Sitaare Zameen Par is an official remake of the 2018 Spanish drama Campeones, featuring Aamir Khan in the lead. Given the film’s promotion, it’s hard not to draw comparisons with Taare Zameen Par—especially when both films explore themes around disability and empathy.

While Taare Zameen Par focused on the emotional journey of Ishaan Awasthi, a young boy grappling with dyslexia, it balanced humor with a deeply touching narrative. Ishaan’s separation from his family tugged at our hearts, and his childlike mischief made us both laugh and cry. His arc was personal, internal, and profoundly moving.

In contrast, Sitaare Zameen Par shifts the spotlight to a group of youngsters with developmental disabilities. The film does a commendable job of educating the audience about the broader spectrum of Down syndrome. However, this well-intentioned approach occasionally becomes overbearing. Despite giving each character adequate screen time, it’s difficult to emotionally connect with them. With the exception of Hargovind, most characters lack a strong, visible arc.

Aamir Khan’s role here is a significant departure from the compassionate teacher Ram Shankar Nikumbh he portrayed in Taare Zameen Par. In Sitaare Zameen Par, he plays Gulshan Arora—a short-tempered assistant basketball coach who is sentenced to community service after a drunk driving incident. Channeling the aggressive energy of a Delhi-based man, his performance seems to draw inspiration from none other than Virat Kohli’s fiery on-field persona. But as the film progresses, Gulshan’s character undergoes a transformation, learning empathy and humility through coaching his neurodivergent team.

Crucially, the film deserves to be viewed through a different lens than Taare Zameen Par. The earlier film centered on how society should treat dyslexic children, primarily through the internal world of Ishaan. Meanwhile, Sitaare Zameen Par is more external in its narrative, examining how society views neurodivergent adults—seen largely through Gulshan’s perspective, rather than the characters themselves.

In the end, the film earns its praise for tackling a subject rarely explored in mainstream Indian cinema. Despite its shortcomings, it shines a light on inclusion and acceptance in a way that’s long overdue.