Pareeksha (2023)

Bucchi Paswan pulls a rickshaw in Ranchi, ferrying the children of the rich to an expensive English-medium school. He dreams of something better for his own bright son Bulbul, and through sheer determination gets him admitted to the same school. Paying the fees is another matter, and as the bills grow, Bucchi is drawn into stealing, a desperate decision that eventually brings him before the police, while an idealistic police officer takes an interest in the boy's education. Prakash Jha's quiet social drama examines how unequal access to education keeps the poor in their place, and Adil Hussain, the actor of Life of Pi and Mukti Bhawan, gives a moving performance as a father torn between love and conscience.