and the prominence."<ref>Sharma, Neha.[http://www.hindustantimes.com/Chetan-Bhagat-feeling-cheated/H1-Article1-491135.aspx "Chetan Bhagat feeling cheated?"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100225125702/http://www.hindustantimes.com/Chetan-Bhagat-feeling-cheated/H1-Article1-491135.aspx |date=25 February 2010}}, ''Hindustan Times'', 27 December 2009.</ref> In a 31 December 2009 blog post on his personal website, Bhagat stated that he was told the movie was only 2–5% based on the book, but when he saw it, he felt that it was 70% of the book. He also argued that he was misled by the makers of the film, though he noted, that "this has nothing to do with Mr. Aamir Khan […] I am a big fan of Aamir and he has made my story reach people. However, he was told by the makers not to read the book, and he hasn't. Thus, he cannot comment on the issue in a meaningful manner."<ref>[http://www.chetanbhagat.com/blog/general/a-book-a-film-and-the-truth A book, a film and the truth] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101225052408/http://www.chetanbhagat.com/blog/general/a-book-a-film-and-the-truth |date=25 December 2010 }}"</ref>

A few people responded to Chetan's statements. According to the [[Indo-Asian News Service]] (IANS) producer [[Vidhu Vinod Chopra]] clarified that "in the agreement between the producer and Bhagat, it was clearly mentioned that the author's name would be put in the closing credits".<ref name="IANS" /> IANS also reported that Chopra "lost his cool"<ref name="IANS" /> and "asked a reporter to shut up after being questioned whether his hit ''3 Idiots'' was lifted from author Chetan Bhagat's book ''Five Point Someone.''"<ref name="IANS">{{Cite web |title=Vidhu Vinod Chopra loses cool over '3 Idiots' credit row (Lead) |url=http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/entertainment/vidhu-vinod-chopra-loses-cool-over-3-idiots-credit-row-lead_100297690.html |access-date=21 November 2010 |publisher=Thaindian.com |archive-date=13 April 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100413031415/http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/entertainment/vidhu-vinod-chopra-loses-cool-over-3-idiots-credit-row-lead_100297690.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> Chopra later apologised, stating: "I really think I'm silly. I was provoked, but I shouldn't have done this. I saw myself on TV and saw how I was shouting 'shut up, shut up' like an animal. I told myself — 'what nonsensical behaviour'."<ref>{{Cite web |date=3 January 2010 |title=Vidhu apologises, Hirani flaunts pact with Chetan |url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-01-03/india/28134698_1_chetan-bhagat-vidhu-vinod-chopra-idiots |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025192109/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-01-03/india/28134698_1_chetan-bhagat-vidhu-vinod-chopra-idiots |archive-date=25 October 2012 |access-date=21 November 2010 |website=[[The Times of India]]}}</ref> Aamir Khan also responded to these claims.<ref name="akinterview" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=1 January 2010 |title=Upset Aamir Khan hits out at novelist Chetan Bhagat |url=http://www.dnaindia.com/entertainment/report_upset-aamir-khan-hits-out-at-novelist-chetan-bhagat_1329677 |access-date=21 November 2010 |publisher=DNA India}}</ref> [[Rajkumar Hirani]] stated that "We have officially bought the rights for the film. We drew a contract with him and it clearly mentions the position of his credit. With open eyes, he had seen the contract, consulted his lawyer, and signed the agreement […] In the contract, we have said that the title would be given in the rolling credits. We haven't changed the font size. We haven't increased the speed of the title. It's exactly there where it was agreed to be."<ref>{{Cite web |date=4 January 2010 |title=3 Idiots may sue Chetan Bhagat |url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-01-04/news-interviews/28142618_1_chetan-bhagat-due-credit-idiots |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120612045736/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-01-04/news-interviews/28142618_1_chetan-bhagat-due-credit-idiots |archive-date=12 June 2012 |access-date=21 November 2010 |website=[[The Times of India]]}}</ref> Chetan Bhagat later apologised stating, "I definitely do not have anything against team ''3 Idiots''. I may have some issues with the mistake they may have made but nothing about their personality or the kind of people they are. I apologize to their families if there was any distress caused to them. I also want to thank all my fans, who stood by me but I don't want them to turn against anyone especially Aamir."<ref>{{Cite web |date=7 January 2010 |title=Fans, forgive Aamir: Chetan Bhagat |url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-01-07/news-interviews/28117713_1_chetan-bhagat-credit-issue-due-credit |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110811025611/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-01-07/news-interviews/28117713_1_chetan-bhagat-credit-issue-due-credit |archive-date=11 August 2011 |access-date=21 November 2010 |website=[[The Times of India]] |agency=Press Trust of India}}</ref>

