Siddharth also feels there are a lot of similarities between his life and that of the child in the film. But he didn't know what his problem was when he was in school. He only knew that he was not interested in studies. He was neither sad nor unhappy; he was in his own world.
Shanthi, his mother, cried throughout the film. 'I was so moved by the scene where the family leaves the child at the hostel and drives back. It was heartrending for me. 80-85 percent of all that the child went through in the film, our son also went through. It was almost like Aamir Khan had made a film on our son's life; it reflects his life. I used to push him to study and write school work 10 times, 20 times with the hope that it would help. His self esteem was low and he was depressed. He never had any success in school. I cried when teachers complained that my son was lazy. How many times I have gone through all that!"
At 11, back from boarding school, Siddharth was taken to a learning centre called Alpha to Omega to help him cope with studies. The psychologist at the centre analysed him and told the parents that their first child suffered from a disease called dyslexia.
Image: Siddharth with his parents.
Also read: Advani: On why he wrote his memoirs
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