How Chhichhore Used Comedy to Talk About Failure, Friendship and Grief

Some films make you laugh. Some make you emotional. Chhichhore (2019) managed to do both at the same time.

Directed by Nitesh Tiwari, the film tells an emotional story without becoming too heavy. It talks about failure, friendship, pressure and mental health, but it also keeps the audience smiling through its funny moments.

The story begins in the present. Anni’s son, Raghav, attempts suicide after failing his engineering entrance exam. He believes his life is over because he couldn’t succeed. As Raghav lies unconscious in the hospital, Anni and his old college friends come together to tell him stories from their own college days.

This is where the film changes its tone.

Instead of staying inside the hospital, it takes us back to their hostel life. The college scenes are full of jokes, pranks, competitions and friendships. The group was once known as the “losers” of the campus, but they never let that define them.

These flashbacks are not just there to make people laugh. They slowly explain the film’s biggest message.

Every friend in the group has a different personality. Sexa is always chasing girls. Acid is short-tempered. Mummy is overprotected by his parents. Bevda is known for drinking. Derek is calm. Together, they create many funny situations that make the college memories feel real.

But the film also reminds us that these same people faced failures, disappointments and difficult moments in life.

The biggest lesson comes through the Inter-Hostel Championship. The friends work hard to win the competition. They dream of proving everyone wrong. But things don’t go exactly as planned.

That moment becomes the heart of the film.

Chhichhore says that success is not the only thing that matters. Sometimes the journey, the friendships and the effort stay with us much longer than the final result.

The film keeps moving between two timelines. The hospital scenes show fear and uncertainty, while the college scenes bring laughter and hope. Slowly, the memories help Raghav understand that one exam cannot decide his future.

By the end, both timelines come together.

The friends realise that losing a competition never made them losers. In the same way, Raghav’s exam result does not define his life.

Rather than giving a lecture, Chhichhore uses simple moments, humour and friendship to deliver its message. That is why the film continues to connect with audiences years after its release.

Sometimes, the best way to talk about life’s biggest problems is through stories that first make us smile.