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The entire script of Slumdog Millionaire

"SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE"
BY
Simon Beaufoy
DRAFT DATED 4 NOVEMBER 2007
© SLUMDOG FILMS LIMITED
39 LONG ACRE
LONDON WC2E 9LG
INT. JAVED’S SAFE-HOUSE. BATHROOM. NIGHT. 1 1
An expensive bathroom suite. Excess of marble and gold
taps. Into the bath, a hand is scattering rupee notes.
Hundreds and hundreds of notes, worth hundreds of
thousands of rupees. The sound of a fist thumping on
the bathroom door, furious shouting from the other
side.
JAVED O/S
Salim! Salim!
INT. STUDIO. BACKSTAGE. DAY. 2 2
Darkness. Then, glimpses of faces. In the half-light,
shadowy figures move with purpose. An implacable voice
announces.
TALKBACK V/O
Ten to white-out, nine, eight,
seven...
PREM
Are you ready?
Silence. A hand shakes a shoulder a little too roughly.
PREM (CONT’D)
I said are you ready?
JAMAL
Yes.
INT. JAVED’S SAFE-HOUSE. BATHROOM. NIGHT. 3 3
The thumping at the door continues. The sound of
mumbled Indian prayer. Dull gleam of a pistol. A hand
cracks the chamber open. Loads a single bullet into the
chamber, snaps the chamber shut.
TALKBACK V/O
...three, two, one, zero. Cue
Prem, cue applause...
Suddenly, the door splinters as it is smashed through.
A burst of gun-fire and white light as suddenly...
INT. STUDIO. NIGHT. 4 4
...we are back in the studio, the gun-fire morphing
into rapturous applause.
(CONTINUED)
TALKBACK V/O
Go, Prem.
A wall of light and noise as the two walk on stage.
Cheering, music, banks of searing studio lights. On
stage, Jamal, an eighteen year-old Indian boy-man
stares, petrified. He would surely turn and run but for
the iron grip on his shoulder of the smiling host, Prem
Kumar.
PREM
Welcome to Who Wants To Be A
Millionaire!
More applause.
PREM (CONT’D)
Please give a warm welcome to
our first contestant of the
night- a local from our very own
Mumbai!
Under cover of the wild applause, Prem ushers Jamal
towards the guest’s chair, leaning in and hissing.
PREM (CONT’D)
Smile, dammit.
The lights seem to bore into him but Jamal manages a
tentative smile. Out of nowhere, a hand slaps him
ferociously across the face. Then again and again.
Blood trickles from his mouth.
INT. POLICE INTERVIEW ROOM. NIGHT. 5 5
The studio lights have seamlessly transformed into the
harsh bulb of an interrogation light. Jamal is strung
from the ceiling by his arms.
CONSTABLE SRINIVAS
Your name, bhen chod.
Constable Srinivas’s hand pulls back Jamal’s head by
the hair, forcing him to stare directly into the
lights.
CONSTABLE SRINIVAS (CONT’D)
Your name!
JAMAL
Jamal Malik.
And seamlessly we are back....
2.
CONTINUED: 4 4
INT. STUDIO. NIGHT. 6 6
...on the set of Who Wants to be a Millionaire. Prem
leans back in his chair, a man at home in his
surroundings. Jamal sits opposite, frozen.
PREM
So, Jamal, tell us a bit about
yourself.
Close on Jamal’s face. Without warning, it is shoved
under water.
INT. BUCKET. NIGHT. 7 7
We look up from the bottom of the bucket at the
screaming face of a drowning man. His head shakes
desperately, pointlessly. Then Jamal’s face is dragged
up again, roaring for breath. Close on his eyes.
JAMAL V/O
I work in a call centre. In
Juhu.
INT. STUDIO. NIGHT. 8 8
PREM
A Phone-basher! And what type of
call centre would this be?
JAMAL
XL 5. Mobile phones.
PREM
Aha! So, you’re the man who
rings me up every single day of
my life with Special Offers,
huh?
JAMAL
No, actually, I’m an assistant.
PREM
An Assistant Phone-basher?
A raised eye-brow at the audience. Amusement ruffles
through them.
PREM (CONT’D)
And what does an Assistant Phonebasher
do, exactly?
JAMAL
I- I get tea for people and-
3.
(CONTINUED)
PREM
- a chi-wallah! Why didn’t you
say?
Laughter in the audience.
PREM (CONT’D)
So, ladies and gentlemen, Jamal
Malik from Mumbai, let’s play
Who Wants To Be A
Millionaire...!
OMITTED 9 9
INT. POLICE INTERVIEW ROOM. DAY. 10 10
Jamal’s body dangles motionless from the ceiling. His
head is bowed and he is moaning to himself. The ceiling
fan thumps round slowly. In the corner, Constable
Srinivas mops his brow and lights a cigarette. Hot
work. The door opens and the Inspector of Police walks
in. A rumpled man in his late forties who has seen
pretty much everything. He eyes Jamal, surprised.
INSPECTOR
Has he confessed, yet?
CONSTABLE SRINIVAS
Apart from his name, I can’t get
a word out of the runt.
INSPECTOR
You’ve been here all bloody
night, Srinivas. What have you
been doing?
Srinivas shrugs.
CONSTABLE SRINIVAS
Tough guy.
INSPECTOR
A little electricity will loosen
his tongue.
Constable Srinivas brings a box and a tangle of wires
out of a cupboard and proceeds to put crocodile clips
on Jamal’s fingers. The Inspector stares, deep in
thought. Sweat trickles down his face. He wipes it away
with a handkerchief, seems to be talking to himself.
INSPECTOR (CONT’D)
Every night I get home, “why
can’t we have a/c like Bajan
Chacha?
4.
CONTINUED: 8 8
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
Why don’t you care about your
poor family, dying in this
heat.” Twenty-four years a
policeman and I can’t afford
bloody a/c.
Turns on Jamal.
INSPECTOR (CONT’D)
But you. You’ve got ten million
rupees ek dum guaranteed, yaar?
And who knows how much further?
Fancy the twenty million, do
you?
Jamal just stares.
INSPECTOR (CONT’D)
I think you probably do.
The Inspector nods absently to Constable Srinivas who
turns a handle. Jamal’s body pulsates and jerks. He
screams. His body goes limp again. The Inspector goes
over to Jamal.
INSPECTOR (CONT’D)
So. Were you wired up? A mobile
or a pager, correct? Some little
hidden gadget? No? A coughing
accomplice in the audience?
Microchip under the skin, huh?
Constable Srinivas hadn’t thought of that. Grabs
Jamal’s arms and starts squeezing them all over until
the Inspector has had enough.
INSPECTOR (CONT’D)
Srinivas! Look, it’s hot, my
wife is giving me hell, I’ve got
a desk full of murderers,
rapists, extortionists, assorted
bum-bandits...and you. Why don’t
you save us both a lot of time?
Hmm?
Jamal doesn’t answer. The Inspector sighs and sits
down. Looks at his watch, nods at Constable Srinivas
again. Jamal’s body jerks with electric current. When
the shudders and screams have subsided, the Inspector
goes over to Jamal’s collapsed form. Clicks his fingers
in front of Jamal’s face to check for a response.
INSPECTOR OF POLICE
He’s unconscious, chutiya. What
good is that? How many times
have I told you-?
CONSTABLE SRINIVAS
Sorry, Sir.
5.
CONTINUED: 10 10
INSPECTOR (CONT’D)
(CONTINUED)
An excited Young Police Constable sticks his head
around the door.
YOUNG CONSTABLE
He’s coming! Sir.
INSPECTOR
Aré wa, Srinivas, we’ll have
Amnesty International in here
next, peeing their pants about
human rights. Get him down, tidy
him up, for God’s sake.
Constable Srinivas goes over to Jamal and starts to
undo the crocodile clips.
CONSTABLE SRINIVAS
Maybe he did know the answers.
INSPECTOR
Have you gone soft, Srinivas?
Professors, lawyers, doctors,
General Knowledge Wallahs never
get beyond sixteen thousand
rupees. And he’s on ten million?
What the hell can a slum dog
possibly know?
Jamal lifts his head.
JAMAL
The answers.
He lifts his head, spits blood out of his mouth and
says again, straight into the Inspector’s face.
JAMAL (CONT’D)
I know the answers.
Titles. Slum Dog Millionaire.
EXT. CRICKET GROUND. DAY. 11 11
Bright sunlight filtered through the ever-present
Mumbai dust. A group of children are playing cricket on
a tarmac cricket ground. They are bare-foot, dressed in
little more than rags, wiry-skinny and fast on their
feet. Salim, a nine-year old, polishes the ball on his
almost non-existent shorts, comes in with surprising
speed and bowls. The batsman hooks it high in the air.
