IMDb > Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
Slumdog Millionaire
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Slumdog Millionaire (2008) More at IMDbPro »

Photos (See all 27 | slideshow) Videos (see all 16)
Slumdog Millionaire -- The story of how impoverished Indian teen Jamal Malik became a contestant on the Hindi version of "Who Wants to be A Millionaire?" -- an endeavor made in an effort to prove his love for his friend Latika, who is an ardent fan of the show.
Slumdog Millionaire -- Clip: Jiaho
Slumdog Millionaire -- Behind the scenes: Skateboard steady cam
The Wrestler -- Danny Boyle discusses how he acquired the rights to the Hindo version of "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" with director Darren Aronofsky.
Slumdog Millionaire -- Clip: Train station

Overview

User Rating:
Top 250: #200  (login to vote)
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Up 10% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Directors:
Danny Boyle
Loveleen Tandan (co-director: India)
Writers:
Simon Beaufoy (screenplay)
Vikas Swarup (novel)
Contact:
View company contact information for Slumdog Millionaire on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
23 January 2009 (USA) See more »
Genre:
Drama | Romance | Thriller See more »
Tagline:
Love and money... You have mixed them both. See more »
Plot:
A Mumbai teen who grew up in the slums, becomes a contestant on the Indian version of "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" He is arrested under suspicion of cheating, and while being interrogated, events from his life history are shown which explain why he knows the answers. Full summary » | Full synopsis »
Plot Keywords:
See more »
Awards:
Won 8 Oscars. Another 114 wins & 62 nominations See more »
NewsDesk:
(6403 articles)
Freida Pinto takes to social networking
 (From RealBollywood. 14 June 2013, 2:10 AM, PDT)
Oscarwatch: The Directors
 (From AwardsDaily. 10 June 2013, 10:50 AM, PDT)
Raanjhanaa Music Review
 (From Bollyspice. 5 June 2013, 10:30 PM, PDT)
User Reviews:
A stunning achievement: The best film of the year and one of the most exhilarating film-going experiences See more (959 total) »

Cast

  (in credits order) (verified as complete)

Dev Patel ... Older Jamal

Saurabh Shukla ... Sergeant Srinivas

Anil Kapoor ... Prem

Rajendranath Zutshi ... Director (as Raj Zutshi)
Jeneva Talwar ... Vision Mixer

Freida Pinto ... Older Latika

Irrfan Khan ... Police Inspector
Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail ... Youngest Salim

Ayush Mahesh Khedekar ... Youngest Jamal
Jira Banjara ... Airport Security Guard (as Hira Banjara)
Sheikh Wali ... Airport Security Guard
Mahesh Manjrekar ... Javed
Sanchita Choudhary ... Jamal's Mother
Himanshu Tyagi ... Mr Nanda
Sharib Hashmi ... Prakash
Virendra Chatterjee ... Slum Man
Feroze Khan ... Amitabh Bachchan
Sunil Kumar Agrawal ... Mr Chi (as Sunil Aggarwal)
Virender Kumar ... Man on Fire (as Virender Kumar Gharu)
Devesh Rawal ... Blue Boy
Rubina Ali ... Youngest Latika
Ankur Vikal ... Maman
Tiger ... Punnoose
Chirag Parmar ... Young Arvind
Nazneen Shaikh ... Baby
Farzana Ansari ... Latika's Friend
Anupam Shyam ... Old Villager
Salim Chaus ... Ticket Collector
Singh Shera Family ... Family in Train
Harvinder Kaur ... Family in Train
Narendra Singh Bhati ... Family in Train (as Narendra Singh)
Tanay Chheda ... Middle Jamal (as Tanay Hemant Chheda)
Ashutosh Lobo Gajiwala ... Middle Salim
Satya Mudgal ... Taj Mahal Guide

Janet de Vigne ... Ada / Mrs MacKintosh
William Relton ... Peter

David Gilliam ... Clark

Mia Drake Inderbitzin ... Adele (as Mia Inderbitzin)
Kinder Singh ... Driver
Christine Matovich Singh ... Opera Singer
Thomas Lehmkuhl ... Opera Singer
Siddesh Patil ... Older Arvind
Najma Shaikh ... Woman at Brothel
Saeeda Shaikh ... Woman at Brothel
Alka Satpute ... Woman at Brothel
Tabassum Khan ... Woman at Brothel
Tanvi Ganesh Lonkar ... Middle Latika
Sitaram Panchal ... Dance Teacher
Nigel Caesar ... Hotel Security Guard
Ajit Pandey ... Javed's Goon
Kedar Thapar ... Javed's Goon

