... asks me about Slumdog Millionaire. I have not seen it. Came close a few times, but it did not work out. I am not in a particular rush, as I am convinced that we will own a copy someday and I will have seen it like a billion times.
It is more interesting right now just to watch it from the perspective of someone without an opinion and see what everyone else has to say about the movie.
This was playing back in the US when we were there for Christmas. It received great reviews. Interestingly, we had never heard of it until then. It wasn't being played in India.
It is here now, both in English and Hindi. The Hindi version is called "Slumdog Crorepati". I believe this roughly translated to Slumdog Husband of Ten Million Rupees.
There is two main reactions to the movie here in India. The first is that people are proud of it. When it opened in Mumbai, it was to a red carpet affair where Bollywood's beautiful came through and said what a great movie it was going to be, etc. Typical stuff. And I gather from the movie that there is some irony in a glamorous affair in Mumbai being part of this movie's reality. So, there are those who applaud the movie, mostly to be part of the "big thing" that is happening around the movie.
Then, interestingly, there are is a second group of people who feel offended by the movie. Amitabh Bachan in particular has rubbished the movie. He is amongst those who think it is shameful that so many movies show this side of India. But he does not deny that there is this side of India. He is just sensitive that the movie shows India in such a poor light and that it was made by a Westerner. Then he goes on to say that every country has a poor, frightening underbelly like was shown in Slumdog Millionaire. Well, maybe. But I would submit that India is different from most countries in terms of its poverty and its inattention to helping its poorest citizens.
If that's hard for anyone to hear, so be it.
Additionally, a Muslim friend made a point of mentioning that there is communal violence in the move and "...that is very real." He pointed out that it has become less in the last 10 to 15 years, though.
So, there is a mixture of reactions to the movie here on the ground. Mostly it is being praised as a good, even great, movie that shows a side of India that exists. Some are offended by the skin tone of the director and a few are embarrassed that this very real side of India is there for the world to see.
Maybe we'll see it in the next few months and update a blog entry about our personal perspectives on the movie.
