Imagine an uneducated teenager who grew up an orphan in the slums of Tondo, suffered all the harsh realities of life, exposed to bad elements, but ended up winning 5 million pesos in the local version of “Who wants to be a Millionaire?”. The reason for this is: (a) He cheated; (b) He was lucky; (c) It was his destiny; or (d) It was written.
That question was asked in the opening sequence of the Oscar Best Picture, Slumdog Millionaire… and everybody kept guessing as the story unfolds and the answer was revealed in the end.
Salim and Jamal are Muslim brothers who grew up in the slums of Mumbai. Jamal, the younger brother, is weak, kind hearted, emotional but smart and wise. Salim is a street smart, very enterprising, strong willed and stood up as protector of Jamal. While he is full of betrayal, he was able to wash his sins in several heroic things he did for Jamal. The third protagonist is the girl Latika, whom Jamal unselfishly loved until the end.
The love story between Jamal and Latika is not the central point in the story. The lessons are told in such a manner that each and every sequence relates to the correct answer in each and every question asked of Jamal in the show ‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire?”
Every answer to the question happened to be part and parcel of the life of Jamal. The lead actor in a hit film in 1973, the poet who wrote a popular Indian song, the person in $100 bill, the bow and arrow carried on the right hand of an Indian god, the Indian Cricket team who won the most number of championships, the third person in The Three Musketeers are all questions whose answers are imprinted upon the memory of Jamal as experienced by him from his early childhood to his adolescent years. The writer of this film is brilliant, the cinematography is excellent, and the direction is superb. Worthy of the awards it reaped so far.
We, Filipinos, can easily relate to the story. The slums of Mumbai are no different from the Payatas dumpsite, the dirty Pasig River, the chaotic Tondo and Parola, the vicinity of the pier in Manila and the red light district of Angeles City.
These places are shown with the same characters of inhabitants – drug syndicates, groups victimizing children and forcing them to become beggars (to the extent of defacing their faces or using babies to earn more), prostitution ring, money laundering, gun running, corrupt policemen and public officials, human rights violations… name it, we also have it. But Jamal’s heart and aspirations in life remain pure amidst the backdrop of these bad elements and he became triumphant in the end and rescued Latika from slavery.
This film shows the power of money, the different ways on how to earn it, its effects on the people and how it controls us. The film shows the uneven distribution of wealth, has exposed greed to the extreme, and emphasized how money can lead one to lose empathy to the emotions, rights and freedom of persons. It shows that money can be morally devastating that could destroy every social fiber. But a good heart triumphs in the end and innocence can be maintained amidst the polluted elements.
Watch it and you would feel how fortunate we are even without that million pesos in our hands. Our lives may not be written by destiny. We make our own path and we write our own destiny. Our faith can keep us going… but in the end, what we have written shall be unfolded – partly by hardwork, partly by wit, partly by destiny, but more of our faith. The best answer then to why Jamal won P20M Rupee could be all of the above.
That question was asked in the opening sequence of the Oscar Best Picture, Slumdog Millionaire… and everybody kept guessing as the story unfolds and the answer was revealed in the end.
Salim and Jamal are Muslim brothers who grew up in the slums of Mumbai. Jamal, the younger brother, is weak, kind hearted, emotional but smart and wise. Salim is a street smart, very enterprising, strong willed and stood up as protector of Jamal. While he is full of betrayal, he was able to wash his sins in several heroic things he did for Jamal. The third protagonist is the girl Latika, whom Jamal unselfishly loved until the end.
The love story between Jamal and Latika is not the central point in the story. The lessons are told in such a manner that each and every sequence relates to the correct answer in each and every question asked of Jamal in the show ‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire?”
Every answer to the question happened to be part and parcel of the life of Jamal. The lead actor in a hit film in 1973, the poet who wrote a popular Indian song, the person in $100 bill, the bow and arrow carried on the right hand of an Indian god, the Indian Cricket team who won the most number of championships, the third person in The Three Musketeers are all questions whose answers are imprinted upon the memory of Jamal as experienced by him from his early childhood to his adolescent years. The writer of this film is brilliant, the cinematography is excellent, and the direction is superb. Worthy of the awards it reaped so far.
We, Filipinos, can easily relate to the story. The slums of Mumbai are no different from the Payatas dumpsite, the dirty Pasig River, the chaotic Tondo and Parola, the vicinity of the pier in Manila and the red light district of Angeles City.
These places are shown with the same characters of inhabitants – drug syndicates, groups victimizing children and forcing them to become beggars (to the extent of defacing their faces or using babies to earn more), prostitution ring, money laundering, gun running, corrupt policemen and public officials, human rights violations… name it, we also have it. But Jamal’s heart and aspirations in life remain pure amidst the backdrop of these bad elements and he became triumphant in the end and rescued Latika from slavery.
This film shows the power of money, the different ways on how to earn it, its effects on the people and how it controls us. The film shows the uneven distribution of wealth, has exposed greed to the extreme, and emphasized how money can lead one to lose empathy to the emotions, rights and freedom of persons. It shows that money can be morally devastating that could destroy every social fiber. But a good heart triumphs in the end and innocence can be maintained amidst the polluted elements.
Watch it and you would feel how fortunate we are even without that million pesos in our hands. Our lives may not be written by destiny. We make our own path and we write our own destiny. Our faith can keep us going… but in the end, what we have written shall be unfolded – partly by hardwork, partly by wit, partly by destiny, but more of our faith. The best answer then to why Jamal won P20M Rupee could be all of the above.
