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Oscar
is not far, after all!
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For
the millions of Oscar loving fans of Indian cinema,
January 22 was a day of absolute significance.
When the academy announced its nominations for
the 81st Oscars in 24 categories, Slumdog Millionaire
pulled off 10 nominations including a whopping
3 nominations in the music category for A R Rahman.
Slumdog follows close on the heels of the Brad
Pitt starrer The Curious case of Benjamin Button
and is nominated for some of the vital categories
such as Best motion picture of the year, adapted
screenplay, editing and sound mixing.
Rahman
said he and his family are on top of the world
after the announcement and that he did not believe
he would be nominated in three categories. Danny
is a blessing for the movie, an elated Rahman
told a news channel. Celebration was in the air
at the Slumdog's Indian premiere and Irffan Khan
predicted that the movie would bring home at least
one Oscar. Bring home? But isn't the movie majorly
British and doesn't Dev Patel speak in a sophisticated
British accent in the movie?
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On the other hand, for a nation that lives and breathes
cinema, Oscar is a dream come true of sorts. After all,
what better way to gain international recognition than
gaining nominations for the top award in the field of
cinema? Ten straight nominations for a film about India
is indeed an achievement although neither director Danny
Boyle nor the film's lead Dev Patel are Indian.
Slumdog
has also exposed the underbelly of incredible India,
made to look like heaven in the posters and campaigns
by the Tourism board authorities. The same way booker
winner Aravind Adiga's The White Tiger did and received
scathing criticism from Indian critics. And didn't someone
rightly say that the West gobbles up tales of poverty
and corruption from third world countries – India,
in this case? Golden Globe stands rightful proof for
this argument.
In the history of Oscars, however,
only three Indian films won nominations in the Foreign
Language Category and none won. Mother India directed
by Mehboob Khan, Salaam Bombay directed by Mira Nair
and Ashutosh Gowarikar's Lagaan made it to the nominations
all in an interval of almost two decades between each.
And this year's nominations Taare Zameen Par and the
independent entry Tingya failed to win the Oscar nominations
in the foreign language category.
Slumdog's nomination came out of a
voting of 5,810 members of the Academy who have seen
all the nominated films. Which means Slumdog was subjected
to close scrutiny and managed to impress the panel
of voting members.
For someone who was successful in
impressing the Golden Globe panel, Rahman's Oscar
winning will be a cake walk. As the envelopes unfold
on Sunday, February 22, 2009, at the Kodak Theatre
at Hollywood & Highland Center the world will
sit up and take notice of the Indian musician who
won the country its first Oscar, a dream every Indian
nurtures.
Whatever
is remaining of the world, that is oblivious to the
rising super power called India, will know that it's
more than just a land of US job-stealers offering
inexpensive BPO / IT services. But sadly, in that
case scenario, the world's first glimpse of India
would be its ugly slums (although picturized beautifully),
corrupt cops and atrociously unreasonable bureaucracy
hidden beneath its glossiness.
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