=== Concerns about content ===

On 28 December 2010, the non-governmental organisation, [[Coalition to Uproot Ragging from Education]] (CURE) co-founder Harsh Agarwal wrote a letter to the Raghavan Committee, a panel headed by former [[HRD Ministry]] [[R. K. Raghavan]], explaining distress over a particular scene, where the lead actors gets ragged by seniors.<ref name=":32">{{Cite web |last=Desk |first=India TV News |date=2 January 2010 |title=NGO Slams 3 Idiots For Glorifying Ragging |url=https://www.indiatvnews.com/news/india/ngo-slams-3-idiots-for-glorifying-ragging-1224.html |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=www.indiatvnews.com |language=en}}</ref> The organisation asked the committee to write a letter to the censor board to revisit and re-examine the particular scene.<ref name=":32" /> The [[Bharatiya Janata Party, Maharashtra]] state spokesperson [[Madhav Bhandari]] demanded that the film should be sent for re-certification again in concern with that scene, after an incident in [[Seth G.S. Medical College]] inspired from the scene,<ref name=":33">{{Cite web |date=6 January 2010 |title=3 Idiots is against ragging: Aamir |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/mumbai/3-idiots-is-against-ragging-aamir/ |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title='3 Idiots' to come under Maharashtra govt scanner |work=The Economic Times |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/media/entertainment/3-idiots-to-come-under-maharashtra-govt-scanner/articleshow/5410680.cms?from=mdr |access-date=21 October 2021}}</ref> with the [[Chief minister of Maharashtra]], [[Ashok Chavan]] too demanded the same.<ref>{{Cite web |date=4 January 2010 |title=M'rashtra may delete '3 Idiots' ragging scenes |url=https://zeenews.india.com/news/maharashtra/mrashtra-may-delete-3-idiots-ragging-scenes_592638.html |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=Zee News |language=en}}</ref> Aamir Khan however stated that the film is against "ragging".<ref name=":33" />

In an article published in ''[[Economic and Political Weekly]],'' Latika Gupta mentions that the film has serious problems when seen from the gender perspective, in particular, that it follows the trend set by the 2007 film ''[[Jab We Met]]'' in its use of women's sexual vulnerability to create sensation and humour. In one scene, students, professors, and the chief guest are seen bursting with laughter hearing a speech where the word ''balatkar'' (rape) figures 21 times and the word ''stan'' (breast) four times (in the English subtitles for international release, the words "screwed" and "bosom" are used instead).<ref name="Gupta">{{Cite journal |last=Gupta |first=Latika |date=11 June 2010 |title=Language, Cinema and State: A Gender Perspective |journal=Economic and Political Weekly |volume=45 |issue=23 |pages=86–88 |jstor=27807110}}</ref>

