Bollywood: 'This is not just an award - it's history'

Feb 26 2009 Harrow Observer

After winning three BAFTAs and five Golden Globe awards, Slumdog Millionaire swept the board at the Oscars on Saturday night, picking up eight more golden trophies. DEVANSH PATEL captures the glitz of the big night and reports on what the winners had to say about the world's most successful Bollywood film

THE night we've all been waiting for ended in flamboyant fashion. India wakes up today to celebrate the super success of the two Indians who've made us swollen with pride.

It's time to rejoice at the achievements of the entire Slumdog Millionaire team - especially AR Rahman who is the first Indian to win two Oscars and Resul Pookutty who won one too. Wow!

Your Harrow Observer columnist did the honours early on Monday morning over a cup of hot masala chai and with laptop battery running low - but all in good time when the handsome Hugh Jackman came up on the Swarovski crystal-highlighted stage, which was so close to the audience that all the nominees could actually have got their hands on the golden statuette.

The who's who of Tinsel Town graced the red carpet just like they did at the BAFTA's. Nothing special, apart from Angelina Jolie bending the rules and wearing black, and hey... here comes grinning Dev Patel and demure Freida Pinto, who appears to have shown up without her 'secret husband', which is a shame.

Notebooks out: Pinto confesses that her dress is by John Galliano. Anil Kapoor is in his trademark Armani black, A R Rahman and Resul Pookutty in their Indian black and all the small cute actors who played the young Jamal and Salim graced the red carpet draped in black.

Inside the Kodak Theatre, Slumdog Millionaire was the undisputed winner with eight Oscar trophies - and boy they gave their acceptance speeches with pure gusto, emotion and joy.

Resul Pookutty came up on the star-studded stage where he was bestowed with his first Oscar Award for Sound Mixing. He said: "This is unbelievable! We can't believe this. Ladies and gentlemen, I share the stage with two magicians, you know, who created the very ordinary sounds of Bombay, the cacophony of Bombay, into a soul-stirring, artful resonance called Slumdog Millionaire.

"I come from a country and a civilization that has given the universal word. That word is preceded by silence, followed by more silence. That word is 'Om'.

"So I dedicate this award to my country. Thank you, Academy, this is not just a sound award, this is history being handed over to me.

"My sincere and deepest gratitude to my teachers, Danny Boyle, Christian Colson, Paul Ritchie, Pravesh and everybody who has contributed to this film. Glenn Freemantle and all the sound mixers, I dedicate this to you guys.

"Thank you, Academy. Thank you very much."

The next one followed when AR Rahman came up on the stage but not before he performed his songs, O Saya and Jai Ho, receiving a standing ovation from the front benchers like Brad Pitt, Sean Penn, Mickey Rourke and Angelina Jolie.

When he walked up on to the stage to accept his first Oscar for the Best Original Score, he said: "Before coming, I was excited and terrified. The last time I felt like that was during my marriage. There's a dialogue from a Hindi film Mere paas ma hai, which means 'I have nothing but I have a mother'. So mother's here - her blessings are with me. I am grateful for her to have come all the way.

"And I want to thank the Academy for being so kind, all the jury members. I want to thank Sam Schwartz, I/D PR, all the crew of Slumdog, Mr Gulzar, Raqueeb Alam, Blaaze, my musicians in Chennai and Mumbai. And I want to say something in Tamil, which I normally say after every award which is 'God is great'. Thank you."