Glorify the Slums, God Dammit! (edited)

EDIT 1/16/09
So I stand corrected! I had been unaware of this along with the fact that Amitabh actually keeps a public blog, but apparently BBC derived the comments from Amitabh Bachan's blog itself (click here for Amitabh's Blog) where he had actually posted the opinions of others regarding SM to "invite a debate", but were instead taken out of context and misconstrued as his own. BBC also published an article to 'clarify' on its former (Click here for BBC article). Way to go with accuracy, media!

However, just to make it official, I'll copy and paste the text taken directly from Amitabh's most recent blogpost regarding his comments/criticisms for Slumdog Millionaire along with the Media without taking it out of context or any further alterations. On a sidenote, it is especially on occasions like these where the impact of the unique qualities the digital era can be realized - like for instance when high profile celebrities' thoughts and opinions may reach a large number of people without being tainted with just a little effort on their part. Just wow. Anyway, continuing with the blogpost...

---- BEGIN AMITABH'S BLOGPOST REGARDING SlumDog Millionaire----
Amitabh Bachan's Blog: Day 267

What a colossal joke this is all turning out to be !! Without reading the text of my blog or the purpose behind mention of ‘SlumDog’ an entire machinery of abuse has been directed towards me.

Fact is. Some one mentioned the film on my blog. Some expressed opinion for it, some against. And yes they contained some strong assumptions. I merely put both of them up and invited debate. I have done this many times on several issues and there has been great involvement. Media, in India has taken the pros and cons of OTHERS, as MINE, built their headlines and put it safely out, thereby, causing the consternation. All the expressions that have been attributed to me are in fact the expressions of others. Or perceived impressions of others. Where is the indication that this impression is concretely mine ? There is none !! And now after having castigated me for something not attributable to me, it has made my real opinion on the film after seeing it, impossible. If I do not like it there will be greater abuse. If I like it, there will be abuse.

My apologies therefore, on this unfortunate and completely misguided occurrence. May peace prevail and prosperity follow.

It is the most convenient and easiest practice to twist and distort words, especially if they come from celebrities. The copy makes good reading. Media did just that and made a screaming headline - ‘AB slams Slum’. Note the use of word ’slam’. It is nowhere in my blog, but has been deliberately put because it rhymes and reads well with the word ’slum’. Headline structured, editorial happy and to hell with its truth and authenticity.

---- END BLOGPOST----


My Original Blogpost (based on BBC's original article):

I normally don't care much for Bollywood or its actors/actresses because quite frankly, many of the movies produced either

a) Are too predictable
b) Like a, not only lack originality, but are ripped from other pre-existing movies
c) Lack a decent, semi-intriguing plot
d) Are excessively dramatized for my taste

Yet, this one BBC article pasted below (click here for BBC article) caught my attention. It spoke about how the staggering success of Danny Boyle's recent movie, Slumdog Millionaire, on an international scale has upset quite a few desis including Amitabh Bachan, one of India's most well recognized veteran actors who went to go ahead and criticize SM for projecting India as a "third world dirty underbelly."




---- BEGIN ARTICLE ----
Bollywood Star Criticism Slumdog Millionaire

Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan has criticised award-winning film Slumdog Millionaire for projecting India as the "third world dirty underbelly".

The film, made by British director Danny Boyle, has swept the Golden Globe and Critics' Choice awards.

A rags-to-riches tale of an improbable winner of game show Who Wants to be a Millionaire, the film is based on Indian diplomat Vikas Swarup's book.

Slumdog Millionaire is also a favourite to win at the Oscars.

The film has been nominated in 11 categories for next month's British Academy Film Awards, including best film, best British film and best director.

Best-known actor

Mr Bachchan had played the very popular host of Kaun Banega Crorepati - Indian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?

"If SM (Slumdog Millionaire) projects India as [a] Third World dirty underbelly developing nation and causes pain and disgust among nationalists and patriots, let it be known that a murky underbelly exists and thrives even in the most developed nations," Mr Bachchan wrote in his blog.

"It's just that the SM idea authored by an Indian and conceived and cinematically put together by a Westerner, gets creative [Golden] Globe recognition. The other would perhaps not."

Slumdog Millionaire opens in India next week.

Mr Bachchan is India's best-known actor and has a massive fan following at home and among the diaspora the world over.

The actor's career spans almost 40 years. He has acted in more than 140 movies.

