Slumdog team contribution to help slum children in Mumbai

The ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ team has recently announced a commitment of £500,000 in a 5-year program to improve the lives of slum children in Central Mumbai, India.

Plan, the organization through which the team is donating the money, will invest in education and training of adults and children in hygiene and sanitation, according to www.plan-international.org . The organization hopes to access 2000 children and up to 5000 families for this project. Slumdog director Danny Boyle said: “It is only right that some of the success of the movie be ploughed back into the city in areas where it is needed most and where it can make a real difference to some lives.Despite intimidating odds, extraordinary work is going on to help people break the cycle of poverty through education. We’re delighted that this initiative will add to that ongoing work.” Meanwhile, the two young children who acted in the film and were guests at the Oscars in February, Rubina Ali and Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail are beneficiaries of the Jai Ho Trust which ensures they receive education and some help in making their poverty-stricken lives a bit smoother. The trust is named after the hit song ‘Jai Ho’ which Oscar-winning music maestro A.R Rahman composed.