Slumdog Millionaire took home top prize at the Academy Awards in 2009, edging out fellow frontrunner The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. But practically all other films also suffered a beating at the hands of this Indian product, as it took home eight Oscars that night, including one for Best Original Score and one for Best Original Song. The song was “Jai Ho,” a powerful burst of Bollywood flair that helped the film’s soundtrack reach the top of the iTunes charts (Hermes 2009).
The man behind the genius of the song and the score is A.R. Rahman. He provided the film with a “kaleidoscope mix of classic Hindi pop, playful rap, techno bump and New Age balladry” (Hermes 2009). Couple that with a rising star like rapper M.I.A., and the film’s musical prowess blasted the competition out of the water in the music categories. This was no easy feat to be sure, as competitors included Beyonce, Bruce Springsteen, Alicia Keys, and Jack White (Hermes 2009).
M.I.A.’s single “Paper Planes” provided a sliver of recognition for an American audience in a film reeking of unfamiliarity. In a time of history, a setting of discomfort, and at times a language unknown, the music of Slumdog Millionaire brought in the cathartic punch that ties audiences of any culture. “Paper Planes” comes at one of the film’s most iconic scenes. Brothers Jamal and Malik riding atop a railcar by night, peddling various items to the passengers inside by day, “taking money” as the song describes the same activity. But when the jig is up, and the boys are expelled from the train, “Paper Planes” works transitionally to propel the boys from childhood to adulthood, as a roll down a hill while the song plays out finds them as teenagers at the bottom. The song is reprised later as the slumdogs develop other moneymaking gimmicks and scams at the Taj Mahal.
According to Barry Walters (2009), the soundtrack to the film “…juxtaposes the folk sounds of Mumbai’s slums with the techno of its city streets.” This juxtaposition is apparent in one of the film’s many chase scenes. Early in the movie as Hindi vigilantes chase out the Muslim people of Jamal’s village, a montage of action is set off by traditional sound, simple music, and chanting. The camera winds through the slums with this song, before morphing into another song by M.I.A. unannounced.
The balladry Hermes spoke of is present for the film’s love story between Jamal and Latika. As he remembers her or reconnects with her again on their very divergent paths, the same ethereal woman’s voice appears and reappears. Even a simple repeating string of notes provides such a relieving, poignant moment from the violence and despair that so otherwise permeates the film.
The music functions diegetically in a few cases as well. Specifically, the song “Darshan Do Ghanshyam” provides a chilling example of just how bleak the youngsters’ lives had been. They are forced to sing the song as beggars, earning money for a gangster named Maman. Those children chosen as the best singers are then blinded so they will be more pitiable and earn more profits.
As the film’s premise revolves around Jamal’s participation in the Indian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, the game show and it’s music plays a large role in the audience’s emotional response as well. Used repeatedly over montage, the game clock ticks as Jamal contemplates his responses and relives his life experiences that have led him to the answers. Reliving his memories for the sake of the game becomes tense and dramatic, just as his experiences had been when he first lived them.
The film closes with a further cultural example of the music of India, but in an entirely different fashion. As the end credits run the entire cast of the film is featured in a large-scale, highly choreographed dance number to the hit “Jai Ho.” Bollywood film is constantly making a name for itself in playful and elaborate dance numbers, with this one in particular being no exception, despite the production crew being from outside of India.
References:
Hermes, W. (2009). ‘Slumdog millionaire’ brings bollywood to the oscars. Rolling Stone, (1072), 16.
Walters, B. (2009). Slumdog millionaire: Music from the motion picture. Rolling Stone, (1071), 70.
A Decade of Academy Award Winning Films 