This essay review examines four different movies that directly or indirectly refer to the theme of private tutoring or, as it is widely called, shadow education. The movies, directed in locations as diverse as India, Turkey, and Cambodia, are all made from a critical perspective. The directors demonstrate challenges in public education systems and reveal how the privatization of education affects the lives of students, parents, and teachers. The movies differ in genre: Aarakshan is a fiction drama, while the remaining three are documentaries. The documentaries vary in cinematographic techniques, composition, and quality: 3 Saat was made by a professional filmmaker, while Why Private Tutoring? was produced by a student.

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