Amit Leonard ... Javed's Goon
Rajesh Kumar ... Javed's Goon
Sagar Ghopalkar ... Javed's Goon
Pradeep Solanki ... Javed's Goon
Abdul Hamid Sheikh ... Javed's Goon (as Hamid Sheikh)
Dheeraj Waghela ... Javed's Goon
Shruti Seth ... Call Centre Instructor (as Shruti S Seth)

Arfi Lamba ... Bardi
Taira Colah ... Nasreen
Varun Bagri ... Call Centre Trainee
Ankur Tewari ... Dave
Anjum Sharma ... Operator

Madhur Mittal ... Older Salim
Sarfaraz Khan ... Autorickshaw Driver
Syed Fazal Hussain ... Autorickshaw Driver (as Syed Hussain)
Umar Khan ... Autorickshaw Driver (as Umer Khan)
Imran Hasnee ... Javed's House Doorkeeper
Homai Billimoria ... KBC Contestant
Udayan Baijal ... Cricket Commentator
Sandeep Kaul ... Floor Manager
Rufee Ahmed ... Double for Irrfan Khan
Rhea Lawyer ... TV Reporter
Deepali Dalvi ... Dancer at Javed's Safehouse
Anisha Nagar ... Dancer at Javed's Safehouse
Farrah Shaikh ... Dancer at Javed's Safehouse
Mamta Sharma ... Dancer at Javed's Safehouse
Neha M. Khatarawalla ... Dancer at Javed's Safehouse
Tanya Singh ... Newsreader

Anand Tiwari ... Newsreader
Faezeh Jalali ... Newsreader
Meghana Jhalani ... Newsreader
Rupali Mehra ... Newsreader
Anju Singh ... Newsreader
Saurabh Agarwal ... Call Centre Manager
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Mark Boucher ... Himself - South African Cricketer (archive footage)
Andre Nel ... Himself - South African Cricketer (archive footage)
Yuvraj Singh ... Himself - Indian Cricketer (archive footage)

Sachin Tendulkar ... Himself - Indian Cricketer (archive footage)

Amitabh Bachchan ... Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)
Create a character page for: ?

Directed by
Danny Boyle 
Loveleen Tandan (co-director: India)
 
Writing credits
Simon Beaufoy (screenplay)

Vikas Swarup (novel "Q & A")

Produced by
Christian Colson .... producer
François Ivernel .... co-executive producer
Ivana Mackinnon .... associate producer
Cameron McCracken .... co-executive producer
Tabrez Noorani .... line producer
Paul Ritchie .... co-producer
Tessa Ross .... executive producer
Paul Smith .... executive producer
 
Original Music by
A.R. Rahman 
 
Cinematography by
Anthony Dod Mantle 
 
Film Editing by
Chris Dickens 
 
Casting by
Gail Stevens 
Loveleen Tandan 
 
Production Design by
Mark Digby 
 
Art Direction by
Abhishek Redkar 
 
Set Decoration by
Michelle Day 
 
Costume Design by
Suttirat Anne Larlarb 
 
Makeup Department
Virginia Holmes .... hair designer
Virginia Holmes .... makeup designer
Natasha Nischol .... hair designer
Natasha Nischol .... makeup designer
 
Production Management
Rajeesh Dham .... assistant unit manager
Lucie Graves .... post-production supervisor
Sanjay Kumar .... unit production manager
Pravesh Sahni .... production supervisor
Chanpreet Singh .... assistant unit manager
Jennifer Wynne .... production manager: UK
Bill Daly .... post production executive: Warner Bros. (uncredited)
 
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Raj Acharya .... first assistant director
Avani Batra .... second assistant director
Shyam Kaushal .... action director (as Sham Kaushal)
Yugandhar S. Narvekar .... third assistant director
Sonia Nemawarkar .... second second assistant director
Rohit Ved Prakash .... first assistant director: second unit
Tanya Singh .... second assistant director: second unit
 
Art Department
Manoj N. Bhoyar .... assistant art director
Sachin Dabhade .... property master
Sushil Kumar Giri .... graphic designer
Kathy Heaser .... graphic artist
Praveen Kumar Hendway .... graphic designer
Brendan Houghton .... storyboard artist
Aditya Kanwar .... stand-by art director
Srinivas Konda .... property master
Wahid Shaikh .... assistant art director
Andrew Tapper .... graphic designer
Marc Knapton .... computer graphics (uncredited)
 
