Slumdog- must watch!

On good days, in Boyle-dom, it's not all about the money. That explains why Slumdog Millionaire isn't so much about a slumdog becoming a millionaire as much as it about coming of age, betrayal, redemption, loss, love, longing and such.

What's it about: On good days, in Boyle-dom, it's not all about the money. That explains why Slumdog Millionaire isn't so much about a slumdog becoming a millionaire as much as it about coming of age, betrayal, redemption, loss, love, longing and such.

Adapted from Vikas Swarup's Q&A , Boyle's Millionaire takes the writer's Ram Mohammad Thomas and transforms him into Jamal Malik (Ayush, Tanay C and Dev), orphaned by the Mumbai riots, separated first from his love, Latika (Rubiana A, Tanvi L and Freida), then his brother Salim (Azharuddin I, Ashutosh L G and Madhur M) and then, almost from his own destiny.

The young man serving tea at a BPO is streetsmart enough to survive and later on, get through to India's version of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire and go on winning big. Is he plain lucky, has he cheated (like Irrfan's cop character would like to believe; after all, truth IS stranger than fiction), or are greater forces at play?

What's hot: Top marks to Loveleen Tandan and Danny Boyle for the perfect casting. Dev and Ayush stand out in particular for their innocent yet impish portrayal of Jamal. Simon Beaufoy's screenplay is crisp, far removed from its 'inspiration' (and by that measure, quite original).

Boyle breathes downtrodden Mumbai quite unlike very many Indian directors who have been there, done that before him. For that reason alone, the city comes alive as the script spans the years. The score by A R Rahman is very global, hence the wide appeal.

What's not: The editing is a bit uneven and you wonder why some scenes remain in the final cut and why there is far too much action cut out in some bits. Minor grouses, mostly...

What's that! After answering the last question and dancing with Anil Kapoor's Prem Kumar, host of WWTBAM, Jamal is sitting at CST, sad and forlorn. How he gets there and why after winning big is the guy even left alone are questions begging to be answered. Hai koi sahi jawaab?