The bowler screams at a boy in the outfield.
SALIM
Jamal! Catch it! Catch it!
The seven-year old Jamal stares up at the ball, jinks
around trying to get into position.
6.
CONTINUED: (2) 10 10
(CONTINUED)
He pays no heed to the rest of the children who are
scattering fast to the edges of the tarmac. The ball
seems suspended in the blue sky. Shouts from the other
children seem very far away. He doesn’t notice that
they are screaming for him to get out of the way. Jamal
adjusts his feet for the perfect catch. Then out of
nowhere, a light aircraft almost takes his head off as
it comes in to land on the tarmac runway. Jamal is
knocked to his feet by the down-draft of the plane. The
ball bounces away. Also flattened, Salim gets to his
feet.
SALIM (CONT’D)
How could you drop that? It was
a sitter.
Then Salim’s face turns to one of alarm.
EXT. AIRPORT PERIMETER. DAY. 12 12
At the back of a pack of children, carrying a piece of
wood crudely fashioned into a sword, Jamal is running
for his life, pursued by an ancient but surprisingly
nimble Security Guard from the airport who is screaming
abuse and wielding a long stick. The kids dash across a
rubbish dump and disappear down dozens of tiny lanes
that run in between the shacks of the slum.
SECURITY GUARD
Private-ka land! Private-ka
land! The planes won’t kill you,
mader chod, I will!
Jamal and Salim- also with a wooden sword- break off,
head down a separate lane. The Guard pursues them.
INT. JUHU SLUM. DAY. 13 13
The lanes in between the corrugated iron shacks are
three feet wide, with an open drain running down the
middle. Many of the precarious upper floors of the
shacks have been built right over the paths, turning
them into black tunnels. Tunnels shot through with
slivers of light. If you didn’t live here, you would be
lost and frightened in minutes.
But these children are natives and with the practice of
many years, Jamal and Salim zig-zag down the warren of
lanes.
They dodge past people cooking in the doorways,
sleeping, washing clothes or in the case of Vinod, a
naked four year-old, pissing into the drain. Salim
shouts a warning.
7.
CONTINUED: 11 11
(CONTINUED)
SALIM
Vinod! Musketeers coming
through!
Without breaking step, they both jump expertly over the
stream of piss. Not so the Security Guard who gets it
all over his trousers, but doesn’t stop the pursuit.
The two children charge past a shack filled to the roof
with chickens in cages who all start squawking. They
break out into the sunlight of the ‘main road’ of the
slum lined with shops. It is packed: with people,
stalls, bicycles and cows. All modern India is here,
drinking tea, shouting at each other, selling food,
playing carom, video games. Leaving a trail of shouting
and wreckage behind them, the pair approach a brand new
Mercedes almost blocking the lane. Beside it stands
Javed, an impressive man in a beautiful suit and his
two Minders. Jamal and Salim skid to a stop, put their
hands together in respectful greeting and edge ever so
carefully past the immaculate paintwork of the car.
Still in pursuit, the Security Guard also slides
carefully past the car with deprecating bows and
smiles. On past the chi stall where a crowd has
gathered to watch a hindi film blaring from the tv
rigged up overhead. The irate Security Guard gets
tangled up in a bicycle. Jamal and Salim stop to give
him a taunting, hip-gyrating parody of the dance on the
tv before scooting down another tunnel. They break out
into sunlight again.
WOMAN’S VOICE
Jamal!
Jamal skids to a halt, bumping into Salim who is
already frozen.
JAMAL
Shit. Mummy-ji.
JAMAL’S MOTHER
Don’t you move a muscle.
The Security Guard arrives and he too skids to a halt
at the sight of Jamal’s mother.
JAMAL’S MOTHER (CONT’D)
Thank you, Mister Gupta. I will
deal with these two.
The Guard puts his hands together in grudging respect
as Jamal’s Mother lifts each skinny kid off the floor
by their t-shirt and marches them down the road.
8.
CONTINUED: 13 13
INT. SCHOOL. DAY. 14 14
The two renegades are dumped by Jamal’s Mother into
their desks as Mister Nandha hands out ancient school
books.
MISTER NANDHA
So, the musketeers return. We
are honoured. Salim. Or Porthos,
isn’t it?
He crashes the heavy book down on his head. Salim opens
the book. Jamal glances over and turns the book the
right way round for Salim.
SALIM
I know!
Mister Nandha hovers over Jamal’s head. He winces in
anticipation.
MISTER NANDHA
And Athos.
The book comes down like thunder. Jamal blinks from the
impact and suddenly we are back....
INT. INSPECTOR’S OFFICE. DAY. 15 15
... in the Inspector’s office. Jamal watches Srinivas
fiddling with the video recorder, trying to get a
picture. Through the pebbled glass, Jamal sees shapes
moving along the corridor.
INT. CORRIDOR. POLICE STATION. DAY. 16 16
The Commissioner of Police is fawning along beside Prem
as they walk. The Young Constable hurries behind.
COMMISSIONER OF POLICE
It is so kind of you to visit
our station, Sir. A great
honour.
PREM
Not at all, not at all. I hope
you will visit us, Commissioner.
Out of his jacket pocket comes a couple of tickets.
PREM (CONT’D)
Bring the family. It’s a lot of
fun.
COMMISSIONER OF POLICE
Oh! A thousand thanks, Sir.
Missus Janda will be overcome.
9.
(CONTINUED)
He turns to the Young Constable.
COMMISSIONER OF POLICE
(CONT’D)
chi, you lazy chutiyé, chi!
The Inspector joins them in the corridor.
COMMISSIONER OF POLICE
(CONT’D)
Ah, Inspector! Cracked it?
The Inspector moves his head. Maybe yes, maybe no.
INSPECTOR
Nearly, Sir.
The Commissioner is just able to contain his apoplexy.
COMMISSIONER OF POLICE
Nearly? Nearly? When Prem Kumar
himself has-
Prem holds up a tolerant hand to the Commissioner who
falls silent. Turns his laser-like charm onto the
Inspector.
PREM
Inspector. How good to meet you.
Clearly the kid cheated.
INSPECTOR
Clearly, Sir.
PREM
So, it is just a question of
how, no?
INSPECTOR
Indeed, Sir. The proof. That is
all we need.
PREM
We are lucky to have a man of
your obvious experience on the
case. This kid might run rings
around us filmi types, but he
won’t make fools out of the
Mumbai Police Force, I can see
that.
Forced laughter from the Commissioner.
PREM (CONT’D)
In front of sixty million
people.
More laughter. And fear.
10.
CONTINUED: 16 16
(CONTINUED)
PREM (CONT’D)
Which is what will happen if we
don’t get a result, Gentlemen.
He goes back on the show to rob
us all with the whole of India
watching. But. I can rely on
you.
Prem walks away down the corridor. Stops and turns,
apparently casual.
PREM (CONT’D)
Has he- has he made any
allegations?
INSPECTOR
Allegations?
PREM
He’s a cunning one. A convincing
liar. Don’t be taken in,
Inspector, don’t be taken in.
Walks off. The Inspector stares after him. Goes back
into his office.
INT. INSPECTOR’S OFFICE. 17 17
Srinivas has finally got the recorder to work. We get
snatches of filmi dancing- heroines singing on
mountainsides surrounded by implausible numbers of
flags- cricket and finally after some shouting by the
Inspector, Who Wants to Be A Millionaire?.
INSPECTOR
So, Mister Malik, the man who
knows the answers. Talk.
We close in on the tv screen where Prem is smiling his
crocodile smile and find ourselves....
INT. STUDIO. NIGHT. 18 18
...as Prem asks the first question.
PREM
So, are you ready for your first
question for one thousand
rupees?
JAMAL
Yes.
PREM
Not bad money to sit in a chair
and answer a question. Better
than making the tea, no?
11.
CONTINUED: (2) 16 16
(CONTINUED)
JAMAL
No. Yes. No.
PREM
No. Yes. No. Apka final answer?
Laughter from the audience. Jamal looks confused. Prem
waves it away, switches on his serious face.
PREM (CONT’D)
Remember, you have three
lifelines if you’re not sure of
your answer- Ask the Audience,
50/50 and Phone a Friend. So,
the question:
The lights go down, the portentous music rolls.
PREM (CONT’D)
Who was the star of the 1973 hit
film Zanjeer. Was it AClose
on Jamal’s eyes.
