"[22] Slumdog Millionaire has a similar narrative structure to Deewaar. Despite the refusal, Jamal promises that he will wait for her every day at five o'clock at the VT station. ", "The 2008 Movie City News Top Ten Awards", "From 'Slumdog' to Riches In a Crowd-Pleasing Fable", "FILM: Slumdog Millionaire – Manx Entertainment News", "The great Indian dream: Why "Slumdog Millionaire", a film made in India, draws crowds in New York", "Fall Film: Slumdog Millionaire: Game Show Masala", "Trivial Pursuit: Danny Boyle's "Slumdog Millionaire, "Adoor Gopalakrishnan – Exclusive Interview on NDTV Hindu Night Vision – Part 3-3", "All's Unwell that Only Ends Well: The Inconsistent Meaning of Life in, "Composer A.R Rahman on the Sounds of 'Slumdog Millionaire' and Being M.I.A. I was ashamed to see it was being appreciated widely in the west... Fortunately Indians are turning it down. [5] Following its success at the 81st Academy Awards, the film's takings increased by 43%,[43] the most for any film since Titanic. This is the "biggest ever increase for a UK saturation release," breaking "the record previously held by Billy Elliot's 13%." The title sequence was nominated at the 2009 Rushes Soho Shorts Film Festival in the Broadcast Design Award category in competition with the Match of the Day Euro 2008 titles by Aardman and two projects by Agenda Collective. Eighteen-year-old Jamal Malik, an Indian Muslim from the Dharavi slum, is a contestant on Kaun Banega Crorepati, and is one question away from the grand prize. Jamal Malik is the main protagonist of the Oscar-winning movie Slumdog Millionaire. [39] Slumdog Millionaire debuted with a limited North American release on 12 November 2008, followed by a nationwide release in the United States on 23 January 2009. Starring Dev Patel as Jamal, and filmed in India, the film was directed by Danny Boyle, written by Simon Beaufoy, and produced by Christian Colson, with Loveleen Tandan credited as co-director. [46] The film reached No. [i] Deewaar (1975), which Boyle described as being "absolutely key to Indian cinema", is a crime film written by Salim-Javed based on the Bombay gangster Haji Mastan, portrayed by Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan, whose autograph Jamal seeks at the beginning of Slumdog Millionaire. The story consists of Jamal's journey from boyhood to manhood when he is determined to win the heart of his true love, Latika. A cinema owner commented that "to hear slum boys speaking perfect English doesn't seem right but when they are speaking in Hindi, the film seems much more believable." [60], Fox Searchlight released 351 prints of the film across India for its full release there on 23 January 2009. [76], Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun Times gave the film four out of four stars, calling it "a breathless, exciting story, heartbreaking and exhilarating. "[88], Adoor Gopalakrishnan, one of the most acclaimed film makers in India during the 1980s and 1990s and a five time Best Director winner of the Indian National Film Awards—the most prestigious film awards in India—lambasted Slumdog Millionaire, calling it in an interview to NDTV: "A very anti-Indian film. Slumdog Millionaire is a 2008 British drama film that is a loose adaptation of the novel Q & A (2005) by Indian author Vikas Swarup, telling the story of Jamal Malik, age 18, from the Juhu slums of Mumbai. When the question is asked, Jamal uses his 50/50 lifeline, leaving Kumar's answer and the correct one. Mitu Sengupta (2009 and 2010) raises substantial doubts about both the realism of the film's portrayal of urban poverty in India and whether the film will assist those arguing for the poor. "[4], A few critics outright panned it. It is an adaptation of the novel Q & A (2005) by Indian author and diplomat Vikas Swarup. And at every turn is fabricated. The film is seen by D. Parthasarathy (2009) as reflecting a larger context of global cultural flows, which implicates issues of labour, status, ascription-achievement, and poverty in urban India. [61] It earned ₹23,545,665 (equivalent to ₹48 million or US$670,000 in 2019) in its first week at the Indian box office,[62] or $2.2 million according to Fox Searchlight. It is an adaptation of the novel Q & A (2005) by Indian author and diplomat Vikas Swarup. Cast members celebrate with producer Christian Colson (R) after "Slumdog Millionaire" won the Best Motion Picture Oscar during the 81st Academy Awards … [1][2] The film opened nationwide in the United States on 26 December 2008, earning over $4,000,000 in its first weekend in wide release. [44] In the weekend of 27 February to 1 March, the film reached its widest release at 2,943 theatres. Salim gets a job with Javed—a rival crime lord. [96], Note: Entries scored out are when the award was not handed, Reactions from India and the Indian diaspora. You can either chide the film, at this point, for relinquishing any claim to realism or you can go with the flow—surely the wiser choice. For the next few years, Salim and Jamal travel around on top of trains, making a living by selling goods, picking pockets, washing dishes, and pretending to be tour guides at the Taj Mahal. Jamal surprises everyone by being able to answer every question correctly. The film was projected to cost $15 million, so Celador sought a US film distributor to share costs. All the bad elements of Bombay's commercial cinema are put together and in a very slick way. Slumdog Millionaire is a 2008 British-Indian drama film that is a loose adaptation of the novel Q & A (2005) by Indian author Vikas Swarup, telling the story of 18-year-old Jamal Malik from the Juhu slums of Mumbai. At the same time, Taare Zameen Par (Like Stars on Earth), India's submission for the Academy … "[86] Eric Hynes of IndieWire