'Slumdog' is Critics' Choice, Wins 5 Awards

'Slumdog Millionaire', the rags-to-riches story of a Mumbai slumdweller, has bagged five prestigious prizes including Best Composer award for Indian music maestro A R Rahman at Broadcast Film Critics Association's 14th annual Critics Choice Awards. British Director Danny Boyle's Indian drama was a big hit at the award ceremony last night.

It won Best Film, Best Director for Danny Boyle, Best Writer for Simon Beaufoy, Best Young Actor for Dev Patel and Best Composer for A R Rahman, the Los Angeles Times reported. The Broadcast Film Critics Association's 14th annual Critics Choice Awards (BFCA), which took place at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium last night, is the largest film critics organization, with more than 200 members in the US and Canada.

Based on the novel 'Q and A' by Indian diplomat Vikas Swarup, the film narrates the moving story of Jamaal, a Mumbai slumdweller and how he goes on to win over USD 20 million in the TV reality show 'Who Wants to Be A Millionaire? to get his love back. And like its magical underdog winner story, the film which was made on a small budget, has turned out a big winner by virtually dominating the pre-Oscar award scene in US. It is already being hailed as one of the best hopefuls at the Oscars next month.

The film has already earned a nomination by Writers Guild of America and American Society of Cinematographers. It was also nominated in the Best Picture category by the Producers Guild of America.