== Remakes ==
Shortly after the film's success, [[Gemini Film Circuit]] had purchased the remake rights of the film to be adapted in [[Tamil language|Tamil]] and [[Telugu language|Telugu]]-languages.<ref>{{Cite web |title=3 Idiots to be remade in Tamil and Telugu? - Times of India |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/tamil/movies/news/3-idiots-to-be-remade-in-tamil-and-telugu/articleshow/5420418.cms |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=The Times of India |language=en}}</ref> Shankar directing the Tamil version of the film, his first remake he worked on his career.<ref>{{Cite web |date=11 January 2012 |title=Nanban – Movie Preview – Oneindia.in |url=http://entertainment.oneindia.in/tamil/news/2012/nanban-movie-preview-110112.html |access-date=11 January 2012 |website=11 January 2012 |publisher=[[Oneindia.in]]}}</ref> After several considerations for the leads in the remake, the team approached [[Vijay (actor)|Vijay]], [[Srikanth (Tamil actor, born 1979)|Srikanth]] and [[Jiiva]] to reprise the roles played by Khan, Madhavan and Joshi,<ref>{{Cite news |date=4 December 2010 |title=Tamil 3 Idiots' actors do style test |work=[[The Times of India]] |url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-12-04/news-interviews/28258269_1_idiots-srikanth-and-jiiva-shankar-s-tamil |url-status=dead |access-date=11 December 2010 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120722202052/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2010-12-04/news-interviews/28258269_1_idiots-srikanth-and-jiiva-shankar-s-tamil |archive-date=22 July 2012}}</ref> whilst [[Ileana D'Cruz]] essayed to reprise Kapoor's role from the film.<ref>{{Cite web |title=I don't want to be a copycat of Bebo: Ileana – Times of India |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/hindi/bollywood/news/i-dont-want-to-be-a-copycat-of-bebo-ileana/articleshow/6981421.cms |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=The Times of India |language=en}}</ref> The film, which was titled as ''[[Nanban (2012 film)|Nanban]]'', released on 12 January 2012 to positive reviews.<ref name="nanban_ibn" /><ref name="nanban_hindustantimes" /> For the Telugu remake, the team considered [[Ram Charan]]<ref>{{Citation|title=Snehithudu Movie Audio Launch|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fuoHNpXe4c |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/2fuoHNpXe4c |archive-date=21 December 2021 |url-status=live|language=en|access-date=23 November 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref> for the titular role same disclosed by the actor in his speech of movie promotions in Hyderabad, but the project did not materialise.<ref>{{Cite web |date=7 January 2010 |title=Pawan Kalyan most likely in 3 Idiots' remake – Malayalam News |url=https://www.indiaglitz.com/pawan-kalyan-most-likely-in-3-idiots-remake-malayalam-news-53344 |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=IndiaGlitz.com}}</ref> ''Nanban'' was later dubbed in Telugu as ''Snehitudu'' and released two weeks after the original version.<ref>{{Cite web |date=20 December 2011 |title=Dil Raju bags Shankar's 3 Rascals |url=http://www.sify.com/movies/dil-raju-bags-shankar-s-3-rascals-news-news-lmumcsibabi.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120203222116/http://www.sify.com/movies/dil-raju-bags-shankar-s-3-rascals-news-news-lmumcsibabi.html |archive-date=3 February 2012 |access-date=22 December 2011 |website=[[Sify]]}}</ref> The film was remade in [[Cinema of Mexico|Mexican]] [[Spanish language|Spanish]]-language named ''[[3 idiotas]]'' and was released in May 2017.<ref name="auto" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=3 Idiotas |url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3685624/ |publisher=IMDb}}</ref> A [[Hollywood, Los Angeles|Hollywood]]-remake of this film was announced but did not come into fruition.<ref>{{Cite web |title=3 Idiots getting Hollywood remake – Times of India |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/hindi/bollywood/news/3-idiots-getting-hollywood-remakeampnbsp/articleshow/10991561.cms |access-date=21 October 2021 |website=The Times of India |language=en}}</ref>