called it "bombastic", "a noisy, sub-Dickens update on the romantic tramp's tale" and "a goofy picaresque to rival Forrest Gump in its morality and romanticism. [41] As of 12 November 2009, an estimated 1,964,962 DVD units have been sold, translating to $31.32m in revenue. Rahman had two songs nominated for Best Original Song – the nomination for "O... Saya" was shared with M.I.A., while the win for "Jai Ho" was shared with lyricist Gulzar. [40][41] In its second weekend, it expanded to 32 theatres and made $947,795, or an average of $29,619 per theatre, representing a drop of only 18%. Screenwriter Simon Beaufoy wrote Slumdog Millionaire based on the Boeke Prize-winning and Commonwealth Writers' Prize-nominated novel Q & A by Vikas Swarup. It follows a homeless Mumbai resident who becomes a contestant for the game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?. ... [T]he whole construction is tied to a gimmicky narrative strategy that keeps Slumdog Millionaire from really hitting its stride until the last 30 minutes. When Salim learns that Maman is blinding the children to make them more effective beggars, he escapes with Jamal and Latika to a departing train. Slumdog is not a familiar word for majority Indians." It was the first film to take full advantage of the SI-2K digital camera. [40] In the 10 original theatres of its release, viewership went up 16%, and this is attributed to strong word-of-mouth. "[58] The film was also dubbed in Tamil as Naanum Kodeeswaran, with Silambarasan dubbing for Patel,[59] while S. P. Balasubrahmanyam and Radha Ravi dubbed for Kapoor and Khan respectively. How else could Boyle get away with assembling his cast for a Bollywood dance number, at a railroad station, over the closing credits? 2 in the DVD sales chart, making $14.16m off 842,000 DVD units. [30] Despite the subsequent success of the film, Khan has stated that he does not regret turning the role down,[29] and has been a vociferous supporter of the film to its critics. A.R. Warner Independent Pictures gave $5 million and got the rights to the film. For the final question, Jamal is asked the name of the third musketeer. Slumdog Millionaire: Music from the Motion Picture is the soundtrack album of the American British drama film of the same name, directed by Danny Boyle. [94] Many elements of the film, including the apparent redemption of Salim at the end of his life and the film's subjugation of the suffering of peripheral characters to the romantic aspirations of Jamal, are characteristic, say such critics, of a naïve, Providence-based vision of reality. Its biggest single country increase was in Italy, where it was up 556% from the previous week. I wanted a young unspoilt voice. [54] The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray on 1 June 2009. Javed hears Latika on the show and realizes that Salim has betrayed him. The film Slumdog Millionaire, which won eight Academy Awards in 2009, has been subjected to a number of criticisms, notably regarding how it portrays Indian society and alleged exploitation of some of the actors. Following its success at the 81st Academy Awards, the film topped the worldwide box office (barring North America), grossing $16 million from 34 markets in the week following the Academy Awards. Producer Christian Colson accepts the Best Picture Oscar for Slumdog Millionaire at the 81st Academy Awards. The rags-to-riches love story film went into the ceremony with 10 nominations and walked away with eight honors including best picture, best director and best editing. Composer A.R. Salim is reluctant to take her in, but Jamal suggests that she could be their "third musketeer", a reference to the Alexandre Dumas novel The Three Musketeers. It won seven BAFTA … "[18] Boyle then decided to translate nearly a third of the film's English dialogue into Hindi. The film is therefore likely to support policies that have tended to further dispossess the slum dwellers in terms of material goods, power and dignity. Slumdog Millionaire was nominated for ten Academy Awards. The movie is set in Mumbai, India and is about a poor boy who appears on India's version of the game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?.. [57] Originally titled Slumdog Millionaire: Kaun Banega Crorepati, the name was shortened for legal reasons. [61] In its second week, the film's gross rose to ₹30,470,752 (equivalent to ₹62 million or US$860,000 in 2019) at the Indian box office. Finding all of Jamal's stories "bizarrely plausible," the officer allows him to return to the show. On 22 February 2009, the film won eight out of ten Academy Awards for which it was nominated, including the Best Picture and Best Director. [19] Filming locations included shooting in Mumbai's megaslum and in shantytown parts of Juhu, so film-makers controlled the crowds by befriending onlookers. At Jamal's insistence, they return to Mumbai to find Latika, where they discover that she is being raised by Maman to be a prostitute. [94], The Slumdog Millionaire soundtrack was composed by A. R. Rahman, who planned the score for over two months and completed it in two weeks. The film grossed £6.1 million in its first eleven days of release in the UK. Some film critics have responded positively to the film. The movie unfolds in a start-and-stop way that kills suspense, leans heavily on flashbacks and robs the movie of most of its velocity. [36] In Hong Kong, the film debuted taking $1 million in its opening weekend, making it the second biggest opening of the year there. It was nominated for ten Academy Awards in 2009 and won eight—the most for any 2008 film—including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay. In an effort to make amends for his past behavior, Salim gives Latika his mobile phone and car keys.