INT. SHACK. NIGHT. 19 19
A tiny shack. A garland of dirty plastic flowers
surrounds a torn flyer for one of Amitabh Bacchan’s
films.
EXT. JUHU SLUM. RUBBISH DUMP. NIGHT. 20 20
Salim is sitting on a chair at the end of a rickety
wooden pier, though it is not water, but a sea of
rubbish and sewage that lies below them. There are
dozens of these piers protruding from the slum onto
airport land, each with a toilet shack perched right at
the end. Another man hurries up the pier and hands
Salim a coin.
SALIM
Immediately, sir.
Turns to the toilet door.
SALIM (CONT’D)
Bhai, get out of there. Prakash
wants a shit.
JAMAL O.S.
Not finished.
PRAKASH
Stop your time-pass. This is
urgent.
12.
CONTINUED: 18 18
(CONTINUED)
JAMAL O.S.
It’s a shy one. Since when was
there a time limit on a crap?
SALIM
Since there was a customer
waiting, that’s when.
He flashes another placatory smile at Prakash.
JAMAL O.S.
(singing/ grunting)
Come on out, you beauty, unveil
yourself, my darling-warling....
PRAKASH
Look, kid, I got a bad stomach.
It’s borderline....
A disturbing combination of heaving and snake-charmer
noises come from the toilet shack. Finally Prakash can
stand it no longer.
PRAKASH (CONT’D)
I’m off to Devi’s bog. Give me
that.
He snatches the coin back from Salim and hurries off.
Salim bangs on the toilet door.
SALIM
You just lost me good money, you
stupid idiot-
Salim stops. In the distance, there is the faint sound
of shouting, a crowd coming closer. Then the crowd
bursts through the outer shacks of the slum, pour onto
the rubbish dump and make for the airfield.
MAN
It’s Amitabh! That’s his
helicopter!
JAMAL O.S.
Amitabh? Amitabh Bacchan?
INT/EXT. TOILET. NIGHT. 21 21
Jamal peers through one of the many cracks in the
shack. He sees crowds surging around the pier, charging
towards a landing helicopter. Salim shoves the chair
under the door handle- effectively locking it- and runs
down the pier to join the chase. Jamal pulls up his
shorts.
JAMAL
No! Wait! Salim, sala! Salim!
13.
CONTINUED: 20 20
(CONTINUED)
Rattles the locked door. Pulls a torn flyer from his
pocket advertising an Amitabh movie.
JAMAL (CONT’D)
Wait! Amitabh....
He looks down the toilet hole at the sewage beneath
him, the landing helicopter, the disappearing crowd. A
final rattle of the door. There is only one way out. He
jumps down the hole, sprawling headlong into a year’s
worth of human waste, managing to keep the flyer out
the mire. He runs for the helicopter.
JAMAL (CONT’D)
Amitabh-ji! Amitabh-ji!
Salim is at the back of the crowd, trying to force a
way through, but the adults shove him back. Not so for
Jamal. The down-draft from the helicopter flicks bits
of sewage from his clothes. Disgusted fans curse him
and get out of his way. Suddenly, the red sea parts and
there is nobody between Jamal and Amitabh Bacchan
getting out of the helicopter.
JAMAL (CONT’D)
Please. Amitabh-ji.
Jamal holds out his flyer. Used to signing autographs,
the movie star barely looks at Jamal. He takes the
flyer and scribbles his autograph on it.
JAMAL (CONT’D)
A thousand thanks, Amitabh-ji.
He hands the flyer back to Jamal as his bodyguards
surround him and hustle him into a car. Jamal chases
the flyer across the tarmac, grabs it. Kisses it.
EXT. JUHU SLUM. NIGHT. 22 22
From high up, the rickety tin roof-tops of the slum
seem to stretch to the horizon. There is a distant
shout, a figure waving an arm.
MAN
It’s coming!
Then another shout and another, a chain of voices
coming closer. People come out of their doorways with
pails and buckets. The shouts come closer until we see
a naked figure entirely encased in bubbles dancing and
singing in the lane. Jamal is the happiest boy in the
slum.
JAMAL
(singing)
Amitabh, Amitabh, oh Amitabh!
14.
CONTINUED: 21 21
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
I have your autograph, oh, holy
Amitabh!
MOTHER
Here it comes!
Water comes bubbling through a hose and Jamal’s mother
hoses down her ecstatic son.
EXT. JUHU SLUM. NIGHT. 23 23
Not far away, Salim wanders to Mister Chi’s stall. He
glances around to make sure everybody is glued to the
hindi film on Mister Chi’s tv and surreptitiously slips
Mister Chi the signed flyer. Mister Chi takes a look
and gives Salim a small wad of rupees. He sticks the
money in his pocket, slinks away.
EXT. JUHU SLUM. NIGHT. 24 24
A tear-stained Jamal is furiously trying to batter
Salim, but Salim’s extra strength and height means that
he can keep Jamal at bay with one hand, Jamal’s
flailing fists punching thin air.
JAMAL
Sala! Sala!
Salim’s laughter only makes Jamal cry harder.
INT. INSPECTOR’S OFFICE. NIGHT. 25 25
Close on the tv screen in the Inspector’s office. Prem
ponders Jamal’s choice. Presses a button on his
computer.
PREM V/O
You chose A- Amitabh Bacchan.
Guess what? You just won one
thousand rupees!
Applause on screen. The Inspector looks at Jamal. Jamal
shrugs.
JAMAL
You don’t have to be a genius.
CONSTABLE SRINIVAS
I knew it was Amitabh.
JAMAL
Like I said.
Constable Srinivas twists Jamal’s arm behind his back,
evincing a squeal of pain from Jamal.
15.
CONTINUED: 22 22
JAMAL (CONT'D)
(CONTINUED)
JAMAL (CONT’D)
(squealing)
He’s the most famous man in
India...!
The Inspector stares at Jamal, turns back to the tv
where Prem is asking the next question.
PREM O/S
For four thousand rupees....the
national emblem of India is a
picture of three lions. What is
written underneath? Is it...
INT. STUDIO. NIGHT. 26 26
PREM
...A) The truth alone triumphs.
B) Lies alone triumph. C)
Fashion alone triumphs. D) Money
alone triumphs.
Prem shoots a mock puzzled look out to the audience
eliciting giggles from them.
PREM (CONT’D)
What do we think, Jamal? The
most famous phrase in our
country’s history. Maybe you
want to phone a friend?
Laughter from the audience. The studio lights bear down
on Jamal. a drop of sweat trickles down his forehead.
Prem is loving his discomfort.
PREM (CONT’D)
Or Ask the Audience? I have a
hunch they might just know the
answer. What do we think?
He gestures expansively at his audience. Oh, they love
him.
JAMAL
Yes.
PREM
(startled)
Yes?
JAMAL
Ask the audience.
Prem whistles. Raises his eyes at the audience.
PREM
Well, you’re the contestant,
Jamal.
16.
CONTINUED: 25 25
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
Put the poor man out of his
misery, Ladies and Gentlemen.
Press your key-pad now.
The lights dim. Portentous music.
INT. INSPECTOR’S OFFICE. DAY. 27 27
The Inspector presses pause. Sighs.
INSPECTOR
So, Jamal. My five-year-old
daughter knows the answer to
that, but you don’t. Strange for
a millionaire genius. What
happened? Your accomplice nip
out for a piss, did he? Or did
he just not cough loud enough?
Silence. Constable Srinivas kicks Jamal’s chair.
CONSTABLE SRINIVAS
The Inspector asked you a
question.
JAMAL
How much is bhelpuri at Jeevan’s
stall on Chowpatty Beach?
INSPECTOR
What?
JAMAL
One bhelpuri. How much?
CONSTABLE SRINIVAS
(can’t help
himself)
Ten rupees.
JAMAL
Wrong. Fifteen since Divali. Who
stole Constable Varma’s bicycle
outside Dadar Station last
Thursday?
INSPECTOR
(amused)
You know who that was?
JAMAL
Everyone in Juhu knows that.
Even five year-olds.
Despite himself, the Inspector laughs. Then leans in.
17.
CONTINUED: 26 26
PREM (CONT'D)
(CONTINUED)
INSPECTOR
I’ll give you five hundred
rupees if you just admit it. You
go home, I go home. Everybody
happy.
Jamal just stares back.
INSPECTOR (CONT’D)
No, you want to go back on the
programme and win twenty million
rupees, don’t you?
JAMAL
Wouldn’t you?
INT. STUDIO. NIGHT. 28 28
PREM
The audience has chosen. And,
whaddya know? Ninety-nine
percent of them think the answer
is A). The truth alone triumphs.
