!!JAI HO!!. Review on Slumdog Millionaire Movie

No need to give an intro for this one since everyone knows about it and how it is creating waves worldwide. And as expected, Slumdog Millionaire meets up all the expectations. The film is crisp-n-sharp, technically brilliant and deserves the appreciation fully!

The story of the movie: Jamal Malik (Dev Patel), a young lad, working as a ‘chaiwalah’ in a call center, participates in the quiz show, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, hosted by Prem Kumar (Anil Kapoor). Jamal has an interesting time at the show, as his experiences, at different times of his life, enables him to answer almost all the questions in the quiz show and reach the final question. But before, he can answer that one; he is arrested by the police for cheating and fraud.

Slumdog Millionaire is extraordinary in every way-be it the story, screenplay, direction, cinematography or performances. The film moves at a breakneck speed and not once does the film go off track. Songs are there but doesn’t hinder the pace of the film. But it’s the cinematography and direction which emerges as the best aspect of the film! Whether it was the scenes of the dingy narrow lanes of slums or the sets of the quiz show, the lensman does an incredible job!

Many of the scenes in the first hour are memorable since the film throws light on that area of Mumbai which is never or rarely shown in the films. The truth about slums and beggars is excellently executed; In fact, even Madhur Bhandarkar failed to show such a reality in his Traffic Signal! The two highly memorable sequences will surely be the escape of young Jamal (Ayush Khedekar), Salim (Azharuddin Ismail) and Latika (Rubaina Ali) from Maman (Ankur Vikal). Note the scene when Latika fails to climb onto the train with Jamal and Salim. Watch out for the brilliant scene of Latika standing looking at them. You can’t see Latika’s face and expressions due to the darkness but still the scene leaves a mark. Superb, man! And the other wonderful sequence is Salim’s first murder. Wonderfully shot!

The second half beautifully shows the plight of the young lovers, Jamal and Latika, and their separation. Again, the film at this point doesn’t turn too emotional or melodramatic yet, touches the viewer-another sign of the technical brilliance. The climax was worth applauding! One knows what is finally going to happen, yet, we are in the ‘what-will-happen-next’ mood!

So, any flaws? Unfortunately, yeah. One may not take such a film instantly, esp due to some of the scenes in the beginning. Secondly, inspite of making the film as real as possible, there are lots of goofs in the film, which can be noticed by anyone.

It is the child actors who are excellent and arguably even better than the main cast. Ayush and Azharuddin, as young Jamal and Salim, surprises with such fine performances. They looked every inch like slum dwellers and performed wonderfully! In the teen actors, it is Tanvi Lonkar who takes the cake with her excellent job as the teenaged Latika. Ashutosh Gajiwala, as teen Salim, was rocking too!

As the main lead, Dev Patel does a great job. Watch out for his expressions when the last question is revealed to him, and also in the scenes inside the police lock-up. He has the trappings of a fine actor and would surely go places! Preety Frieda Pinto was good, but couldn’t match upto Dev’s performance. Anil Kapoor was rocking and entertaining, as the sarcastic host! In fact, it would be great if he is roped in to host the next season of KBC! Madhur Mittal as Salim did total justice to his role.

Irrfan Khan and Saurabh Shukla as usual perform well. Mahesh Manjrekar does a great job in which he’s an expert-playing gangster roles! Ankur Vikal was perfect for his role of Maman and his cruel, wicked smile helped to make him look more villainous! The film also has Raj Zutshi and Shruti Seth in guest appearances.

A R Rahman’s music, in my opinion, was strictly okay and I don’t feel it deserves an Oscar nomination. But a salute to this person for bridging the gap between the East and West through his soulful music! The two likeable songs are ‘Jai Ho’ and ‘Ringa’.

Anthony Mantle’s cinematography is what deserves an Oscar, without a shred of doubt. The intro scene of the slum was just amazing. The lensman uses innovative ways of cinematography and succeeds. Chris Dicken’s editing was perfect.

The film’s basic idea is from the book, Q and A written by Vikas Swarup. The story and screenplay, both by Simon Beaufoy, was extraordinary! His screenplay was excellent and engrossing. In fact, it’s amusing that a British screenwriter succeeded in writing a Bollywoodish kind of script! Dialogues were witty.

And lastly, Danny Boyle, the director, deserves a bow! He has worked hard on the film and it’s evident in each scene. His touches helped in making it a unique flick. Only if he had taken care of the little goofs, the film would have then been completely perfect. And special mention should also be of Loveleen Tandon, the casting director!

The film has been criticized by some for giving a wrong picture of Indian poverty. However, one should see that the film gives a true account of the people living below poverty line. We always encouraged realistic art films (even though most of them flop commercially), then why flak Slumdog? Only because it has been made by an outsider? Instead, we should be proud of Boyle for giving such a realistic view of a section of Indian society, no filmmaker has ever succeeded in! But at the same time, I also feel that Taare Zameen Par which was a sweet film deserved more than Slumdog Millionaire to be in the Oscars. Surely, Slumdog is great but TZP was much better and a classic.

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