Slums, oscars and markets: ‘Indianness’ In slumdog millionaire

The star of the 2008 Academy Awards was Danny Boyle's directorial effort, Slumdog Millionaire. Winning 8 Oscars., the movie was the subject of wild discussion across all realms of life. But some of the media tagged a sense of inherent “Indianness” to the film. A story of the poverty and atrocities of slum life, the film has critically been used to demean the integrity and sovereignty of one of the world's largest democracies. It angered many Indians because it tarnishes the image of the country which is a rising economic power. How can an outsider show authenticity in portraying the conditions of an Indian slum without ever being there except for the purposes of making the film? This article tries to explore the truth that Slumdog Millionaire is merely a British-American produced movie with an Indian cast. With many other Indian made movies exploring the same theme over the years without consideration from the Academy, is it possible that the buzz generated by Slumdog Millionaire can be attributed to its financiers’ and director's countries of origin? The article also comparatively studies Slumdog Millionaire and Richard Attenborough's Gandhi. Gandhi, the multiple Oscar winner, too was an English movie with an Indian theme- a reverential look at the life of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, the father of the Indian nation. It was a vivid picture of the important incidents in the life of Gandhi and is considered as one of the classics of world cinema. It was a genuine conveyance of India's national freedom struggle and Gandhiji's policy of ‘non-violence’.