Sound Department
Hugo Adams .... foley editor
Niv Adiri .... sound effects editor
Shalini Agarwal .... additional sound
Shalini Agarwal .... location sound: second unit
Shalini Agarwal .... sound assistant
Ben Barker .... sound effects editor
Peter Burgis .... foley artist
Ricky Butt .... foley artist
Roberto Cappannelli .... sound re-recording mixer
Rachel Carberry .... assistant adr recordist
Jayesh Dhakan .... adr recordist (Hindi version)
Gillian Dodders .... supervising dialogue editor
Thomas Dodgson .... consultant: dolby film sound
Amrit Pritam Dutta .... production sound mixer
Danny Freemantle .... assistant sound editor
Glenn Freemantle .... sound designer
Glenn Freemantle .... supervising sound editor
Steve Haynes .... adr recordist
Lee Herrick .... dialogue editor
Vijay Kumar .... adr editor
Adam Mendez .... foley recordist
Resul Pookutty .... adr mixer
Resul Pookutty .... sound mixer
Richard Pryke .... sound re-recording mixer
Vivek Sachidanand .... additional sound recordist
Tom Sayers .... co-supervising sound editor
Tom Sayers .... sound designer
Adam Scrivener .... assistant sound re-recording mixer
Jack Stew .... foley artist
Ian Tapp .... sound re-recording mixer
Kevin Tayler .... adr recordist
John Soukup .... sound transfer (uncredited)
 
Special Effects by
Shivananda R. Mohili .... special effects supervisor (as Shivananda Mohili)
 
Visual Effects by
Matthew Bristowe .... digital lab producer: MPC
Stefan Ciupek .... digital camera supervisor
James Cundill .... online editor
Nick Drew .... visual effects production manager: CIS London
Paddy Eason .... digital compositor: CIS London
David Emeny .... digital compositor: CIS London
Alec Feegrade .... film recording
Adam Gascoyne .... visual effects supervisor
Matthew Hangar .... software support
Warwick Hewett .... assistant vfx producer: Rushes
Simon Hughes .... compositor: CIS London
Tom Kemplen .... visual effects editor
Matthew Lawrence .... motion graphics
Brad Le-Riche .... motion graphics
Begoña Lopez .... digital lab producer: MPC
Hugh Macdonald .... senior digital compositor: CIS London
Collette Nunes .... visual effects editor: CIS London
Roma O'Connor .... visual effects executive producer
Jonathan Opgenhaffen .... matte painter: CIS London
Jesse Parkhill .... digital compositor
Matthew Redding .... visual effects artist: DEAD
Becky Roberts .... visual effects producer
David Wahlberg .... digital compositor: CIS London
Shamsher Walia .... second telecine colorist: Pixion
Pat Wintersgill .... on-line editor
 
Camera and Electrical Department
Telfer Barnes .... first assistant camera
Udita Bhargava .... assistant camera
Arjun Singh Bhurji .... key grip
Dharmendra Bhurji .... key grip
Bidhan Chanda .... best boy grip
Stefan Ciupek .... camera operator: "b" camera
Mulchand Dedhia .... gaffer: India
Mrinal Desai .... cinematographer: second unit
Vishal Jain .... first assistant camera
Sunil Khandpur .... Steadicam operator
B. Durga Kishore Kumar .... second assistant camera
Ishika Mohan .... still photographer
G. Monic Kumar .... first assistant camera
Thomas Neivelt .... gaffer
Kevin Nunes .... still photographer
Gyanendra Pratap .... digital media Manager
Satish Venkataramana .... second assistant camera
 
Casting Department
Kelly Valentine Hendry .... casting associate
Swapnil Kore .... casting assistant
Rhea Lawyer .... casting assistant
Tom Reed .... casting assistant
Meredith Tucker .... additional casting: North America (uncredited)
 
Costume and Wardrobe Department
Riyaz Ali Merchant .... assistant costume designer
 
Editorial Department
Udayan Baijal .... assistant editor
Matthew Bristowe .... digital intermediate supervisor
Paul Byrne .... dailies supervisor
Celia Haining .... assembly editor
Tom Kemplen .... second assistant editor
Jaime Leonard .... on-line editor
Begoña Lopez .... digital intermediate supervisor
Alexandra Montgomery .... post-production coordinator
Vivek Pratap .... assembly editor
Catriona Richardson .... first assistant editor
Ejaz Shalkh .... first assistant editor
Prashant Sharma .... telecine dailies colorist
Anuradha Singh .... assembly editor
Jean-Clement Soret .... colorist
 