== Legacy ==
=== Social impact ===
The film had a social impact on attitudes to [[education in Asia]], including [[education in India]].<ref name="Hussain">{{Cite journal |last1=Hussain |first1=Sajjad |last2=Ahmad |first2=Nasir |date=28 April 2016 |title=The impact of the Indian movie, ''3 Idiots'' (2009), on attitudes to education |journal=Research in Drama Education: The Journal of Applied Theatre and Performance |volume=21 |issue=2 |pages=242–246 |doi=10.1080/13569783.2016.1155439 |s2cid=156539947}}</ref> The overwhelming success and impact in Indian society led to many authors and analysts to take a case study on the film and the message portrayed.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Revisiting 3 Idiots: A nostalgic reminiscence of the film that had a social impact on attitudes to education in India |url=https://www.cinemaexpress.com/photos/slideshows/2020/may/31/revisiting-3-idiots-a-nostalgicreminiscence-of-the-film-that-had-a-social-impact-on-attitudes-to-e-1040.html |access-date=22 October 2021 |website=[[Cinema Express]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Hussain |first1=Sajjad |last2=Ahmad |first2=Nasir |date=2 April 2016 |title=The impact of the Indian movie, Three Idiots (2009) on attitudes to education |url=https://www.researchgate.com/publication/301717648_The_impact_of_the_Indian_movie_Three_Idiots_2009_on_attitudes_to_education |journal=Research in Drama Education: The Journal of Applied Theatre and Performance |volume=21 |issue=2 |pages=242–246 |doi=10.1080/13569783.2016.1155439|s2cid=156539947 }}</ref> It was also noted for the "realistic portrayal and depiction of universities, colleges and students".<ref>{{Cite web |date=27 October 2019 |title=Character Spotlight: 3 Idiot's Rancho |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/opinion-entertainment/3-idiots-rancho-aamir-khan-character-spotlight-6088211/ |access-date=22 October 2021 |website=The Indian Express}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Rahman |first=Md. Hasan |date=1 July 2017 |title=From Five Point Someone to 3 Idiots: Politics behind Adaptation |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/323907339 |journal=DIU Journal of Humanities and Social Science |volume=4 |pages=192 |doi=10.1080/18742713.2017.123099|doi-broken-date=31 December 2022 }}</ref> According to Jason Mecchi of [[Midstory]], the film "may have even played a role in the recent reorganization of the Indian education system, designed to reduce tedium and allow children to grow in multiple fields of study, rather than those that conform to a narrow idea of success."<ref>{{cite news |last1=Mecchi |first1=Jason |title=Bollywood, Hollywood and the Globalization of Socially-conscious Film: A Review of 3 Idiots |url=https://www.midstory.org/bollywood-hollywood-and-the-globalization-of-socially-conscious-film-a-review-of-3-idiots/ |access-date=4 January 2022 |work=[[Midstory]] |date=6 January 2021}}</ref>

The film has had a similar social impact on education in other Asian countries, including [[education in China]].<ref name="economic_china" /> Chinese universities were "even prescribing the film in their coursework as a kind of stress-relief in their classrooms. The movie has served as a question bank for many local, family, zonal and national quizzes."<ref name="hindu_china" /> At the ninth edition of [[Chennai International Film Festival]] held in December 2011, Naichi Ho, the director of [[Taipei Economic and Cultural Center|Taipei Economic and Cultural Centre]] in [[New Delhi]] expressed about the phenomenal success of ''3 Idiots'', saying "Five years ago no one in Taiwan watched Indian movies. The education system in our country is the same as in India. Every parent wants their children to go to the best school and there is a lot of pressure on the kids. So it's a hit among youngsters there".<ref name=":17" />

The [[unmanned aerial vehicle]] (drone) featured in the film was developed by Ankit Mehta, Rahul Singh and Ashish Bhat. This led to them receiving a {{US$|20 million|long=no}} contract to manufacture drones for the [[Indian Army]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Sahay |first1=Priyanka |title=How The Geniuses Behind The 3 Idiots Drone Bagged A $20 Million UAV Deal From The Indian Army |url=https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/how-the-geniuses-behind-the-3-idiots-drone-bagged-a-20-million-uav-deal-from-the-indian-army-6371761.html |access-date=1 January 2022 |work=[[Moneycontrol]] |publisher=[[Network18 Group]] |date=20 January 202}}</ref> The [[Nitesh Tiwari]] directorial ''[[Chhichhore]]'' (2019) has a resemblance to this film.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sharma |first=Nishista |date=17 February 2021 |title=3 Idiots vs Chhichhore; Which movie did you enjoy more? |url=https://www.pinkvilla.com/rooms/3-idiots-vs-chhichhore-which-movie-did-you-enjoy-more |access-date=22 October 2021 |website=Pinkvilla}}</ref>

