Spoiler Thread - School of Lies - An Interpretation

I just watched School of Lies this weekend. It is such a compelling and engaging show. Despite having chores to do, I kept watching. The ending is frustrating, though. It isn't a bad ending by any means. It's actually very realistic and is how many missing people cases go. But the lack of closure remains like a festering wound that refuses to heal. 

Ok, now going into the spoilers - we eventually find out Vikram and TK accidentally killed Shakti. At first, I couldn't understand why they wouldn't confess - it was, after all an unintentional accident. 

But then again, before Shakti died, they did "bully" him. The school has this hierarchy where juniors are expected to revere their seniors. If this reverence is not given, seniors "discipline" juniors. After catching Shakti running away, the two seem absolutely pissed at his insolence. After catching him they could have just taken him to school, but they want to torment him. After he slips away they could have given up and just told the authorities, but they seem determined to punish him. The accidental death wouldn't have happened if Vikram didn't push Shakti. 

I must clarify that even though Vikram and TK act like bullies here, they still are victims. This is a culture and hierarchy the school has instilled for generations. It literally is an old boys club. These teenagers don't know better and follow the example the adults are setting for them. But there is no way anyone would understand that, and they would get blamed. 

But there is more. Even if they are willing to risk honesty, there is the matter of why they are out after curfew to catch Shakti running away. It would mean admitting to their illicit sexual relationship with Sam, the housemaster and math teacher. They were returning from his cabin. They got privileges and concessions at school because of their relationship with him. While they are victims of child sex abuse by a teacher, they carry the fear and shame of it. 

And there is their own queer relationship. Although not explicitly stated, it is alluded that Vikram and TK were more than friends - and perhaps this intimacy may have made them soft targets for Sam sir - who has his own past baggage and trauma of being abused by his senior Alden.  

And perhaps that is why, in the end, school counselor Nandita remains silent even though she has Vikram's confession of killing Shakti. It is alluded that she is a victim of child sexual assault herself and empathizes with Vikram's trauma. She sees him struggling to do the right thing. And now that Vikram and TK have had the courage to hold Sam accountable - she doesn't want Shakti's disappearance to prevent their journey toward healing and closure. 

But it is heartbreaking that because of all these lies and secrets, Shakti's mother, Trisha has no closure or answer about her missing son. 

Thoughts on this show - how did you interpret the events? 

I haven't watched the show but reading your review, It feels like those who were not at fault (shakti & mom) got punished & didn't even get to punish the ones who are responsible for their trauma, & a lost life.

You can't make way for someone's journey towards healing by putting someone else's life in misery. The teacher didn't do right. Even just by reading it, it feels utterly frustrating & wrong to me.

Also, as seniors those boys had the choice to STOP. Worse things can stop from happening if one generation put an end to it. Only then the vicious cycle can be stopped. But the fact, they didn't that makes them bullies only not victim of school's system. They choose to be the way they are & got away.

I get where you are coming from. The events are completely unfair to Shakti and his family. And there ought to be some consequences. 

But I have a lot of sympathy for children who are victims of sexual assault. When an educator who is supposed to protect children takes advantage of them, it can have disastrous consequences on mental health and behavior. 

I agree with Nandita's decision to hide the truth because I do not think the Indian judiciary has the nuance to process a case like this. Had it been an episode of SVU Vikram and TK would have been tried as juveniles with a sealed record, received mental health rehabilitation, and gotten a social service sentence. 

I totally sympathies with their struggle. No one deserves that. But that doesn't conclude the fact that they ungrudgingly bullied someone until he died. Even if they didn't intend to but they did torture the other kid til the end & enjoyed it.

No one is disregarding the fact that they had a traumatic past but they were still living well enough to bully someone else. If we were to sympathies with people like them then we should sympathies with the murderers who has motives, people who has childhood trauma & end up hurting others in the most wicked way. Manipulates & gaslights others to the point they question themselves. Are we doing that though? No! They not just took someone's life but killed a mother's hope as well. A mother who had sent her kid to school to learn. A kid who had his dreams. In the end, she was left not just alone but also with injustice & unanswered questions.

It's the way minors get away after brutally ruining someone's life. What trauma do they have? Let's say they too have a traumatic past which forced them to behave in such inhumane way. Are we supposed to sympathies with them? 

Almost everyone goes through something tragic in their lives. If they were to be involved in criminal activities & instead of holding them accountable, society sympathized with them, there would be no more life but only death.. death of innocents who didn't do anything wrong.

There is a difference between a minor accidentally shoving someone and an adult who is a murderer. 

But I do have sympathy for people with childhood trauma that causes them to make bad choices. However, I discern between adults and children. 

That is why while I have a lot of sympathy for Sam who is also a victim of child sexual assault, I think Vikram and TK pressing charges against him is crucial in stopping the cycle. 

I also believe justice should be about rehabilitation and not retribution. In a perfect world, I would want Vikram and TK to be held accountable for their actions. But in current society that is not possible without exacerbating the situation. 

Edited by return_to_hades - 5 months ago

I didn’t like the ending Vikram should be punished. Though he was victim of sexual assault he did get favours from his sir in return. He killed a person in defense. He killed shakti accidentally. He also takes drugs. All these incidents can’t be ignored by her she should have dealt the situation better than keeping silent. Shakti mom needs closure she needs to know the truth. I they may show this in season2. 

You think there will be a season 2? I think this was pretty conclusive. I don't want it to drag like 13 reasons why. 

Bold - That didn't stop him from becoming what he shouldn't have become, isn't it!

I will leave it for you then. Having suffered from childhood abused didn't stop this man from indulging children of 4,6, 8 in s3xual activities. Even after serving 25 years in the prison didn't stop him from getting back to what he was pun8shed for with a 14 year old.

Childhood trauma isn't a password for anyone of any age to do any inhuman act, make others victim of their so called trauma (are they supposed to become, too) & get away with things they did for be cause they are SICK & blame it all on their trauma.

Sympathizing with one's trauma is absolutely human. If we can help them to get out of that dark place, we definitely should. But shielding them when their act made someone innocent miserable & blaming it all on their trauma to make them see the light, isn't it. Then, that's how I view it.

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