Music Department
Niv Adiri .... music editor
Gulzar .... lyricist
Noel James .... music coordinator
Pravin Mani .... arrangement & programming
Aditya Modi .... music engineer
Simon Mortimer .... music associate
Srinivas Murthy .... music assistant (as Srinivasa Murty)
Srinivas Murthy .... vocal supervisor (as Srinivasa Murty)
A.R. Rahman .... music producer
Andy Richards .... original score mixer
Tanvi Shah .... playback singer
H. Sridhar .... music engineer
Viviane .... music engineer
 
Transportation Department
Bhawani Singh .... transportation manager (uncredited)
 
Other crew
Nazar Abbas .... director: behind-the-scenes
Maxima Basu .... assistant: director
Paresh Behera .... production accountant
Thom Berryman .... media transfer engineer
Aarti Bhatia .... production coordinator: Mumbai
Neil Calder .... completion guarantor: Film Finances Inc.
Stefan Ciupek .... post production consultant
Tonia Cohen .... script clearance
Matt Curtis .... title designer
Monal Dutia .... film courier
Navit Dutt .... location manager
Gaia Elkington .... assistant to Danny Boyle and Christian Colson
Ollie Gatehouse .... post production assistant
Juliette Howell .... script editor
Deepak Jaitely .... production accountant
Polly Johnsen .... studio executive (uncredited)
Sam Lavender .... developmental editor: Film4
Diarmuid McKeown .... production executive
Tushaar Mehra .... technical consultant
Tariq Mirza .... production legal
Debbie Moore .... finance controller
Chirag Nihalani .... key production assistant
George Pank .... business affairs: Pathe
Raakesh Parekh .... tech support head: Pixion
Gyanendra Pratap .... media management
Rajesh Rajilal .... production assistant
Neil Sadwelkar .... technology manager: Pixion
Diraj Sarode .... assistant business manager: Pixion
Nuvendra Singh .... script supervisor (as Nikki)
Nuvendra Singh .... script supervisor
Rakesh Singh .... production coordinator
Asheet Thakur .... business manager: Pixion
Ian Thomson .... publicist
Vishal Tyagi .... armorer
Helen Varty .... assistant: Tessa Ross
Longiness Fernandes .... choreographer: "Jai Ho" dance sequence (uncredited)
Mahendra Singh .... assistant location manager (uncredited)
 

Production CompaniesDistributorsSpecial EffectsOther Companies
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
See more »
MPAA:
Rated R for some violence, disturbing images and language
Parents Guide:
View content advisory for parents
Runtime:
120 min
Country:
UK
Language:
English | Hindi | French
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 See more »
Sound Mix:
SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS
Certification:
USA:R (certificate #44838) | UK:15 | Ireland:15A | Australia:MA | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Czech Republic:15 | New Zealand:R13 | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Norway:11 | India:A (cinema release) | Finland:K-15 | Hong Kong:IIB | Singapore:NC-16 | Portugal:M/12 (Qualidade) | Netherlands:12 | South Africa:13V | Brazil:16 | South Korea:15 | Peru:14 | Argentina:16 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | Germany:12 | Japan:PG-12 | Philippines:PG-13 (MTRCB) | Belgium:KT | Mexico:B | Iceland:12 | New Zealand:R16 (DVD rating) | France:U | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Chile:TE
Filming Locations:
Agra, Uttar Pradesh, IndiaSee more »
Company:
Celador FilmsSee more »

Did You Know?

Trivia:
In almost all scenes with the character Latika, she is seen to be wearing something yellow.See more »
Goofs:
Factual errors: When Jamal explains the answer for "truth alone triumphs" question, Jamal asks the inspector for the price of Pani Puri, but the video shown is that of Dahi Puri.See more »
Quotes:
Prem Kumar:[starting lines] So Jamal, tell me something about yourself.
Jamal Malik:I work in a call centre in Juhu.
Prem Kumar:Phone basher! And what type of call centre would that be?
Jamal Malik:XL5 mobile phones.
Prem Kumar:Ohh... so you're the one who calls me up every single day of my life with special offers?
Jamal Malik:Actually I'm an assistant.
Prem Kumar:An assistant phone basher? And what does an assistant phone basher do exactly?
Jamal Malik:I get tea for people and...
Prem Kumar:Chaiwalah! Well ladies and gentlemen, Jamal Malik, garma garam chai dene walah from Mumbai, lets play Who Wants To Be A Millionaire!
See more »
Movie Connections:
Referenced in "The Office: Company Picnic (#5.26)" (2009)See more »
Soundtrack:
Aaj Ki RaatSee more »