=== Overseas markets ===
When ''3 Idiots'' released in China, the country was only the 15th largest film market, partly due to China's widespread pirate DVD distribution at the time. However, it was the pirate market that introduced ''3 Idiots'' to most Chinese audiences, becoming a [[cult film]] in the country among youths. Aamir Khan gained a large growing Chinese fanbase as a result. By 2013, China grew to become the world's second-largest film market (after the United States), paving the way for Aamir Khan's Chinese box office success, with ''[[Dhoom 3]]'' (2013), ''[[PK (film)|PK]]'' (2014), ''[[Dangal (film)|Dangal]]'' (2016) and ''[[Secret Superstar]]'' (2017).<ref name="forbes2">{{cite news |last1=Cain |first1=Rob |title=How A 52-Year-Old Indian Actor Became China's Favorite Movie Star |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/robcain/2017/06/08/how-a-52-year-old-indian-actor-became-chinas-favorite-movie-star/?sh=4b6fae02516e |access-date=29 April 2022 |work=Forbes |date=8 June 2017 |language=en}}</ref> In 2011, a documentary film titled ''Big in Bollywood'' was released, which revolves about [[Omi Vaidya]]'s journey from a struggling [[Cinema of the United States|Hollywood]] actor to a successful Bollywood breakthrough with this film.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Heymont |first=George |date=1 December 2011 |title=Big in Bollywood (That's What Friends Are For) |work=[[HuffPost]] |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/george-heymont/big-in-bollywood-movie_b_1122412.html |access-date=22 October 2021}}</ref>

As of 2017, ''3 Idiots'' has been ranked China's 12th favourite film of all time according to ratings on popular Chinese film review site [[Douban]], with only one domestic [[Chinese film]] (''[[Farewell My Concubine (film)|Farewell My Concubine]]'') ranked higher.<ref name="forbes2" /><ref name="theworldofchinese">{{Cite web |date=19 May 2017 |title=China's Favorite Movies |url=http://www.theworldofchinese.com/2017/05/chinas-favorite-movies/ |website=[[The World of Chinese]]}}</ref> The film holds an average rating of 9.2 on Douban,<ref name="theworldofchinese" /> with over 1.15 million votes.<ref>{{Cite web |title=三傻大闹宝莱坞 (豆瓣) |url=https://movie.douban.com/subject/3793023/ |access-date=9 December 2017 |website=[[Douban]] |language=zh-cmn-Hans}}</ref> As of 2021, the film is ranked at No. 14 on the list with mostly youth voting. On the [[Korean language|Korean]] site [[Naver]], audiences gave the film an average rating of 9.4/10,<ref name="kaist" /> and it is one of the top 30 highest-rated films on the site.<ref>{{Cite web |title=랭킹 : 네이버 영화 |url=https://movie.naver.com/movie/sdb/rank/rmovie.naver?sel=pnt&date=20171208 |access-date=8 December 2017 |website=[[Naver]]}}</ref>

One reason for its success in [[East Asian cinema|East Asian markets]] such as China and Hong Kong is because of their similar education systems, thus many students were able to identify with the characters.<ref name="economic_china" /> Chaerim Oh of ''[[KAIST]] Herald'' wrote that the "popularity of the movie, particularly in South Korea, can be traced back to the national background of the overly competitive education system. In Korea, students of all ages – from young elementary children to university graduate students – are trained to study under overwhelming pressure and extremely high academic standards. In short, this movie is, really, our own story."<ref name="kaist" />

In 2013, Hollywood filmmaker [[Steven Spielberg]] praised ''3 Idiots'', which he had seen three times and said he "loved the emotional undertones." He listed it as one of five films that he connects with, along with ''[[The Godfather]]'' (1972) and his own work on ''[[E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial]]'' (1982), ''[[Saving Private Ryan]]'' (1998) and ''[[Jaws (film)|Jaws]]'' (1975).<ref>{{Cite news |date=17 March 2013 |title=I've watched 3 Idiots thrice, admits Steven Spielberg |work=[[Hindustan Times]] |url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/hollywood/i-ve-watched-3-idiots-thrice-admits-steven-spielberg/story-q4FjZUBWitY6zlvPa7TYRK.html}}</ref> The Japanese [[anime]] series ''[[Gamers!]]'' (2017) references a scene from ''3 Idiots'', in the final episode of the series.<ref>{{Cite episode |title=Gamers and Billing System Talk |series=Gamers! |series-link=Gamers! |number=12 |date=28 September 2017 |time=1:12 |quote=Kitto, Umaku Iku |script-quote=ja:きっと、うまくいく |language=ja}}</ref> A poster of ''3 Idiots'' appears in the [[Korean drama]] series ''[[Welcome to Waikiki]]'' (2018).<ref>{{cite news |last1=Bhattacharjee |first1=Moumita |title=How Bollywood makes a mark in Korean dramas and movies |url=https://www.bollywoodhungama.com/news/features/bollywood-makes-mark-korean-dramas-movies/ |access-date=4 January 2022 |work=[[Bollywood Hungama]] |date=2 April 2021 |language=en}}</ref>