What do we think, Jamal? A
hundred percent would have made
me a little more reassured,
maybe....
Prem shrugs, makes a show of examining his computer.
Suddenly fixes him with his eyes.
PREM (CONT’D)
Are you married, Jamal?
JAMAL
No.
PREM
Well, don’t despair, there’s
someone out there who thinks our
national motto is “Fashion alone
triumphs”. You two could be very
well matched.
Audience laughter.
INT. GALLERY. NIGHT. 29 29
The Director is shaking his head.
DIRECTOR
What the bloody hell is he
playing at? He’s way off
script...
VISION MIXER
Split up with his girl-friend.
18.
CONTINUED: 27 27
(CONTINUED)
DIRECTOR
Which one?
VISION MIXER
All three, I heard. Nita as
well. Back with the wife. She’s
pregnant again.
DIRECTOR
Oh, God, that’s all we need....
VISION MIXER
Oh, for Sharukh Khan...Stand by
white out.
INT. STUDIO. NIGHT. 30 30
PREM
...won four thousand rupees!
Music, lights, applause.
PREM (CONT’D)
One more question before the
commercial break. What will our
Call Centre Assistant do next?
The lights dim. Prem presses his computer.
PREM (CONT’D)
Religion! Interesting. For
sixteen thousand rupees,
in depictions of the God Ram, he
is famously holding what in his
right hand? Is it A) a flower.
B) a scimitar. C) a child or D)
a bow and arrow?
EXT. DHOBI. JUHU SLUM. DAY. 31 31
Right next to the railway lines is a pond of dirty
water surrounded by shacks in which dozens of women are
washing clothes. Trains flash past only feet away from
them. Down the other end of the pond, nine-year old
Jamal and Salim are splashing noisily with some other
children. Jamal’s mother pauses in her scrubbing, wipes
sweat from her forehead and gazes up at the leaden sky.
JAMAL AND SALIM’S MOTHER
It’s going to come. Today. I can
feel it.
The woman next to her nods.
WOMAN
Hope so. My head is exploding.
19.
CONTINUED: 29 29
(CONTINUED)
MOTHER
Yes. We need rain.
Jamal is trying to intercept the ball that Salim and
Krishna are throwing to each other. He’s not having
much success. The ball flies overhead again from Salim
to Krishna. Jamal dives for it, misses and goes
underwater. When he comes up for air, he shakes his
head, clearing his ears of water. Then he stops,
listens. Shakes his head again. Definitely something
strange. Thunder? Salim and Krishna are trading
catches, unaware that anything has changed. But Jamal’s
mother has heard it too. The faintest sound of
shouting, roaring. The wave of noise is still faint but
getting louder. A frozen moment broken by:
MOTHER (CONT’D)
Run! Jamal, Salim, run!
Everybody stares at her. A train speeds through as she
continues to shout, her words lost beneath the
thundering train.
MOTHER (CONT’D)
Go! Run!
The train goes through, the last carriage flying past
suddenly opening up the sight of a wall of rioting men
wielding clubs, scythes, metal bars. They come
screaming across the railway tracks.
SALIM
Krishna, quick!
Salim holds out his hand to Krishna who is wading with
difficulty through the water.
KRISHNA
No way! You’re a bloody Muslim.
Get away from me!
The rioters leap the tracks and are upon them.
KRISHNA (CONT’D)
They’re Muslims! Him and him!
MOTHER
Go!
Salim and Jamal scramble out and retreat into the
lanes. Salim turns to see his Mother felled by a
rioter. She is surrounded by screaming, chanting men
who rain blows down on her. Jamal runs back and drags
Salim down an alley. As they head down the alley, they
get glimpses of burning houses, fleeing women, a threeyear
old boy in a doorway, painted entirely in garish
blue. He stares at them. In his hand, he is carrying a
bow and arrow. An eleven-year old girl dressed only in
a pair of pants runs after them.
20.
CONTINUED: 31 31
(CONTINUED)
She has two bleeding red gashes on her back. They turn
a corner and head towards some vans full of police.
Jamal sees Mister Nandha, the school teacher, stops.
JAMAL
Salim!
Then Mister Nandha starts walking towards him. An oasis
of calm in the chaos. Jamal looks at him with relief.
JAMAL (CONT’D)
Mister Nandha.
Mister Nandha smiles, walks towards them.
MISTER NANDHA
Ram nam satya hai, Babri Masjid
dhvasth hai.
JAMAL
Mister Nandha?
MISTER NANDHA
We have destroyed your mosque.
Now, the followers of Ram will
drive you dogs out of our city.
From behind his back he produces a knife and runs
towards Jamal, screaming.
MISTER NANDHA (CONT’D)
Ram has returned to his temple!
Ram has returned!
They flee, but Jamal turns, sees the girl, frozen. He
chases back a few steps, hauls her arm. The spell
broken, and they are off.
INT. STREET. EVENING. 32 32
They reach the safety of the police vans. But inside
the vans, the police are smoking, laughing, playing
cards. Down the street, a man comes whirling out of a
doorway, his hair on fire. He falls into the middle of
the street and is engulfed by rioters. Unperturbed, the
police continue to chat. Salim and Jamal look on,
horrified. Then one of the police men turns, looks at
them. Is interested. Motions to a colleague. Puts out
his cigarette with purpose.
JAMAL
Let’s go, bhai.
Salim and Jamal run. The girl follows.
21.
CONTINUED: (2) 31 31
EXT. MUMBAI. EVENING. 33 33
Salim and Jamal stand on a hill overlooking the city.
Black smoke billows from a large area that is clearly
the Juhu slum. Standing a little way off is the girl.
JAMAL
We should go back.
Silence.
JAMAL (CONT’D)
See if Ama-
Salim shakes his head fiercely, silencing Jamal for a
moment. But only a moment.
JAMAL (CONT’D)
What about Jeevan Chacha?
Salim shakes his head.
JAMAL (CONT’D)
Maybe he-
Salim shakes his head again.
SALIM
- I saw him. He was with them.
JAMAL
But he wouldn’t hurt-
SALIM
- he was with them!
JAMAL
But-
SALIM
- shut up, Jamal, can’t you?
Just shut up!
Salim turns away and sees the girl. Picks up a rock and
hurls it at her. She dodges, takes a couple of steps
back but makes no real attempt to get away. He finds
another rock and hurls this in her direction too.
SALIM (CONT’D)
Ja!
Then a flash of lightning and thunder rumbles across
the city. Rain begins to come down.
JAMAL
What shall we do?
22.
(CONTINUED)
No answer. Jamal sits down. Salim sits down. At a
distance, the girl sits down. Rain pours down their
faces.
INT. BUILDER’S YARD. NIGHT. 34 34
Rain as you’ve never seen. A pile of huge water pipes
in a sprawling builder’s yard. Jamal is in one pipe,
Salim above him in another. They are both soaked,
shivering, but have found some plastic sheet to wrap
themselves in. Outside, thirty feet away, stands the
girl. Staring. Salim hisses angrily at the girl.
SALIM
Go away. Ja, ja!
The girl might not even have heard.
SALIM (CONT’D)
She’ll have the Security Guard
onto us, standing there.
JAMAL
Not if we let her in.
SALIM
No.
JAMAL
She could be the third
musketeer.
SALIM
I am the head of this family,
now. And I say no. Piss off,
you.
Salim huddles down in the pipe. After a while, Jamal
follows suit.
SALIM (CONT’D)
We don’t even know what the
third musketeer’s called.
EXT. JUHU SLUM. DAY 35 35
A flash of Jamal’s mother being clubbed to the ground.
Her scream.
INT. BUILDER’S YARD. LATER. 36 36
Jamal wakes with a jolt and a scream half-swallowed in
his mouth. He shuts his eyes tight, trying to force the
image out. His breathing slows and he sees the girl
staring at him. Salim, too, is staring into nothing.
The rain is still falling.
23.
CONTINUED: 33 33
(CONTINUED)
The girl goes back to drawing shapes in the mud with
her finger. Jamal climbs out of the pipe. Looks at
Salim for permission or refusal, but he just continues
to stare. So, Jamal walks across to her. She looks up,
wary.
JAMAL
Where’s your Mother?
Silence.
JAMAL (CONT’D)
Father?
The girl shakes her head slightly. Jamal takes the
plastic sheet from around his shoulders. Gives it to
her.
JAMAL (CONT’D)
I’m Jamal. He’s Salim.
LATIKA
Latika.
