"Slumdog" child dreams of becoming a Bollywood star - Reuters India, 2/2/09
It seems to me that the parents of these two (newly minted) child stars are trying to milk a bit more from the Danny Boyle cow.. and are using the threat of bad publicity as leverage. I'm not sure what I think about this yet. Ismael's father is suffering from tuberculosis in a government hospital, and their family's shelter was razed a few months ago. Rubina's family seems to be doing much better overall.
Related slideshow
From these images, I can tell that Rubina's home has linoleum tiling and bright pink interior walls (in contrast to the usual dull and dark shades seen in slums), and it even appears to be built out of timber (in contrast to neighbors' walls, which are made of corrugated steel, cardboard, and woven fabric harvested from bags meant used to hold grain). The home seems to be in much better condition than the surrounding shelters.
I think it's sad that the education Boyle has provided for seems worthless to the families. In this glossy photograph, Vanity Fair portrays exactly what I think young Rubina dreams of becoming: a glamorous international star.
[you can tell she's an international star because she's holding a globe!]
... but for now, her Bollywood-style dreams of fame will have to give way to reality.
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