Rags to riches

On my last trip overseas, I picked up a book - Q and A - by Vikas Swarup. The premise was an interesting one - of a poor, uneducated, young man from the slums of Mumbai, named Ram Mohammad Thomas(a name that would fit right into any Manmohan Desai potboiler) who wins a quiz show modeled on "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire".

While the premise was interesting, I found the storytelling to be a little contrived and awkward. Since RMT is able to successfully answer 12 random questions because of his life's experiences it ensures that he has to go through 12 situations that help him know the answers to the questions, giving the writer enough material for a book. One of the reasons I felt it was contrived was because the questions asked are not only random ones (and the only ones, the character feels that he could know the answers to) but they are also asked in an order that chronologically matches the experiences the protagonist has. And the experiences are very varied and action-packed.

It was a quick read and, even then, I felt it would be a better movie than book. Well, what do you know?! The book has been made into a movie called Slumdog Millionaire with Anil Kapoor in an important role as the host of the quiz show. Slumdog Millionaire won the audience award, the biggest honor at the Toronto International Film Festival, in spite of the underwhelming movie name. It is being touted as one of the front runners for Oscar contention early next year.

The movie, directed by Britain's Danny Boyle ("Trainspotting," "28 Days Later") tells the story of a teenager from the slums of Mumbai who finds himself competing on the Indian version of "Who Wants to be a Millionaire." He becomes a national hero. As he is tortured to reveal how he "cheated," flashbacks show his education on the mean streets. It opens on Nov. 28, and is a strong contender for Oscar nominations.

P.S. This is also the movie that Roger Ebert was watching when he was involved in an incident that has received a lot of press lately!