Jamal goes back to his water pipe, climbs in. Watches
her huddled under the sheet. Sighs, motions for her to
join him. She darts across, jumps into the water pipe
and huddles up next to Jamal.
INT. INSPECTOR’S OFFICE. DAY. 37 37
Jamal looks at the Inspector.
JAMAL
I wake up every morning wishing
I didn’t know the answer to that
question? If it wasn’t for Ram
and Allah, I would still have a
Mother.
INT. STUDIO. NIGHT 38 38
JAMAL
D) A bow and arrow.
PREM
Final answer?
JAMAL
Final answer.
Prem stares at him for dramatic effect. Presses his
computer.
PREM
Computer-ji, D lock kiya-jaye.
24.
CONTINUED: 36 36
(CONTINUED)
The lights dim, the music swells.
PREM (CONT’D)
Jamal Malik, you answered D? Ram
is depicted with a bow and arrow
in his hand. And guess what?
You’ve just won sixteen thousand
rupees! Well done, my friend.
Time for a commercial breakdon’t
go away, now.
Music, applause. Prem switches off his professional
smile. Gets up.
PREM (CONT’D)
Got lucky, huh? I’d take the
money. You’ll never get the next
one.
JAMAL
You’re from the Juhu slum,
aren’t you?
PREM
Hmm? Sure. Know where I live
now, kid? Pali Hill. Twelve
bedrooms, a/c in every room, two
kitchens, a gym and a screening
room. Steel balls is what it
takes, my friend, steel balls.
The Floor Manager comes over and gives his head-phones
set to Prem. Prem listens.
DIRECTOR V/O
Prem? Tone it down, for goodness
sake. You’re making him a
laughing stock.
Prem glances up at the gallery with contempt.
PREM
We’re having fun here. They love
it...Where the hell do you get
them from?
He makes no attempt to hide the conversation from
Jamal.
DIRECTOR V/O
It’s supposed to be a quiz show,
not a blood sport.
FLOOR MANAGER
Two minutes.
25.
CONTINUED: 38 38
(CONTINUED)
PREM
Stop wetting your pants. I’ll be
a good little boy with the next
one. Promise.
He chucks the head-phones back at the Floor Manager.
Glances in the wings. Sees Nita, the make-up woman.
Gets up and goes over.
INT. STUDIO. BACKSTAGE. NIGHT. 39 39
In the half-light, backstage, Nita dabs his face with
powder.
PREM
Meet me after the show. Please.
NITA
No.
PREM
Nita, I can explain.
NITA
No need. I read it in bloody
Stardust. Didn’t even have the
balls to tell me. “Prem’s
happiness with another baby on
the way”. After everything you
said...
PREM
Baby, it all happened before I
met you. I swear to you.
NITA
She’s got the gestation period
of an elephant, then.
Prem is about to object. But instead, he laughs.
PREM
You see? Amidst all this misery,
only you can make me laugh.
Scornful but hints of melting.
NITA
All this misery...
PREM
Her and I- nothing. You have to
believe me, baby...
Nita turns away. The Floor Manager comes over.
FLOOR MANAGER
One minute.
26.
CONTINUED: (2) 38 38
(CONTINUED)
Prem slings himself in a chair.
PREM
No. I’m not going on.
NITA
Prem...
PREM
I can’t. Without you, it’s all
pointless.
Clicks his fingers at the Floor Manager.
PREM (CONT’D)
You. Tell the Director.
Nita shakes her head at the Floor Manager who by now is
looking very worried.
FLOOR MANAGER
Thirty seconds.
Prem shrugs and folds his arms. Sees her weaken.
NITA
Prem...
PREM
Calypso Bar, private room, just
you and me?
FLOOR MANAGER
Fifteen.
NITA
(furious)
Alright.
He grins, jumps up, blows her a kiss, and stalks back
on stage.
INT. STUDIO. NIGHT. 40 40
He sits back down, says almost to himself.
PREM
Steel balls.
Turns to Jamal.
PREM (CONT’D)
Okay, Juhu boy, you’ve had a
good run. Take your Mother to
Khandala and eat some chiki.
JAMAL
My Mother’s dead.
27.
CONTINUED: 39 39
(CONTINUED)
PREM
Well, your girlfriend then. Even
better.
JAMAL
I don’t have a girl-friend.
PREM
Live wire like you? You surprise
me.
FLOOR MANAGER
Five, four...
The warm-up man starts the applause.
TALKBACK V/O
....three, two, one...
Cheering and music. Prem switches on his charm.
PREM
Welcome back to Who Wants to be
a Millionaire! Our contestant,
Jamal Malik, Call Centre
Assistant- from Mumbai, is on
sixteen thousand rupees and has
already used one lifeline: Ask
the Audience. So, my friend: are
you ready for the next question?
JAMAL
Yes.
PREM
Then, let’s play.
Portentous music. The lights dim.
PREM (CONT’D)
For sixty-four thousand rupees.
The British architect Frederick
Stevens designed which famous
building in India? Is it: A) The
Taj Mahal. B) Chhatrapati
Shivaji Terminus. C) India Gate.
D) Howrah Bridge. What do you
think, Jamal? Are you one of
those tea-boys with a penchant
for architecture?
INT. CHHATRAPATI SHIVAJI TERMINUS. DAY. 41 41
Known to everyone as VT station, this monument to
Victorian railway architecture is a dangerous place to
be at rush hour.
28.
CONTINUED: 40 40
(CONTINUED)
Even before the train has stopped, men are jumping from
the open doors, or vaulting out of the windows or from
the roof of the train to join the tens of thousands of
Mumbaites streaming to and from work. A seventeen-year
old Jamal squeezes himself out of a train and shoves
through the crowds. He checks the time. The digital
numerals flick to five O’clock. Looks around the tide
of humanity.
INT. STUDIO. NIGHT. 42 42
PREM
So, what’s it to be? Walk away
and this cheque for sixteen
thousand rupees is yours. Look,
it’s even got your name on it.
He produces a cheque and waves it at Jamal.
JAMAL
I don’t have a bank account.
Laughter from the audience. Prem is momentarily wrongfooted.
JAMAL (CONT’D)
But I’ll take cash.
More laughter, this time with Jamal, rather than at
him. Prem gets up and starts rummaging theatrically
through his jacket pockets and trousers.
PREM
Nope. Looks like the Producer’s
stolen my wallet again-
JAMAL
- I’ll play.
Nobody was expecting this. Least of all Prem who has to
rearrange his features into one of surprised delight.
He sits down.
PREM
You’ll play?
JAMAL
Why not?
PREM
Well, well, well. We’ve got a
wild one, here.
Prem tears up the cheque with theatrical slowness.
29.
CONTINUED: 41 41
(CONTINUED)
PREM (CONT’D)
For sixty-four thousand rupees,
Ladies and Gentlemen, the
question once again....
INT. CHHATRAPATI SHIVAJI TERMINUS. DAY. 43 43
The digital clocks show five fifteen. Shoving the
descending river of people out of his way, the eighteen
year-old Jamal is forging a path up steps that cross
the platforms. He pushes to the middle of the
footbridge and leans out on the side railings. He scans
the sea of people, desperately. Then he sees her: the
eighteen year-old Latika, heart-stoppingly beautiful,
over the other side of the station. A world away. She
is scanning the crowd, as wired as he is.
JAMAL
Latika! Latika!
But though he is screaming her name, his voice is
swallowed by the noise around him. Then he sees two
thuggish-looking men also fighting a way towards her.
JAMAL (CONT’D)
Latika!
Frightened now, he fights his way down the steps, one
figure against an army of white-robed people.
JAMAL (CONT’D)
Latika!
JAMAL V/O
Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus.
PREM V/O
Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus.
Sure?
JAMAL V/O
I think so.
PREM V/O
You think so. A brave man,
Ladies and Gentlemen, a brave
man.
INT. CHHATRAPATI SHIVAJI TERMINUS. DAY. 44 44
The commuters have mostly gone. Jamal is pacing the
platform desperately. He stops, stares blankly at the
statue in front of him- a proud, rather pompous figure
in a Victorian frock coat. The plaque reads: Frederick
Stevens.
30.
CONTINUED: 42 42
INT. INSPECTOR’S OFFICE. NIGHT. 45 45
The Inspector, Srinivas and Jamal are staring at the
video recorder.
JAMAL
Yes. Final answer. Chhatrapati
Shivaji Terminus.
PREM
Is the right answer! Sixty-four
thousand rupees to you, Sir!
Applause and music. The Inspector presses pause. Stares
at Jamal.
INSPECTOR
And did she come back?