== Possible sequel ==
When asked about plans of a ''3 Idiots'' sequel in an interview with ''[[Hindustan Times]]'', screenwriter Abhijat Joshi replied, saying, "Honestly, I don't know. We have an idea for the 3 Idiots sequel, a ''[[Munna Bhai]]'' part three, and also for a [[PK (film)|''PK'']] sequel; but the [[PK (film)|''PK'']] and ''[[Munna Bhai]]'' sequels interest me the most. So, I think the ''3 Idiots'' sequel may happen in the future, but these two I really want to work on."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sequels |url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/bollywood/sequels-to-pk-3-idiots-in-the-pipeline/article1-1296946.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150104203847/http://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/bollywood/sequels-to-pk-3-idiots-in-the-pipeline/article1-1296946.aspx |archive-date=4 January 2015 |access-date=12 January 2015}}</ref> In January 2016, director Rajkumar Hirani and actor Aamir Khan confirmed that they were considering a ''3 Idiots'' sequel. Khan told reporters, ""Raju Hirani has given me a hint about ''3 Idiots''{{'}} sequel and I am giving you all a hint. The film will happen if and whenever he will write the script." Hirani agreed, saying "this is one film that I really want to do."<ref>{{cite news |last1=PTI |title=3 Idiots sequel will happen when Rajkumar Hirani is ready with the script: Aamir Khan |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/bollywood/3-idiots-sequel-will-happen-when-rajkumar-hirani-is-ready-with-the-script-aamir-khan/ |access-date=29 April 2022 |work=The Indian Express |date=28 January 2016 |language=en}}</ref>

In June 2018, Hirani was asked a question while promoting his upcoming film ''[[Sanju]]'' and he was quoted as saying, "I definitely want to make a sequel to ''3 Idiots'', but it’s still in the initial stage and we will take a fair amount of time to develop the script".<ref>{{Cite web |date=21 June 2018 |title=Rajkumar Hirani says he has began work on 3 Idiots' sequel, Munna Bhai 3 in pipeline too |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/bollywood/rajkumar-hirani-says-he-has-begin-work-on-3-idiots-sequel-munna-bhai-3-in-pipeline-too/story-cgWW34PaJ3m5UJN1IJXKkO.html |access-date=22 October 2021 |website=Hindustan Times |language=en}}</ref> The report also said that Hirani will begin shooting for the ''Munna Bhai'' sequel with [[Sanjay Dutt]]. Work on ''3 Idiots'' will begin only after Hirani is done with ''Munna Bhai 3''.<ref>{{cite news |title=Film-maker Rajkumar Hirani confirms '3 Idiots' sequel |url=https://tribune.com.pk/story/1739904/4-film-maker-rajkumar-hirani-confirms-3-idiots-sequel |access-date=29 April 2022 |work=The Express Tribune |date=22 June 2018}}</ref>

== See also ==

* [[List of highest-grossing Bollywood films]]
* [[List of Bollywood highest-grossing films in overseas markets]]

== Notes ==
{{notelist}}

== References ==
{{reflist|30em}}

== External links ==

* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvszmNXdM4w Official trailer] – [[Vinod Chopra Films]]
* {{IMDb title}}
* {{BH movie|3-idiots}}
* {{AllMovie movie}}
* {{Mojo movie}}
* {{Rotten Tomatoes}}
* {{Metacritic movie}}
* {{TCMDb movie}}

{{Rajkumar Hirani}}
{{Vidhu Vinod Chopra}}
{{Chetan Bhagat}}
{{Shantanu Moitra}}
{{Vinod Chopra Films}}
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