Posted by: jisha in Slumdog Millionaire, children on
Mar 19, 2009
Designers Ashima and Leena is going take children from the Oscar winning film to showcase their creations on the second day of Wills India Fashion Week.
While most designers turn to Bollywood leading ladies to walk the ramp for them during fashion week, Ashima and Leena Singh have decided to use Azharuddin and Rubina, who played the youngest Jamal and Latika in the Oscar winning film Slumdog Millionaire, for their show on the second day of the Wills India Fashion Week (WIFW). Both the designers are planning to keep the glory alive for Azhauddin and Rubina after they came back from the Oscars. The designers are also to launch “Ashima-Leena Jai Ho Foundation” with this show. The foundation will work with Khushii and hopes to help educate poor children.
See the news in Business Standard
Posted by: jisha in Slumdog Millionaire, children on
Mar 5, 2009
The low-budget movie "Slumdog Millionaire" has not only drawn big crowds in the West, but also the movie has won eight Oscars, including the Academy awards for the Best Picture and the Best Director. The Best Music and Best Song awards went to India's musician A.R. Rahman, known as the Mozart of Madras. Half the world in Mumbai, the Garib Nagar crowd was particularly excited because several children from the area, including Rubina Ali, 9, and Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail, 10, starred in "Slumdog Millionaire," playing the roles of "young Latika" and "young Salim" respectively.
After the well-deserved success of the well-made Slumdog movie, will the lives of poor children in Mumbai or in India improve? Can this extraordinary focus on child poverty translate in to positive actions to reduce poverty around the world? These are the most important questions on the minds of many after the euphoria in Los Angeles. The people in India have got different opinion towards the success of the movie. The ABC news has reported that people in the slum area are not at all happy and believes that nothing is going to make any change in their life. In fact the people in the slums are not happy with the use of 'Slumdog'. They conducted protests march in Mumbai against the movie.
Now Reality Tours have started targeting Mumbai Slums as a major place for Poverty Tourism in India. It is estimated that sales are up by about 25% since Slumdog Millionaire's release. Though the tourism industry was down after terrorist attacks in Mumbai, publicity surrounding the film has played a big role. The tours have come under criticism for exploiting poverty. But the organizers say that it is way to help poor in Mumbai. Now, the great success of movie is a fantastic opportunity for the director to set up a foundation for funding the poor children together with UNICEF.
The Oscar Awards winning movie Slumdog Millionaire, has created a wave among the Westerners, who have watched the movie. Many of the Charitable Trusts in India have started to experience its feedback from people in Europe, asking for details of children whom they can sponsor. Yahoo News have reported a news showing a surge in Child's sponsorship.
While the child actors in the movie have impacted psychologically after returning to the same old condition of their tarpaulin houses in Mumbai. Now the things has completely changed with them. The children refuse to return to their old condition before the movie bagging eight Oscar awards(see..Yahoo News). Even though, the state government have promised to shift these children's families to new apartments, it seems to take much longer time. Since the plight of children have changed, their families in turn have also started put them in demand. Rubina Ali, who stars the child Lathika in the movie is put on a bargain by her own mother who left her early and the step-mother, who is now looking after her (Yahoo News).
Now the slum people have awaken to the light that the 'Slumdog Millionaire' have created. But there are comments that the people are becoming too greedy. When all of a sudden the poor people come across riches, their mentality changes and they will start to look upon them with great unrest. The movie is said to create some impact upon the lives of slum people in India. Especially, the children who are deprived of basic things in life. The westerners as well as Indians might contribute or will be ready to take up sponsorship for at least one child. So, the hope is awaking?
The child actors of the "Slumdog Millionaire" are to be rehoused by the Maharashtra Government. Is it a mere political aim before the general elections? It happened, as there was an outcry that the child actors are still living in the slums even after the movie bagging Oscar Awards, the authorities have promised to give them a permanent roof over the head.
BBC News.
Even though the families of these two children will be shifted to new houses once it is ready, the rest of the slum population will still remain behind the scenes. Will the government do anything for their development? This new move has formed the decision because 'Slumdog Millionaire' won Oscars or was drawn attention because it was nominated for Oscars. Time to do something effectively for these people by government has long been passed. Either these people should be given permanent place of residence or their rights should be protected.
The data shows that 60% of the population of Mumbai live in slums, which cover only 6% of the city's land. Slum growth rate in Mumbai is greater than the general urban rate. Why does this happen? Is it the population growth, poverty, unemployment or all of these? The government should look into these slums not only as tools for winning elections, but also must consider to give them better livelihood.
Posted by: jisha in planning, homeless, children on
Jan 31, 2009
What are your basic needs as a child? Answer might be- food, safe water to drink, a house where you are secure enough to live, good clothes to wear and education to learn new things. Now, think for a moment about the children who are deprived of all these basic necessities of life. India has a population of 1 billion with about 35 million orphans, many of whom live on the streets, in railway stations and in filthy areas, taking each day as it comes. Some children have been orphaned or abandoned by their parents or relatives, others have chosen to run away from the harsher realities at home. Yet there are some others who have been born on the streets and knows no other life.
This is a world of 'Street Children' which most of us close our eyes to. These children do not know where they are going. They lead and live an incomplete life. Most of these children might have never experienced the parental care and may never know what care and concern is. Due to various circumstances they are left on the street and survives, if the world they live in shows any mercy on them. Every child has the right to grow up in a family environment- in an atmosphere of happiness, love and understanding. Millions of street children around the world are denied of this right.
What makes these children homeless? There are many reasons behind this, mainly poverty. The most trecherous disease HIV/ AIDS has a great part in contributing to the number of orphaned children in India. Violence at home or other internal conflicts that in turn creates a mental trauma to the child also add to this cause. Children who are born illegally are also deserted onto the street. All the above stated reasons are what makes them and stigmatize as “The Underprivileged”.
