Slumdog Millionaire

I managed to sneak a re-read of this in, having wanted to do so for a couple of years, but I was unable to locate my copy somewhere in the back layer of my bookcases. A shelf overhaul located it for me late last year, so here I am.

I read this circa 2010, but his was before I was on GR. At the time I joined GR I gave it four stars. My re-read has gifted it another star. I like the movie, and have seen it a couple of times. I believe I had seen it before I read the novel originally.

I suppose I should start by saying this is a novel written for a western audience - I don't think it tries to portray a realistic India - this is pure light entertainment - yes it contains plenty of far-fetched occurrences. There are plenty of Indian readers who really don't like it, from what I see in other reviews!

This is a clever format for the book - I assume most are aware. W3B (Who Wants to Win a Billion) is a gameshow based on the British Who Wants to Be a Millionaire gameshow - but given the value of the rupee, a million doesn't cut here.

In the novel, our protagonist Ram Mohammed Thomas has been arrested having just answered all 15 questions correctly. Amidst his torture at the hands of the police a lawyer he has never met enters the fray and removes him from the hands of the police, then in the safety of her apartment asks him to explain how he answered the questions.

Therefore we get a short story - an excerpt from Ram's life if you like, followed by a W3B question. His colourful, but often sad and unfortunate life took him many places, and interacted with many people and stories. These somewhat random events provide him with the knowledge to answer this very specific series of questions.

The story of Ram's life is not told in a linear fashion - that would of course not be in an way plausible - the short episodes of his life are curated in the order of the W3B questions.

So that is the short version of the format. I found the writing engaging, the descriptions created great imagery and the sad events moving. I won't spoil it for others by sharing those events. Ram showed himself to be compassionate beyond the expectations of anyone in the situations he was in. He regularly acted with the welfare of others before his own, and he shared their suffering, if not always their successes.

If you have not read it before, my recommendation would be to find a copy and make up your own mind - great or a mash up of stereotypes?

5 stars