No More Slummin' it

Two child actors from the hit film Slumdog Millionaire, which won eight Oscars including best motion picture, really do live in slums, prompting controversial accusations over the past year that they were exploited by the filmmakers. Those accusations can now be put to rest.

This week, one child actor traded his shanty in the Mumbai slum Garib Nagar, which means “city of the poor,” for a modern apartment with electricity and indoor plumbing. The 11-year-old Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail (aka Azhar), who played the younger version of Salim, the brother of the lead character in the film, will now live with his mother and his brother in a $42,000, one-bedroom apartment near his school in the Santa Cruz west section of Mumbai, as part of the Jai Ho Trust. Set up by the filmmakers, the Trust will provide for housing, education and a living allowance for both Azhar and Rubina Ali, 9 (she played the younger version of the Latika character). If the children complete their education, when they turn 18, both of them will be given a legal title to their apartments.   

In April, Danny Boyle and Christian Colson, the director and producer of the movie, also donated $745,000 to Plan, an organization involved in children issues in India. The money will go toward a program to assist between 2,000 and 5,000 children in Mumbai slums with education, health care and improvements to sanitation and hygiene.