Real India?

Recently read ‘The White Tiger’ Written by Arvind Adiga which won the Man Booker Prize for Fiction 2008. It was about Balram Halwai and his journey from an Indian village life to entrepreneurial success. And Then happened to watch Slumdog Millionaire, a movie that follows a young man from the slums of Mumbai who appears on Kaun Banega Crorepati and wins it.

Both of them were lapped up by the critics in US and UK. Do we see a pattern being developed here?

Allow me to elaborate.

Richard Marcus said, “In his book, Adiga not only peels back the gloss of the economic miracle to expose the rot beneath, he instructs us in the means by which a small minority of the population are able to subjugate the majority.” David Mattin was of the opinion that, “The result is an Indian novel that explodes the clichés – ornamental prose, the scent of saffron – associated with that phrase.” It was described by one reviewer as an ‘unadorned portrait‘ of India seen ‘from the bottom of the heap’.

Slumdog Millionaire showed the slums, the poor and their fight for survival. n The New York Times, Manohla Dargis called the film a “sensory blowout,” and “one of the most upbeat stories about living in hell imaginable.

Living in hell.

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Is this the real India? Or is it the Western outsider’s view, superficial and cursory?

Cheers

Jais

Slumdog Millionaire (2008)

Slumdog Millionaire

Slumdog Millionaire, directed by Danny Boyle is based on the book Q and A written by Indian author Vikas Swarup. It stars Dev Patel, Freida Pinto and Anil Kapoor.

The movie follows the life of a young man from the slums of Mumbai to being part of the game show ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’. It starts with Jamal (Dev), who has made it to the last question of the game show, being interrogated as there were accusations of cheating. After all, how does a slumdog know all the answeres?

Then, in flashback, movie then traces Jamal’s life which revolves around his violent brother Salim and his love, Latika. And how he knows the answers to the questions from his various experiences.

As many critics and reviewers have said, this is one of the better movies of the year. Danny Boyle (of Trainspotting fame) has crafted this movie in his signature cinematic style. The acting is uniformly excellent (especially the young Jamal). Anil Kapoor is amazing as the game show host. However, one gets a feeling that the script could have provided more opportunities to Anil Kapoor to  portray this complex role.

The on location shooting and the photography also adds to it. This movie looks good.

But somehow the movie seems too unrealistic and fake. And at times the feel-good factor seems forced rather than a natural consequence of the proceedings. But that’s just what i felt.

Anyway, from a cinematic point of view, this is a very well made and  directed movie and definitely worth a watch. A heart-warming Bollywood-style romantic drama that makes you feel good about life in spite of its tragic and heartbreaking moments.

A word about the soundtrack by A. R. Rahman

When you listen to the soundtrack it doesn’t seem special (Like most of the works by Rahman, it grows on you). But it takes a viewing of the movie to make you realise how amazing the soundtrack really is. The songs, which sound too abstract initially, makes more sense with a viewing. Its an interesting  mix of Indian and Western and consequently, very engaging. Wouldn’t be surprised if you fall in love.

Tracks worth listening are ‘O Saya” , “Mausam and Escape”, “Dreams on fire” and “Jai ho”. Actually, all the tracks are worth listening to. Brilliant stuff.

The album is definitely worth checking out.

Cheers

Jais

PS: The movie ends with a grand Bollywood style song-and-dance number that adds to the fun. A perfect end in the circumstances.