Jamal smiles sadly.
JAMAL
I wouldn’t be here if she had.
INSPECTOR
Pretty was she?
Jamal stares down at his feet.
INSPECTOR (CONT’D)
Guess not.
Right in the eyes.
JAMAL
The most beautiful woman in the
world.
Constable Srinivas snorts. Suddenly, Jamal is out of
his chair and at Srinivas’ throat. The combined force
of the Inspector and Srinivas force him roughly back
down. He is again handcuffed to the chair.
INSPECTOR OF POLICE
Well, well. The slum dog barks.
Money or women. The reason for
most mistakes in life. Looks
like you got mixed up with both.
Srinivas, you need the exercise:
a trip to VT Station to check on
the statue. And lock your bloody
bike up.
Constable Srinivas swears under his breath but bumbles
out.
31.
(CONTINUED)
INSPECTOR
That’s the chutiyé out the way.
Now, man to man. How did you
know all the answers?
JAMAL
If I knew, I’d tell you.
OMITTED 46 46
OMITTED 47 47
INT. STUDIO. NIGHT. 48 48
PREM
Now we’re into the serious
money. For two hundred and fifty
thousand rupees, ladies and
gentlemen, a quarter of a
million rupees...the song Chalo
Ri Murali was written by which
famous Indian poet. Was it A)
Surdas. B) Tulsidas. C) Mira
Bai. D) Kabir. Remember you
still have two lifelines- fiftyfifty
and Phone A Friend.
Tempted to use one?
JAMAL
No.
PREM
No?
JAMAL
I know this one.
PREM
Oh. I see. An expert on the
poets, huh?
The lights dim, the music swells and Prem presses his
computer.
EXT. MUMBAI STREET. NIGHT. 49 49
Jamal is studying a piece of paper and reading out
numbers from it. There is something not quite right
about Jamal- perhaps the fact that there are two feet
by his ears. Salim is standing on his shoulders and
spraying the numbers on a wall with an aerosol and a
certain lack of confidence.
32.
CONTINUED: 45 45
(CONTINUED)
JAMAL
Four, nine, zero, nine- the one
with the stick going down, Salimsix-
stick going up-
Latika’s head appears from around the corner.
LATIKA
(whispered)
Oi!
But they don’t hear. Then she is running for her life
past the pair of them.
JAMAL
Six, one, shit, let’s go-
Salim collapses off Jamal’s shoulders and all three run
off down an alley past a dozen of the gang’s sprayed-on
adverts all reading: “Beanbags- 989 4909661”. A fat
Security Guard with a long stick huffs round the
corner. Chases them up an alley. Nowhere to go except
through an imposing gate that clearly leads to a
private house.
SECURITY GUARD
Got you now, little shits.
EXT. GARDEN. NIGHT. 50 50
They charge across the lawn, down one side of the house
where all the washing is hanging. The Guard gets caught
up in drying sheets, towels. He fights his way through
to see Salim, Latika and Jamal leaping over the wall to
safety. But Jamal turns, jumps back and grabs a girl’s
dress from the line.
SECURITY GUARD
Aha! Little thief!
The Security Guard lands a couple of blows on Jamal’s
back as he dodges around him and back across the lawn,
dress in hand. The Security Guard gives up.
SECURITY GUARD (CONT’D)
Pervert!
INT. ALLEY. NIGHT. 51 51
Jamal is examing the bruises on his legs.
SALIM
Useless bloody look-out. What
good is she, huh?
33.
CONTINUED: 49 49
(CONTINUED)
LATIKA
(infuriated)
I tried to warn you.
JAMAL
It’s okay, Salim.
Latika slips on the dress. Spins. Both of them look up.
Stare. She pulls her hair back, smiles, is transformed
into a beautiful girl.
EXT. GORAI BEACH DUMPING GROUND. DAY. 52 52
Blazing sun. Diggers and trucks are shifting mounds of
rubble on a rubbish dump that seems to stretch for
ever. Oblivious to the dust kicked up by the trucks,
Latika is picking up old plastic bags, examining each
one and putting the less worn in a big sack. The dress
is recognisable but dusty and torn. She stoops to dig
another bag out of the dirt, but stops and stares.
Shimmering in the heat, a rickety pick-up truck comes
through the rubbish dump gates. Toots at the Guard who
waves, pulls up in the dump. “Hope Orphanage is written
on the side of the van. A man gets out. Looks around.
INT. ‘TENT’. DAY. 53 53
Under sheets of plastic propped up on sticks, Jamal and
Salim are sleeping out the hottest part of the day.
Jamal wakes to see a figure standing over him- a
silhouette with a halo of sun behind him. Out of his
bag, the man produces a bottle of Thumbs Up. He uncaps
it with an alluring hiss. It is almost an advert for
thirst-quenching affluence. Almost instinctively, Salim
and Jamal stir.
MAN
Hello.
He hands the bottle to Salim, gets another from his bag
and waves it questioningly at Jamal.
MAN (CONT’D)
Hot, huh? My name is Maman.
EXT. ORPHANAGE. EVENING. 54 54
The hills on the edge of Bombay. Greenery and space,
for the first time in the film. The pick-up truck pulls
up outside a building with Jamal, Salim and Latika
sitting on a bench in the back. Maman gets out. Drops
the gate on the back of the pick-up.
MAMAN
Anyone hungry? Come on in.
34.
CONTINUED: 51 51
INT. ORPHANAGE COURTYARD. EVENING. 55 55
Twenty children are eating at long benches in a
ramshackle courtyard. Maman, ushers Jamal, Salim and
Latika in and sits them down at one of the benches. He
waves a hand and a giant man, Punnoose, comes over with
a big bowl of food. The three tear into it. Cleaning
every last morsel of rice from his plate, Jamal looks
up and notices a table peopled entirely with blind or
crippled children. Some of the legless are eating on
the floor next to the table. Jamal leans over to Salim.
JAMAL
He must be a very good man to
look after these people.
SALIM
(glancing at them)
A saint.
Arvind, a boy smaller than either Jamal or Salim
overhears.
ARVIND
We’re not allowed to talk to
them.
LATIKA
Why not?
Arvind shrugs. Latika licks her plate, glances at Maman
who is looking right at them.
LATIKA (CONT’D)
Well, if there are seconds,
Maman is definitely a Saint.
As if telepathic, Maman signals to Punnoose and he
brings a large bowl of rice and dhal over to them.
Latika looks at Jamal and Salim. They burst out
laughing.
LATIKA (CONT’D)
I tell you, Lord Siva is with
us.
INT. ORPHANAGE. EVENING. 56 56
Salim, Latika, Jamal and a group of children are
standing in a line singing a doha- ancient lyrics set
to music. Maman is leading the singing, walking up and
down the line listening to each one individually. He
stops at one small boy, Arvind, and listens. Nods his
head, pleased, and continues down the line until he
stops in front of Jamal. Holds up his hand.
MAMAN
Stop! You. Again.
35.
(CONTINUED)
Jamal starts singing again. He has the sweetest of
voices. Untrained but pure. Maman smiles, ruffles
Jamal’s hair, impressed.
MAMAN (CONT’D)
Everyone.
They all join in. Maman continues down the line. He
stops at Salim whose octave-slipping singing is lusty
and appallingly out of tune. Maman winces and moves on.
Standing next to Salim, Latika giggles. Immediately,
Salim is on her. Before a fight breaks out, Punnoose
pulls Salim off Latika and hurls him across the room.
Salim gets up and charges at Punnoose. For a second,
Punnoose is back-footed, but then pins Salim’s arms to
his side. Maman laughs. Approaches Salim.
MAMAN (CONT’D)
You sing like one, and you fight
like one. I think you’ve found
your dog, Punnoose.
EXT. CENTRAL MUMBAI TRAFFIC. DAY. 57 57
A group of children are sitting in the jumble of
concrete under a motorway flyover. Cars surround them,
bumper to bumper. Latika and Jamal are playing an
improvised hopscotch on concrete slabs. They are
giggling, bumping into each other, tickling, laughing.
Salim and Punnoose are sitting together, smoking. Salim
is staring hard at Jamal and Latika until Punnoose
grunts, a sign for Salim to clap his hands.
SALIM
Okay, let’s go, let’s go! It’s
not a bloody holiday!
The children get to their feet. Latika sighs, puts a
patch over her eye and grabs a pair of crutches.
Suddenly, the lame beggar. Salim goes over to one of
the girls, who is carrying a sleeping baby. Puts out
his hand.
SALIM (CONT’D)
Give me that.
