One of the five-mark questions concerned the Indian superhero 'Minnal Murali's visit to the United States, which included a cameo appearance by DC superhero Aquaman.
Basil Joseph, an engineer turned film director, was blown away when his film's titular superhero, 'Minnal Murali', appeared on an engineering exam question paper. On social media, Joseph posted the third-semester question paper for Mechanics of Fluids at Mar Athanasius College in Kothamangalam.
Joseph gave up his engineering career to pursue his passion for filmmaking. After being released on Netflix in December, his superhero film 'Minnal Murali', starring actor Tovino Thomas, became quite popular across states in India.
The exam was worth 50 marks. Surprisingly, the question paper's disclaimer reads: “The story, all names, characters and incidents portrayed in this question paper are fictitious. No identification with actual persons, places, buildings and products is intended or should be inferred. All the best! Enjoy examination, you can criticize me later!!! (sic)”
The questions were also titled after the movie's setting, “Welcome to the village KURUKANMOOLA, where the superhero Minnal Murali resides. During his visit to the US, Minnal Murali, while surfing in Miami beach, ran into Aquaman. Aquaman requested Minnal Murali to take a look at his underwater transportation vehicle, as its propeller was corroding, showing drop in performance and eventually leading to breakage very frequently. Minnal Murali dialled students of S3M for help, so please explain the relevant concept and reasons for failure.”
Dr. Kurian John who set the paper told Indian Express over the phone that he is overjoyed since Joseph himself contacted and expressed interest in the story. Dr. John also mentioned Joseph's background in engineering. “It is not the first time that I have set a quirky question paper, maybe fourth or fifth time. Earlier, the questions were set on different themes like flood and one-time students were the characters. Usually, I get trolled for the questions, but this time the question paper got shared widely and reached the director.”
He aspires to academically challenge his students. “Those who understand the concept will be able to ace the test. Mugging up and learning will not be fruitful for answering such questions,” said John while speaking to Indian Express. He also stated that when in class, he engages pupils by providing context and explanation.
Since he tested positive for Covid, Dr. John was unable to see the students' responses while reading the questions. He's presently been placed under quarantine. Deawoo S, one of the students who took the exam, said that everyone chuckled at first while reading the questions and then looked around in amazement. It took her some time to read and comprehend the question. “However, it was interesting. I wondered if this was the real question paper, as it seemed like English question paper with long passages at a glance.”