  
Agencies
Los Angeles, Feb 23:
It was a day of Indians at the 81st Academy Awards, where rags-to-riches romance 'Slumdog Millionaire' swept the Oscars, winning eight trophies, including the prize for the best picture while the best film honour in Documentary Film (short) category went to 'Smile Pinki', the story of a little girl ostracised for being born with a cleft lip.
Among the 'Slumdog' honours, A R RRahman won awards for the bes original score and best song "Jai Ho". Only seven other films in Oscar history have won eight or more awards. This was also the first Academy Award nomination for noted Bollywood lyricist Gulzar.
Including his two other nominations this year for Original Score and Original Song for 'Slumdog Millionaire', this was the third Academy Award nomination for Rahman.
Receiving the trophy, Rahman said, "before coming, I was excited and terrified. The last time I felt like that was during my marriage. There's a dialogue from a Hindi film called 'Mere Paas Ma Hai' which means I have nothing but Mother', so mother's here, her blessings are there with me. I am grateful for her to have come all the way. And I want to thank the AAcademy for being so kind, al the jury members. I want to thank Sam Schwartz, I/D PR, all the crew of Slumdog, Mr. Gulzar, Raqueeb Alam, Blaaze, my musicians in Chennai and Mumbai. And I want to tell something in Tamil, which I normally say after every award, which is...God is great. Thank you."
'Slumdog' also received the award for the Best Sound Mixing for Resul Pookutty, who dedicated the honour to India.
In his acceptance speech, Mr Pookutty said, ''this is unbelievable. We can't believe this. Ladies and gentlemen...sorry...
I share the stage with two magicians, you know, who created the very ordinary sounds of Bombay, the cacophony of Bombay, into a soul-stirring, artful resonance called Slumdog Millionaire."
'Smile Pinky' brings home Oscar for 'Best Documentary'
The made in India documentary 'Smile Pinky' won an Oscar in the 'Best Short Documentary' category at the 81st Academy Awards declared in Los Angeles on February 22. 'Smile Pinky' is the story of a child with a lip deformity. The film had been nominated along with four other documentaries at the famed Academy Awards.
Residents of Dabai village in Uttar Pradesh's Ahura district have been praying for the success of the documentary 'Smile Pinky' at the Oscars, since it is based on the life of a girl belonging to their village. The film by Megan Mylan depicts the saga of six-year-old Pinky who becomes a social outcast because of a cleft lip. In the 39-minute documentary, the girl from this obscure village of Uttar Pradesh, undergoes corrective surgery and gets a normal childhood.
Resul Pookutty wins Oscar, dedicates it to India
Sound engineer Resul Pookutty became the third Indian to bring Oscar glory for India by winning the award for sound mixing in "Slumdog Millionaire" here on Monday.
I dedicate this award to my country. This is not just a sound award but a piece of history that has been handed over to me," a beaming and emotional Pookutty said while dedicating the trophy to a billion Indians.
"I come from a country and civilisation that gave the world the word that precedes silence and is followed by more silence. That word is 'Om'. So I dedicate this award to my country," said Kerala-born sound technician.
Pookutty shared the honours with colleagues Ian Tapp and Richard Pryke.
"This is unbelievable. I share the stage with two magicians, who captured the noise and cacophony of Mumbai to create the soul stirring artful sound of 'Slumdog Millionaire'," he said.
Pookutty has won a BAFTA and a more recent Cinema Audio Society (CAS) awards for best sound mixing. He is the first Indian to win the CAS award.
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Tuesday, February 09, 2010
