Through the slums, lightly

To those Indians especially conscious of their country's image abroad, the recent feting of Danny Boyle's Slumdog Millionaire at the Golden Globes, followed by its ten Oscar nominations, must seem like a welcome reprieve from the highly embarrassing and damaging Satyam scandal. Many Indians are embracing Slumdog as their own, with Bollywood maestro A R Rahman bagging best original score at the Golden Globes, and its Indian cast gaining much praise. Yet along with the pride there is an undercurrent of unease, sometimes bordering on hysteria, at the film's depiction of the Bombay slums – eclipsing, according to some, the feel-good attraction of the movie. Yet, it is these slums themselves, with their kaleidoscopic layers, their dense humanity and tantalising danger, which hold a special attraction for viewers. Like the more notorious favelas of Brazil, India's slums have that titillating allure for tourists – of both the armchair variety (through novels such as Shantaram) and of the more conventional kind, with tour packages available for trips through the shantytowns.

Much like the auteur Wes Anderson in his recent film Darjeeling Limited, Boyle has discovered in India a palatable canvas for an already realised aesthetic. The big difference, though, is that Boyle has the decency to feature an Indian cast in the lead, while also generally avoiding casting India as the protean mould for the European imagination. The film does feature the wide-eyed awe of the outsider, but it is a vision that strives for the real deal. With cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle, who had worked on many previous Boyle projects behind the camera, Slumdog has a lush, vibrant feel that has become Mantle's signature. The handheld camerawork lends a throbbing energy that is matched by the film's slick editing. A novice to Bombay, Boyle insists on what some have seen as a foolhardy authenticity, shooting in the very slums in which his story is set.