FAQ

Why was this not eligible for the Foreign Film Oscar?
Is 'Slumdog Millionaire' based on a book?
How did the filmmakers secure the rights to 'Who Wants to Be A Millionaire?'
See more »

User Reviews

   (Review this title)
401 out of 673 people found the following review useful.
A stunning achievement: The best film of the year and one of the most exhilarating film-going experiences, 3 November 2008
Author: anhedonia from Planet Earth

I won't see a better, more exhilarating movie this year than Danny Boyle's "Slumdog Millionaire." If Academy voters have any sense, they will nominate this for Best Picture and Best Director and then vote overwhelmingly for it for both awards.

Boyle has taken what is essentially a story about a young man on India's version of "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" and transformed it into a gritty, realistic, powerful and, at times, gut-wrenching fairy tale. It's a Dickensian picture about a world rarely, if ever, seen in mainstream movies, a film that grabs us from the opening frame and doesn't let go until the credits roll at the end.

This is why I love movies. Films like "Slumdog Millionaire" are rare. They are things of beauty, works of art that make me fall in love with movies all over again. Boyle has done it twice. First with "Millions" (2004), which also, coincidentally, was about a young boy and money; and now with "Slumdog Millionaire."

This is Boyle's masterpiece - a stunningly original piece of film-making.

Every once in a while there is a sleeper film, usually an independent movie, that comes along, takes everyone by surprise, then gets terrific word of mouth and becomes a huge success. "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" (2002), "Little Miss Sunshine" (2006) - though I did not care much for it - and "Juno" (2007) are such films. But, frankly, those films can't hold a candle to "Slumdog Millionaire."

What might surprise many viewers is that a third of the dialogue is in Hindi. (And Boyle's placement of subtitles on the screen makes such good sense!) Please do not let that dissuade you from seeing this marvelous film. Do not let the R rating prevent you, either. What was the MPAA thinking? Honestly! There are far more offensive, vulgar and violent movies that are rated PG-13. "Slumdog Millionaire" should never have received an R rating. (This film should be mandatory viewing for young people, especially those in industrialized nations.)

Simon Beaufoy's script was originally entirely in English, but Boyle's decision to have the Indian kids speak in Hindi, instead, is the right call. Having the children speaking in their native tongue makes perfect sense, especially because Boyle and Beaufoy depicts the realism of the kids' lives.

That's what incredible about this film. Boyle and Beaufoy do not shy away from showing the squalor of Bombay. These kids live in deplorable conditions amid the grime, sewers and trash dumps of the slums. And, yet, thanks of Boyle true ingenuity, he creates uplifting and even humorous moments in the slums. There is one moment - and I shan't spoil it for anyone, but you will know it when you see it - that very well might be my favorite film moment in the last five years.

Boyle doesn't do a thing wrong here. From his choice of actors to the music to his choice of colors, Boyle works his magic.

The performances are uniformly good. Irrfan Khan finds the right balance between a tormentor and a quasi-father figure as the police officer. There's young Dev Patel as Jamal, playing with confidence, bringing a wonderful swagger to his role, as well as a sense of fear that we completely understand. Freida Pinto as the love interest is superb. And, of course, there are the three young 'uns. Perfectly cast, they actually make the film work. Their performances as Jamal, Salim and Latika are so utterly convincing that they completely draw us into the picture and make the jobs of the older actors playing them much easier.

"Slumdog Millionaire" is, I suppose, a dramatic comedy at heart. But it is also much more. It is a film about friendship, gratitude, love, betrayal, poverty and hope. It makes you laugh, weep and cheer as you can't help but marvel at Boyle's sheer genius.

The film moves along at a breakneck pace, yet none of the cinematic flair - and there is plenty - seems superfluous. Everything Boyle does, including the Bollywood touches, makes sense. There's such a brilliantly kinetic energy to this film that it is impossible not to be enthralled by it.

What Boyle has done is truly miraculous. He has turned a film about street life in Bombay into a visceral, genuine crowd-pleaser. And you will walk out of the movie theater feeling inspired and hopeful, knowing you've just seen something very special.

"Slumdog Millionaire" is not to be missed. It is the best movie of the year. And it is, without any doubt, one of the ten best films of the decade.

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