Anil kapoor at the Oscars..somebody tell this guy off!

Anil Kapoor, after introducing himself and his companion Irrfan Khan to an enthusiastic American reporter at the Oscar awards ceremony, went on to say how thrilled he was because an "Indian film" had made it so big. What followed it was even more embarrasing. The man then beamed " Jai Maharashtra, Jai Mumbai" from the red carpet (after self-congratulatory saying that how till now, a billion people knew us - referring to himself and a rather shy Irrfan Khan - and how that number has gone up phenomenally after this success), thus completing our embarrasment. For starters, Kapoor and a lot of our fellow Indians, who seem to share his euphoria, need a reality check. Slumdog Millionairre, is not an "Indian Film". It, sure, is an Indian story. But that doesnt make it "our film". We have to remember that Danny Boyle, the acclaimed director of this film, is a British citizen. This film, probably, was just another project for him, a hugely successful one at that. There's nothing to suggest that his involvement with the subject goes "deeper" than that. It was simply an adaptation of a book by an Indian author which seemed cinematically promising. Add to it the already exploited potential of Mumbai as the setting, what with all its chaos, colours and the spirit of survival against all odds, which itself makes for a great rags-to-riches, happy-ending film formula. Haven't there been more "Indian" films than this one? There sure have been. Perhaps, what we should remember at this point, is that it took a Westerner's gaze to validate us as worthwhile. It took a foreigner to make "real" India visible on the world stage. Whether that gaze was only focussed on the poverty-ridden, filthy underbelly of India, is another issue altogether. But what remains is that this win is certainly not "ours". The victory is A R Rehman's ( and ofcourse Gulzar's and Resul too). Let's pat their backs, not ours. All three of them accepted the honour with utmost grace and humility. It is indeed a proud moment for us, to have internationally-acclaimed talents like them within our film industry. It would certainly benefit Bollywood in more than one way. But that's that. Let's not claim more than we should. Let's celebrate these achievers, not ourselves. Slumdog Millionairre is Danny Boyle's film. Certainly not ours. Let's get "real", for once.