Really heartening to see an India themed motion picture getting 8 Oscars.Yes, I am talking about British director Danny Boyle's much acclaimed "Slumdog Millionaire" which swept the Academy Awards on 23rd February,2009. India's very own A.R Rahman won 2,one of them shared with Gulzar and Resul Pookutty won a shared one for sound mixing. The last time another India themed movie won heavily was Richard Attenborough's "Gandhi" which won 8 in 1982 which fetched an Oscar for Bhanu Athaiya in costume design. I watched the movie a month back and I think the director has made a fair amount of research in making the movie. Although India's own Bollywood bigwigs haven't taken the movie so seriously(atleast before the Oscars), I think rather than nitpicking on the errors and a false image found in the movie we should instead harp on the positives and the bitter truths embedded within. The wheel will move forward only when an effort or some kind of force is being exerted from behind which is sadly lacking in us Indians.
Images of Mumbai policemen idling in their vans while a Muslim person was set on fire by a Hindu mob, Teacher clobbering the pupil with a book on his head which I feel is the worst form of physical violence, Children kidnapped and then blinded for better earning as beggars are just some of the countless scenes which provoked me to think about the inflated economy and the overhyped glamour and progress of the nation being continuously pummelled through our heads in a grotesque way by the indomitable mass media. At the same time, the story of the boy Jamal and how he rose to be a Crorepati from the slums and the final quote mentioning that it was written in his destiny also points to the fact that every individual irrespective of his/her social background, education and culture has the ability to come up trumps in their objectives.
Hardly had the Oscars been given away, our very own UPA govt. spokeperson trumpeted that their "good governance"(I wonder what that means) has brought Oscars for the country. I think Rahman,Gulzar and Pookutty should together sue this person as he is babbling nonsense. What has happened here since 2004 is known to all. Why turn a blind eye and display your abyssmal failures as some sort of sugar coated candy is beyond my understanding. Oh by the way O protectors and rulers of our country! Are you even remotely aware that some 250 innocent civilians were butchered between 26-28 November,2008 in Mumbai? The dead are long gone and weeds have grown in their graves and yet conspiracy theories still continue to flower up. That this kind of senseless pogrom can't be the handiwork of 10-12 millitants can be realized by even people having brains the size of pea nuts.
Anyway, lets leave these awkward questions and move on to something more encouraging. On the same day when Slumdog won. another short documentary"Smile Pinki" by Megan Mylan showcasing the travails of a U.P. girl born with cleft lip won the award in its category. The issue is really one of concern as there are countless people born with this birth defect and it can be easily corrected by a simple lip reconstruction surgery. However, the social stigma which the cleft lip defect brings upon the person can't be described in mere words. I really appreciate the documentary and look forward to watching it.
Nothing more to pen right now. May you all have great weekends.
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