Dhaka, Jan. 24 -- There is a scene in the 2023 award winning Indian film 12th Fail that captures something profoundly wrong with South Asian education systems. In a small school in Chambal, teachers openly facilitate cheating during board examinations, a practice that students expect, parents demand, and the system tolerates entirely. When an honest police officer arrives and stops the practice, the entire batch fails. The protagonist, Manoj Kumar Sharma, admits during his civil service interview that he initially failed because he could not cheat. This moment of honesty becomes his strength.

The film examines India's harsh competitive examination culture, where rote performance matters more than character. Its most uncomfortable truth a...