The girl shakes her head. Salim grabs her by the hair
in one hand and takes the baby with the other. He
shoves her to the ground. The other children stare.
JAMAL
Hey, Salim!
He challenges Jamal.
SALIM
What, choté bhai? You got a
problem?
36.
CONTINUED: 56 56
(CONTINUED)
He laughs and walks over to Latika.
SALIM (CONT’D)
Here. For you.
LATIKA
I don’t want it.
SALIM
You’ll earn double. I’m doing
you a favour, Latika.
JAMAL
She doesn’t want it.
SALIM
Chup, Jamal.
Latika turns away and begins to walk towards the cars.
SALIM (CONT’D)
I’ll drop it.
He holds the baby up. Latika grabs the baby with a cry
just as Salim releases it from his hands. Salim pinches
the baby.
SALIM (CONT’D)
Triple if it’s crying.
Latika snatches it away. Salim laughs, goes back to
sitting with Punnoose. The children scatter to the cars
trapped at the lights, tapping plaintively on the
windows and making the universal begging gesture.
INT. ORPHANAGE. KITCHEN. NIGHT. 58 58
Surrounded by beer bottles, Punnoose is slumped asleep
by the kitchen door. Latika edges past, avoids the cook
sleeping under the table and goes to a shelf laden with
vegetables. She pulls down a bunch of chillies still on
the vine, strips a few off and tip-toes out with them.
INT. ORPHANAGE. DORMITORY. NIGHT. 59 59
Sleeping children, three or four to a mattress on the
floor. Latika tip-toes around the mattresses. She
pauses over one in particular where we see Salim,
asleep. She carefully pulls up the sheet, delves
underneath. Pleasant dreams cross Salim’s sleeping face
for a second. Then suddenly, he is bolt upright and
screaming. He charges around the room clutching his
genitals in agony.
SALIM
Madher chod...!
37.
CONTINUED: 57 57
(CONTINUED)
He sprints out of the room, wailing.
INT. ORPHANAGE. SHOWERS. NIGHT. 60 60
The lights are on and two dozen children are screaming
with laughter as Salim stands under the make-shift
shower directing the water down his pants to his
burning genitals, his face a picture of agony. Latika
wipes crushed chillies from her hands.
SALIM
You’re dead, sala.
She smiles and walks past Jamal with a shrug. Then
Punnoose comes stalking in and the children scatter
away.
PUNNOOSE
Get back to bed, dogs! What the
hell...
JAMAL V/O
They taught me every song in the
history of Indian music.
INSPECTOR V/O
And why would they do that, I
wonder?
INT. SHACK. NIGHT. 61 61
In a shack, Arvind is singing one of Surdas’ bhajans in
front of Maman and an old man who by his ragged
appearance must be a villager. Punnoose and Salim sit
behind Arvind.
MAMAN
Very good, very good. I am
pleased, Arvind. He is ready.
ARVIND
Ready?
Maman nods to Punnoose. Before Arvind can turn round,
Punnoose has covered his mouth with a cloth and after
the briefest of struggles, Arvind’s body goes limp. The
villager puts an old tin box on the table. Taking the
lid from the tin, he brings out a cloth and unwraps it.
Inside is a spoon. He checks the edge with his thumb.
Sharp. Douses it with a clear liquid from a bottle and
passes it over a candle flame. The spoon whooshes with
a high flame for a moment. The villager wipes it with
the cloth nods to Punnoose.
PUNNOOSE
Salim!
38.
CONTINUED: 59 59
(CONTINUED)
Utterly bemused, Salim nevertheless helps Punnoose lay
Arvind on the table. The villager takes hold of
Arvind’s eyelid and pulls it open. He brings the spoon
close. Suddenly, Salim is being sick in the corner of
the shack. By the time he has turned back, the villager
is wiping the spoon on a blood-soaked rag.
MAMAN
Okay. Take him out the back.
Punnoose picks up Arvind and carries him out.
MAMAN (CONT’D)
Now the other one. Salim, go get
Jamal.
A frozen moment.
SALIM
What?
MAMAN
Gunfighter Number One, isn’t
that right, Salim? The money,
the women, the cars...you want
them bad, huh? And why not?
Maman gets out of his chair. Approaches Salim.
MAMAN (CONT’D)
The time has come to choose,
yaar. The life of a slum dog or
the life of a man. A real man. A
gunfighter, Salim.
Maman holds Salim’s head in his hands.
MAMAN (CONT’D)
Your destiny is in your hands,
bhai. You can be me. Or nobody.
Understand?
SALIM
Yes, Maman.
Maman nods.
MAMAN
So, brother, go get Jamal.
Salim is frozen for another few seconds, then turns and
walks out of the door. Punnoose appears at the door.
Maman nods to him and he slips off after Salim.
INT. DORMITORY, ORPHANAGE. NIGHT. 62 62
All the children are asleep apart from Jamal who is
crouched underneath a couple of wash-basins.
39.
CONTINUED: 61 61
(CONTINUED)
He is talking through a plate-sized hole in the
crumbling masonry. Latika’s eyes can be seen.
JAMAL
...weddings, government things,
big parties. If Maman says my
voice is ready. Big money.
LATIKA
Enough for a room?
JAMAL
Easily. Maybe an apartment.
LATIKA
Really?
JAMAL
That’s what Arvind said. On
Harbour Road. You, me and Salim.
The three musketeers.
LATIKA
Harbour Road! We can have ice
cream from Babanji’s.
JAMAL
Every day if we want.
Salim appears at the door. Nods his head at Jamal.
JAMAL (CONT’D)
It’s my turn.
LATIKA
Good luck, Jamal.
Latika’s hand comes through the gap. Jamal takes it for
a moment. Salim hisses at Jamal. He lets go of the hand
and heads out.
EXT. PATH. NIGHT. 63 63
Salim and Jamal walk along the path, Jamal humming
happily. Salim checks behind him, sees Punnoose
following.
JAMAL
So, this is it, hey, bhai? The
good life, here we come....
SALIM
(conversationally)
Athos.
Jamal is suddenly alert. Slows
40.
CONTINUED: 62 62
(CONTINUED)
JAMAL
Porthos?
Salim nods. Big smile. Puts a hand on Jamal’s shoulder.
SALIM
When I say.
INT. SHACK. NIGHT. 64 64
Salim guides Jamal into the shack where Maman and the
Villager are waiting. Maman smiles. Punnoose slips in
behind Salim.
MAMAN
Jamal, hello. You have done
well. It’s time for you to- turn
professional.
JAMAL
Really?
MAMAN
Sing me a song, yaar. How about
Chalo Ri Murali, huh? My
favourite.
Jamal opens his mouth, then closes it again. Holds out
his hand.
JAMAL
Fifty rupees.
MAMAN
What?
JAMAL
(shrugs)
I’ve turned professional. What
can I do?
Maman laughs.
MAMAN
Sala...!
He throws some notes at him.
EXT. SHACK. NIGHT. 65 65
Outside, a giggle. Latika is peering through a gap in
the wall.
41.
CONTINUED: 63 63
INT. SHACK. NIGHT. 66 66
Jamal begins to sing. Maman waits a while, then nods to
Punnoose. Behind Jamal, Punnoose hands Salim the bottle
of chloroform and the rag. Salim approaches the back of
Jamal. Salim waits until he has finished the song.
Raises his hand with the rag in it. Maman smiles, nods.
Salim flings the contents of the bottle in Punnoose’s
face. Punnoose screams and stumbles back clutching his
eyes, knocking over the table.
SALIM
Go!
Salim and Jamal scramble for the door. The knocked-over
candle catches the spilled chloroform and a curtain
which whooshes up in flame.
LATIKA
Jamal!
JAMAL
Run!
EXT. SHACK. NIGHT. 66A 66A
They charge past the prone Arvind- a flash of bloodied
bandages covering his eyes.
EXT. HILLSIDE. NIGHT. 67 67
Heavy, desperate breathing. Feet stumble on roots. Fall
into holes. The three children are running. Branches
smack into their faces. But they are so scared, nothing
will stop them. Behind them, torches scour the
undergrowth. Men shouting. They break out of the woods
and are confronted with a train goods yard.
EXT. GOODS YARD. NIGHT. 68 68
They run over the tracks, between the trains, but the
shouts are getting louder, the torches closer. A diesel
engine is moving out of the station. Jamal, Latika and
Salim sprint for the Guard’s Van at the very back of
the moving train. Punnoose is closest to them. Salim is
fastest and first to jump the train. He holds out his
hand. Jamal grabs it and is hauled in. Jamal holds his
hand out to Latika.