He starred in the legendary Hindi movie Sholay and hosted the first three seasons of Kaun Banega Crorepati.

His show enjoyed tremendous popularity with viewers and, according to reports, at the time of the telecast, the streets were deserted and fewer people went out to cinemas.

Bachchan topped a 1999 BBC News website poll to find the greatest star of the millennium, beating the likes of Marlon Brando and Charlie Chaplin.

---- END ARTICLE ----


Honestly, my problem here is not the fact that someone criticized the movie...as I do not expect everyone to like it, either. But more about the root of these 'criticisms'..how they are disappointing because they seem to lack legitimate justification despite coming from a well known veteran Bollywood star who of all people ought to have more respect for the arts especially when representing the more controversial issues. Especially someone who has lived abroad and has surely experienced a versatile set of movies from around the world ought to recognize the fact that not all movies related to India have to be the byproduct of narrow superficial equations that produce some glorified escapism, like the ones often found in most Bollywood movies.

It's too bad that as an actor, he failed to acknowledge the movie for what it is, a success, complete with with an original engaging, and thought-provoking story of life lessons that the international audience could appreciate and probably even relate to in some ways. Like how about that scene when the Child Jamal chose to drop himself into a pool of shit to not miss out on his opportunity to meet his idolized Actor (none other than the same Amitabh Bachan who now criticized SM) and how that coating of stinky shit allowed Child Jamal to easily bypass the huge crowd of people surrounding his idol and attain an autograph!

But Amitabh is not the only one who I know to have criticized SM. I personally know a few other Indians who had a problem with SM because of the issues it depicted (ie: slums, riots, misusing children, selling young adults for sex, exploiting tourists, etc) and that too on such an international scale. Maybe age has something to do with it, as many of these seemed to belong to an older age group.

As far as I'm concerned, SM specifically states that it is set in the slums and it is about a character from the slums who does miraculously well on a gameshow. It shows just that and quite well in my opinion. Yet there is this unrealistic expectation of the movie to embellish the slum life simply to make India look better in the eyes of others... maybe because many of us are too insecure to accept issues are in fact still rampant, and cope with them accordingly. Why is it so upsetting and terrible that this movie, which is deliberately set in the slums, chose to portray the not-so-prettier scenes of India?

And this nationalist/patriotism argument?

"If SM (Slumdog Millionaire) projects India as [a] Third World dirty underbelly developing nation and causes pain and disgust among nationalists and patriots, let it be known that a murky underbelly exists and thrives even in the most developed nations."

That disappoints even more. How does it make anyone less of a patriot if they are realistically grounded enough to acknowledge and admit that while there are the wonderful qualities, there are the flaws as well which have yet to be resolved. Why does it quickly then turn into a comparative competition of "Well, it's not like WE'RE the only ones with problems, look at blah blah blah" Afterall, isn't acknowledgment the first step before we get around to figuring out how to solve it?

I cannot even begin to count all the times I've had heated debates with other fellow Indians who were quick to judge and claim that I lacked patriotism simply due to the fact that there were issues mentioned during the discussion which they chose not to acknowledge because somehow it made one less patriotic. What a load of BS.

And oh, before anyone flips to the "Oh, you're an NRI (Non-Resident Indian), what would you know"....well, sure, I am an NRI, and while I do not claim to be an expert of Indian government, history, issues, or events...I am not stupid. I know about that which I personally have come across during my time spent there. Admitting that does NOT make me any less of an Indian. I am not aiming to insult a country that I respect, but I refuse to be biased and turn a blind eye to issues. In fact, there are definitely intentions of returning later in my life to do my part when I will have the resources to perform it more effectively.

It is just really sad to see the same people who will argue with me until they're blue in the face yelling "INDIA'S THE BEST" then turn around and care little for their fellow Indians or their struggles or even for that tiny piece of trash they chose to dispose of in the middle of the road. How can one claim the greatness of India, but then do nothing to resolve it but go ahead to treat any part of it as a landfill. How can you then laugh at anyone else who tries to hold onto their trash and save it for when they see an appropriate place to dispose of it? Hypocrisy much?

As for Amitabh, as someone had pointed out earlier I can't help but wonder if his criticism is rooted more out of bitterness that he missed out on the spotlight since everything else doesn't seem to make much sense and he was, infact, a host for that gameshow in real life at one point. I doubt he would have been so critical of it had he had a bigger part in the movie like Anil Kapoor (the actor who plays the host on the gameshow in SM) did.