Oscar Statuettes
Oscar

So you’re probably well aware of the 10 Oscar nominations Slumdog Millionaire has bagged but get this,  “Smile Pinki” a 39 minute short film in Hindi and Bhojpuri, directed by Emmy-nominated producer Megan Mylan has also been nominated in the ‘Best Short Documentary’ category.

Set in Varanasi, Smile Pinki revolves around a six-year-old girl from Mirzapur named Pinki who can’t go to school because of her cleft lip.  A simple surgery can fix this, but instead she has to face social ostracism, until she meets Pankaj, a social worker who ensures that Pinki gets a free surgery and we get a real world fairy-tale.

Another film in the running for the ‘Best Short Documentary’ Oscar is “The Final Inch” by Irene Taylor Brodsky and Tom Grant. No prizes for guessing that this too is setin India, this documentary deals with the protagonist Muhammed Gulzar’s battle with polio.

Now all we need is a true blue Indian director to make a film based in India that gets the same sort of attention. (Perhaps the non musical kind.)