India: Slumdog philanthropy

Bollywood film star Anil Kapoor, who played The Millionaire gameshow host  Prem Kumar in Danny Boyle’s Oscar winning Slumdog Millionaire has donated all of his earnings from the film to an Indian NGO called Plan. The actor has refused to reveal the amount of his donation, however Indian charities can expect more returns as a consequence of the award winning films, not all of them welcome.

The Telegraph reports that an Indian foundation called Hope was “horrified” to learn that the film features an organisation called Hope that entices children from the slums into a life of begging and prostitution. Both the fictional and real-life organisations use the same orange minibuses and the charity has been deluged with calls from people who believe they must be linked.

The charity’s ambassador, Andrea Catherwood, expressed her anger at film-makers Celador for failing to check out the name, continues the Telegraph’s report. According to the newspaper, she said: “The staff and volunteers on the ground have been working for years to build up a relationship of trust in India. The danger is that this is a huge film in India and the charity has been damaged by association. This has sown confusion amongst those who need us most – the poorest and most vulnerable of children.”

On a brighter note other organisations have also been inundated with calls, this time of a more positive nature. A record breaking 1.5 thousand people visited India based charity Railway Children in three days, against the usual 150 per day, announced the charity’s chief executive Terina Keene in an interview with the Charities Aid Foundation, saying that “the phone doesn’t stop ringing”. In an interview with the Crewe Chronicle she also said: “”We just hope that this marvellous film will help put us at the forefront of people’s minds when it comes to helping the charity. The children on the streets of India desperately need our help”.

The Third Sector magazine also reported that SOS Children’s Villages and Save the Children are among the other organisations that have benefited from the recent success of Slumdog Millionaire, with both noting a rise in donors and sponsors since its release earlier this month. Andrew Cates, chief executive of SOS Children’s Villages said: “Raising the issue of street children is an enormous benefit to us. Since Slumdog Millionaire, we’ve attracted more sponsorships for India than we usually do”.