The red carpet leading into the Los Angeles Film Critics Association awards on Monday was packed with winners from Sunday's Golden Globes, where the Mumbai-set drama “Slumdog Millionaire” emerged the big victor, earning four statuettes. The Indian star of “Slumdog,” Freida Pinto, said she wished she was already back home. “If there was no Mumbai, there would be no ‘Slumdog,”' Pinto said. “I would love to see how Indians are celebrating, because I know they are definitely rooting for us. Can't wait to go back. I'll be back on Thursday, and start to see the reaction out there.” The film's composer, Indian music superstar A.R. Rahman, said his Golden Globe win was followed by a call from his wife in India. “She was screaming with joy,” Rahman said. “I spoke to my mother and my family and my kids, and friends. In fact, the whole film community. All of them are so excited.” “Slumdog” director and English soccer fan Danny Boyle said he will look back on Sunday for a number of reasons. “The day was broken up into three parts: two good and one very bad,” he said. “The really good: Manchester United beat Chelsea. The really bad: I put the tuxedo on. I was told it was a ‘George Clooney-type' look. But once I got it on, it didn't look like that. So that was very bad. And then we picked up four Golden Globes. So it all ended merrily and happily.” India's movie-mad millions have not yet seen “Slumdog Millionaire,” but this Mumbai-based fairy tale, which opens here on Jan. 23, is already the toast of Bollywood. On Sunday, “Slumdog” – with its cast of actors unknown outside India and its story set on the gritty streets of Mumbai – went home with four Golden Globe awards, and became the movie to beat at the Academy Awards. “Indian tale catches global fancy,” the Hindustan Times shouted in a proud headline. “The $lumdog Has Its Day,” said the Times of India. The loudest cheers were saved for renowned Indian composer A.R. Rahman, who won the award for original score. Subir Malik, a well-known Indian musician, said it was inspiring to see Rahman win a Golden Globe and watch Indian actors like Anil Kapoor, who plays the quiz master in “Slumdog,” share an award stage with some of the brightest lights in Hollywood. “It was brilliant, it may sound cliched, but it felt very good seeing Rahman winning an award and our own guys like Anil Kapoor on the same stage as Brad Pitt,” he said. “Rahman has seen huge success in India, but the U.S. is a totally different market,” said Malik. “For Rahman to win a music award in a language that the critics don't even understand is fantastic. Now when the movie releases here it's going to be a sellout.” Mumbai, which is also known as Bombay, is the center of India's vast Hindi-language film industry, known as Bollywood. More than 200 films are produced every year in Mumbai, which has some of the most expensive real estate in the world cheek by jowl with 18 million people living in ramshackle huts packed near train stations or adjoining towering skyscrapers. But the movie's fans believe “Slumdog” speaks about hope even as it shows the hard realities of life in the slums.