JAMAL
Come on! Faster!
She reaches out to him. Their hands almost touch.
42.
(CONTINUED)
JAMAL (CONT’D)
Take it! Take it! I can’t
reach...
Salim barges Jamal out of the way. Jamal stumbles back
as Salim reaches his hand out to Latika, so he doesn’t
see Latika’s hand grasp Salim’s, nor see their eyes
lock onto each other, nor see Salim very deliberately
let go of her hand. Latika stumbles.
LATIKA
Jamal!
Jamal scrambles to the rail. The train gains more
speed. Jamal climbs on to the top rung, makes to jump,
but Salim flings him backward. Jamal tries to scramble
to his feet again, but Salim restrains him.
JAMAL
Got to go back. We’ve got to go
back.
SALIM
He’ll kill us if we go back.
Jamal! He was going to take your
eyes out- with a bloody spoon!
The train is speeding along. Jamal breaks free and
stares back at Latika.
SALIM (CONT’D)
She’ll be alright. She always
is.
Latika stumbles again and stops running. They watch as
Punnoose catches up with her and stops running. He
smashes Latika to the ground.
INT. STUDIO. NIGHT. 69 69
PREM
The question was, for two
hundred and fifty thousand
rupees: who wrote the famous
song Chalo Ri Murali. I should
warn you, Jamal: from this
question on, if you get the
answer wrong you lose
everything. So. Are you sure?
The life-lines are there....
JAMAL
Surdas.
PREM
Surdas. Apka final jawab?
43.
CONTINUED: 68 68
(CONTINUED)
JAMAL
Yes.
PREM
Computer-ji, A lock kiya-jaye.
The lights dim, the music swells. Prem presses a button
on his computer: looks him straight in the eyes for an
age.
PREM (CONT’D)
(simply)
Guess what? You’re right.
Applause, music, lights.
INT. INSPECTOR’S OFFICE. DAY. 70 70
The Inspector is eying Jamal, weighing it all up.
JAMAL
(shrugging)
Blind singers earn double. You
know that.
INSPECTOR
And what happened to the girl?
They blinded her too?
JAMAL
(shakes his head)
They had other plans. Though it
took me a long, long time to
find out.
EXT. TRAIN. MORNING. 71 71
Salim and Jamal are sitting on top of the train. Jamal
is staring blankly down the track.
SALIM
Aré, Jamal...
Salim puts an arm around Jamal’s shoulder. Jamal wipes
the tears from his eyes, shakes his head furiously.
Salim gets up. Holds out his hand.
SALIM (CONT’D)
Come.
JAMAL
Where you going?
SALIM
First class, bhai. Where else?
44.
CONTINUED: 69 69
INT/ EXT. FIRST CLASS CARRIAGE. MORNING. 72 72
The ancient train is huffing slowly up an incline. A
middle class Indian couple with their three children
are sitting at a table, their breakfast spread before
them. Into this domestic scene, unseen by them comes
Jamal. Upside down and still outside the train, he is
clearly being dangled by his ankles from the train
roof. He gives a few, silent directional signs to Salim
who manoeuvres him across, dips his hand into the open
window, snatches a chapatti and signals franticly to be
hoisted up. The family continue to eat, unperturbed.
Then Jamal appears again. This time one of the children
spots him. Despite Jamal giving her a friendly wave,
she yelps. The father of the group grabs Jamal’s hand
which has just snatched a samosa. There is a tussle,
Salim holding onto Jamal’s legs, the father holding
onto Jamal’s arms and Jamal in the middle, shouting.
Salim is losing the battle and his footing. He stumbles
and the pair of them fall from the train, rolling and
tumbling down an embankment in slow-motion.
Interspersed with the seemingly endless tumble are
images of Jamal and Salim on top of different trains-
- huddled together against the freezing rain...
- surfing the wind at the front of the train...
- admiring the distant Himalaya....
JAMAL V/O
We criss-crossed the country
from Rajasthan to Calcutta.
Every time we were thrown off we
got back on again. This was our
home for years. A home with
wheels and a whistle.
The final tumble as they crash onto flat ground.
EXT. RAILWAY EMBANKMENT. DAY. 73 73
Groggily, Jamal sits up and groans. Somehow in the
tumble, he has been transformed into a twelve year-old.
And Salim a strong fourteen year-old. Through the haze
of pain and dust, Jamal sees something glinting in the
distance- something impossibly beautiful.
JAMAL
Salim? Is this heaven?
SALIM
You’re not dead, Jamal.
Jamal clears his head. Sees Salim picking himself up
from the ground. But the apparition is still there.
45.
(CONTINUED)
JAMAL
So what’s that?
SALIM
Wow.
They stare at the apparition. The unmistakable outline
of the Taj Mahal rises from the horizon, pink in the
morning sun. Nothing could be more beautiful.
JAMAL
Some hotel, huh?
EXT. TAJ MAHAL. DAY. 74 74
Jamal and Salim wander under the great dome of the Taj
Mahal. Two tiny slum kids dwarfed by this massive
monument to love. It is a moment of genuine wonderment
for them. Then a tour guide bustles nearby, tourists
flowing behind him.
GUIDE
...there are five main elements
to the Taj. The Darwaza, the
main gateway, the Bageecha or
garden, the Masjid or mosque,
the Naqqar Khana, the rest house
and the Rauza or mausoleum. If
you would like to follow me, I
will show you the ninety-nine
names of Allah on Mumtaz’s tomb.
As before, please remove your
shoes.
Jamal follows the Guide and his entourage into the
mausoleum. Salim meanwhile is studying the line of
shoes. Tries a smart pair of women’s court shoes,
before slipping a foot into a nice, white sneaker. A
smile crosses his face. His other foot quickly follows
and he saunters away, all mock-innocence.
EXT. TAJ MAHAL. DAY 75 75
Jamal comes out of the mausoleum into the bright
sunlight and looks around for Salim. No sign of him.
Suddenly, a German couple approach.
ADA
Please, what time is the next
tour?
JAMAL
Err-
PETER
- so much waiting around in this
damned country.
46.
CONTINUED: 73 73
(CONTINUED)
Jamal notices that he is standing next to a sign
advertising guided tours of the Taj.
JAMAL
No, IADA
- we’re on a very tight
schedule, you see, young man.
Have to see the Red Fort this
afternoon. Would it be possible
to show us around now? Obviously
we understand it would cost more
for just the two of us...
Peter waves a couple of thousand rupee notes at Jamal.
His eyes widen.
JAMAL
But of course, Madam. Please
follow me.
Jamal stalks off. The Germans follow. Jamal stops
before the monument. Points a confident arm at it.
JAMAL (CONT’D)
This is....the Taj Mahal.
A terrible pause as Peter and Ada stare at him. Clearly
more is expected. He moves off at a pace.
JAMAL (CONT’D)
The Taj Mahal was built by the
Emperor Khurram for his wife
Mumtaz who was maximum beautiful
woman in the whole world. When
she died, the Emperor decided to
build this five star hotel for
everyone who wanted to visit her
tomb...but he died in- in
fifteen eighty-seven, before any
of the rooms were built. Or the
lifts. The swimming pool,
however, as you can see was
completed on schedule in top
class fashion.
He waves confidently in the direction of the fountains.
ADA
It says nothing of this in the
guide book.
JAMAL
With respect, Madam, the guide
book is written by a bunch of
lazy, good-for-nothing, Indian
beggars.
47.
CONTINUED: 75 75
(CONTINUED)
ADA
Oh.
JAMAL
And this, Lady and Gentleman, is
burial place of Mumtaz.
ADA
How did she die?
JAMAL
A road traffic accident.
ADA
Really?
JAMAL
Maximum pile-up.
PETER
(suspicious)
I thought she died in childbirth.
JAMAL
(nodding sagely)
Exactly, Sir. She was on the way
to the hospital when it
happened.
Jamal moves on. Ada and Peter exchan

By Peter (Moderator) (Trustee board) (Dev team) on Feb 22, 2009, 05:21 in India Talkzone.

Peter (Moderator) (Trustee board) (Dev team) (☼Travelguide writer) says on Feb 22, 2009, 05:22:

Actually just the first part :)

Poor but snappy

0 funny, 0 helpful.

Shortiao says on Feb 23, 2009, 07:03:

Its a great film. that last question is NEVER a million rupee question though. NEVER. Even my dog knew the answer...

and everytime I say this people always say "calm down...its only a film"

"cuando una persona toma otro pasaporte....pierde su identidad!" - Shortiao

0 funny, 0 helpful.