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Poll: Is 'Slumdog Millionaire' doing enough for the child actors in the film?
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Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail as Salim in "Slumdog Millionaire"
Those "Slumdog Millionaire" kids who looked so adorable in their tiny tuxes and girlie dresses at the Oscars are now back in India, in the real-life slums where they were found for the film.
Ten-year-old Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail — who played the younger Salim, brother of Dev Patel’s character, Jamal — got a hero's welcome when he returned from America. For a few minutes. Then, according to a report in the Sun, his father slapped and kicked the boy in front of the crowd because he wanted to sleep after his long flight rather than talk to any more reporters. There are photos of Ismail holding his ear and crying.
His father later apologized for his behavior, but according to a report in the Daily Mail, he doesn't want to wait until his son turns 18 to get the cash that he heard would be deposited in a trust fund. He has tuberculosis and earns less than $100 a month gathering wood. He needs help now. The Mail quotes him as saying:
I want the money now, it is of no use later. [Director Danny Boyle] should take care of my son.'
The financial issue is compounded by emotional distress some of the kids are feeling now that they have had a taste of life outside of the slums and then been forced to return. Hollyscoop quotes young Ismail as saying:
I am very sad. I feel sleepy, hot and sick all the time. I can't get to sleep here — there are too many mosquitoes and it is so hot. I just wish I was in America still."
Rubina Ali, who plays young Latika in the film, refuses to take off the dress she wore to the Oscars. It's stained with slum dirt now. She reportedly told the Telegraph:
I don't want to live here in the slum anymore. I don't want to sleep on the floor anymore. I want a proper bed and live where the air does not smell of poo. I have seen what it is like in America. Here, there is garbage everywhere, people get angry, swear and shout. I have realized how bad life is here. I just want to get out."
Who can blame her?
The "Slumdog" kids played a major role in the success of the Oscar-winning film, which has already brought in more than $115 million and is still showing in theaters worldwide.
The Times of India quotes director Danny Boyle as saying the kids are getting an educational trust fund and money to buy a house, but no dollar figure was mentioned:
They have received some money, which has disappeared, so we have put in place an educational plan. They will receive further payments when they have finished their education and we have also given them money to buy a house."
Both the Mumbai housing authority and the film's producer, Christian Colson, have said they are going to provide housing for the kids' families, according to the Telegraph, but the families have not seen any evidence of that yet.
Are the filmmakers doing enough for these kids? Or were they just exploited and sent back to the slums to fend for themselves? Please tell us what you think. Take our poll and leave your comments.
[ Photo: Slumdog Millionaire ]
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