A Slumdog Happy Ending

“Azharuddin and Rubina pose with Slumdog director Danny Boyle at the Oscars”

Two of the children in Slumdog Millionaire were cast from the slums of Mumbai. Here are two pictures of their living conditions:




The poverty stricken child stars of Slumdog Millionaire are set to be property tycoons after being promised new homes by the film’s Oscar winning director Danny Boyle and by Mumbai officials.

Boyle and producer Christian Colson told the Daily Mail that Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail and Rubina Ali and their families will be moved to apartments worth £20,000 each in the coming months. But in an astonishing turn of events, officials from the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority - a Mumbai housing association - have now also said they want to gift the children a new flat each. (The Daily Mail)

Producers said they would work with an NGO to find a suitable social worker to liaise with the families to ensure the children’s wellbeing over the next few years.

Boyle said: ‘It is not about throwing cash at the problem – that doesn’t work. It is about investing in the long term. The key thing is to make sure they stay in school.

‘We want the kids to have more than wealth, we want them to have the skills that will set them up for life.’
Colson and Boyle told the Daily Mail the children and their families are looking at new apartments on the edge of the area where they live.

Boyle told the Daily Mail: ‘These are bricks and mortar flats. They will have electricity, running water and good sanitation. They will still be close to their friends and extended family. Their community is very important to them, and they don’t want to move too far away from them.

‘They have looked at a number of places but like anyone choosing a home, it is taking some time for them to agree on a final one.’

The film company has also agreed to pay for a rickshaw driver to take the children to and from school every day for the next eight years – to ensure they attend.

Read the whole article at the Daily Mail.

Hat tip: Awards Daily

Slumdog Millionaire - Mini-Review

Slumdog Millionaire is the little movie that could. It seemed to come out of nowhere and has ended at the top of several critics' top 10 lists, and was named best film of the year by the National Board of Review. Danny Boyle, director of Trainspotting, has made an incredible film and may go all the way to an Best Picture Oscar.

This film is the improbable story of a kid from the slums of Mumbai (Bombay) who works at one of those infamous call centers. It's a love story - he doesn't care about the money except as a way to win the freedom of his childhood sweetheart. We see the story through flashbacks to explain how this kid can answer all the questions correctly on India's version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire.

How can Jamal, a kid from the slums of Mumbai, know the answer to who is on the American $100 bill? One of the flashbacks shows how Jamal and his brother hustle as tour guides at the Taj Mahal, to tourists from all over the world, and especially gullible Americans.

This is a wonder of a film. A true gem. I don't want to spoil much more of the plot. This a film you should see and experience yourself. You will see it among the best picture nominees, and it may go all the way. I cannot recommend it highly enough to you. Four stars.