INSTEP Magzine

In 2000, true escapism came to the subcontinent when Star TV began airing the Indian version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire? aka Kaun Banega Crorepati, with the larger than life Amitabh Bachchan playing host. For that one hour, millions stayed glued to their TV sets, living vicariously through the dreams of others - to see someone else, living a mundane and normal life like theirs, instantly becoming rich beyond their wildest dreams.That escapism and those dreams, looms large over Danny Boyle's fantastic Slumdog Millionaire, one of the most talked about films of

2008.Yet, Slumdog Millionaire is not a larger-than-life film. In fact, it is possibly the best cinematic depiction of a very realistic story of a boy from the slums. Slumdog Millionaire is one of those movies that get talked about so much that one often wonders if they will live up to their hype. I am happy to report, that Slumdog not only lives up to its hype, it exceeds it by leaps and bounds.
The film opens with Jamal (Dev Patel) undergoing interrogation at the hands of the Mumbai police. The police are incredulous, for young Jamal has somehow managed to make it to the 10 million rupee mark on Who Wants to be a Millionaire. The question here, in the air and by the police officers (played by Irtfan Khan and Saurabh Shukla) is, how does a boy who grew up in the Mumbai slums know all the answers to such a high level quiz show? He must have cheated: but how?
Through a series of well crafted edits, and a background score that features A.R. Rahman and M.I.A, Jamal unravels the story of how every question asked on the show had played out in the sights and sounds of his life.

The film's incredulous opening weaves its way to a backdrop of a Mumbai slum much like Aravind Adiga's depiction of the Darkness in The White Tiger, the only moment of glory being when Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan's helicopter lands in the slum and Jamal, desperate to meet his idol, manages to do so in a scene so painfully real I had to shield my eyes. The film pans to the slum being burned in a riot, the coming together of three children; Jamal and his brother Salim with Latika, a girl who also finds herself abandoned after the riots burn away the home they knew. They are picked up by an orphanage and the events that take place there shape their personalities and their intertwined destinies, and gives birth to Jamal's longing to be united with Latika. That longing takes him to enter the game show, for the hope that Latika will be watching, who he continuously tries to be together with and s torn apart from again and again. All of this is pitted against a backdrop of India through the years, ending up in a Mumbai that is burgeoning with rapid growth. In one scene, Salim (Mudhar Mittal) looks out at a landscape of highrise buildings, pointing out to Jamal the area where their slum used to be, and how Salim has managed to get himself onto a rather nefarious axis at which Mumbai spins around.
Slumdog Millionaire, contrary to what it may seem like, is not a film about material desire, which one would expect for a film that's main premise is about someone from a disadvantaged background reaching the final round of Who Wants to be a Millionaire. The film does not have anything to do with religion either, even though the main characters (Jamal and Salim) are Muslim and their slum is burned in a riot by extremist Hindus. This is a film about intertwined relationships, and a very basic desire for love.
However, the incredulous nature of the film is something that will (and has) made people sit up and take notice.
One of the main highlights of Slumdog, which hasn't been talked about as much in foreign reviews, is Anil Kapoor's portrayal as the host of Who Wants to be a Millionaire. Kudos to Danny Boyle for not having made the obvious choice of Amitabh to play this role, for Amitabh would have completely overshadowed this film. Anil Kapoor, on the other hand, delivers this vastly important supporting role with one of the finest acting I have seen from the actor in years. Anil borrows the mannerisms that made Kaun Banega Crorepati so famous ('computer jee, lock kiya jaaye') and the suspenseful silences and pauses, but he is a cynical host in the manner of a pretentious elitist - who cannot believe that Jamal, who works at a chai wala in a call center in Mumbai, is actually sitting on the 'hot seat'.

Dev Patel, who stars as Jamal, is the shining star of this film. His portrayal of a boy who at heart simply wants to be with Latika (Freida Pinto), his rebukes to the police and his plain-faced pain are heartrending. Dev, Mudhar and Freida in these pivotal roles have proved themselves to be incredibly promising actors, and what is great about the casting of the film is how the progression of the actors, from their childhood to their young adulthood, retain the same features and mannerisms. The child actors are poignant and very, very real in their roles as the 'three

musketeers' bound together by circumstances and bonds of blood and love. The Golden Globe nominated soundtrack, composed by A.R. Rahman and featuring the talent of M.I.A, fits the film like a glove, especially M.I.A's hit track 'Paper Planes', which appears tailor made for the film, even though it was written far before.Slumdog Millionaire's climax is as suspenseful as those moments on Kaun Banega Crorepati were, when your heart stopped still and you wondered if A, B, C or D were the right answer. Does Jamal manage to be released from the police and will he meet Anil Kapoor on the glowing set of the

show to finish his run; and does it achieve his purpose of getting Latika to see him? Or is he destined to be persecuted because as a 'slumdog', he manages to know the answers to such a competitive show? The edgy, poignant and heartfelt Slumdog Millionaire has the answers. Danny Boyle's critically acclaimed film and a frontrunner for the Oscars, is a must-watch.
– Saba Imtiaz

*YUCK
**WHATEVER
***GOOD
****SUPER
*****AWESOME