Slumdog Millionaire: A Discourse Analysis Showcasing the Interchangeable Effects Of Orientalism, Globalization & Universal Beliefs Within Film
*A draft for the Film and Cultural Studies Journal, MENA region.
Introduction
The abstract for this dissertation topic surrounds a discourse analysis of the award winning film ‘Slumdog Millionaire,’ directed by Danny Boyle and Loveleen Tandon in 2008. My research question aims to interrogate the utilisation of orientalism, globalisation and universal beliefs through the multitudinous functions of methodology, political propaganda and semiotics prevalent throughout the film. My research will reveal the interchangeable effects of these constructs within a theoretical context. What I expect to identify is a centrally globalised portrayal of oriental culture which will be enforced through the thematic expression of universal beliefs within the film, via the formulaic science (reductive to call it an ‘art’), of American film-making. Ultimately the film utilises methodology of sensory marketing in the clichéd exploitation of empathy for the underdog, who achieves victory by ensuring material fortune and re-uniting with the love of his life, thus appealing to the typical hedonistic values of the consumer. Strong appeal to the Westernised consumer is displayed through value of monetary gain, while universally-revered concepts and values of love are displayed throughout. I will investigate themes through a psychoanalytical and semiotic analysis of the film in order to articulate how filmmakers and media may shape perceptions and stereotypes concerning cultures, societies and life; more specifically, how the film-making techniques within Slumdog Millionaire have implemented globalisation, orientalism and a plethora of universal beliefs in their narrative to appeal to a worldwide audience. As individual factors, globalisation and orientalism must be analysed effectively in order to definitively discern their interposing effects within the film, a broad view of these factors could be observed as the western representation of globalisation alongside the Eastern representation of orientalism. The research aspires to divulge the point at which these cultures meet through the exposition of universal beliefs within the film.
In view of my discourse analysis concerning the variables of orientalism, universal beliefs and globalisation, I will be eliciting from Gramsci’s model of hegemony and his theory ‘manufacture of consent’ within the context of film media. The ideology concerned with the three factors here may be associated within the parameters of Gramsci’s theory; power is constituted in the realms of ideas and knowledge, popular media has exploited this in order to ‘inform’ a passive audience of its integral message to society. Essentially this is where we will see the communication of universal beliefs and Orientalism through a globalised perspective, reaching a global audience as a byproduct. This is further reinforced through the ideology of Lenin who argued that the power of bourgeoisie ideology, was such that, if left to its own devices the proletariat would only be able to achieve ‘trade union consciousness’, the desire to improve their material conditions but within the limits of the capitalist system’ (Heywood 1994: 85)
Theoretical Approach
Media culture shapes the individual’s and society’s view of the world, defining good and bad, positive and negative ideals, enforcing who and what are seen as enemies with the capacity to create divisions between cultures, legitimising the dominant force and redefining audiences as consumers rather than citizens.(Kellner, Douglas). This raises concerns about saturation of media with less pluralism being present in media content and more implementation of global capitalism therefore. (Van Dijk, 2005) The dangers within this concentration of globalised media that a substantial amount of film content lies in fewer hands with producers working to generate maximum revenue and worries concerning the power wielded by these stations are optimal, in that stations influence overall media outlet to exert political power and control.
Film is powerful as a medium, which speaks about our culture in a highly codified form, transmitting messages about morality and justice, transgression and punishment through signs which belong to a code. (Bignell, 1997 p.9) This is portrayed through the use of semiotics within film, the language of these signs condition us, semiotics are used prominently within Slumdog Millionaire in order to communicate universal beliefs, but the interpretations of these vary accordingly to different viewing cultures as signs in media texts are comprehended in relation to other semiotics and texts in a social and cultural context, thus media positions its audiences in specific ways. This is where conflict arose: where the West saw a romanticised representation of the typically deprived underdog of the East rising up in the face of Oriental corruption, the East saw a derogatory interpretation of their culture through semiotics that showcased the barbarity of the East. A typical example of this can be viewed in the scene of the beating of Jamal’s mother. The interpretation of meanings between media and audiences therefore is important in understanding the ways that we think about ourselves and our culture. (Bignell, 1997 pp.5-27)
According to Douglas, media culture influences the individual’s and society’s view of the world. He emphasizes the importance of analysing media based on contextualization from various sources, including history, social theory, political economy and media/culture studies. Given that Slumdog Millionaire is a Hollywood film depicting components of Indian culture viewable to a global audience, Douglas’s emphasis on the interdisciplinary approach to study the film becomes important. His work discusses the Frankfurt School approach, succeeded by the British Cultural Studies Journal in illustrating how to reach a more comprehensive perspective through undermining the limitations of the Frankfurt school notion of a ‘passive audience in their conceptions of the popular and of an active audience that creates meanings.’ Following this conception it is important to acknowledge therefore that an audience actively receives the messages communicated through semiotics as opposed to the idea of being ‘brainwashed’ by the media. (Douglas 2009, pp.95-101)
I have identified and analysed several underlying themes, semiotics and universal beliefs represented throughout the film utilised to depict Orientalism, globalization and universal beliefs. The film is rich in the subtextual presentation of scenes carrying undertones that illustrate Orientalism in its purest form, portrayed for example in the mise-en-scene of the Taj Mahal representing an iconic symbol of hope to the boys after they have lost their way. However, Slumdog Millionaire ultimately portrays a stereotypically Western ideology of what Indian culture pertains to be; slum life is a phenomena inherently associated as a typically Indian socio-economic construct, and the general message of the film, once closely analysed can be interpreted as of a condescending nature towards an economically, socially and politically less developed country in contrast to the superiority of the West; there is constant elusion toward the ‘American Dream’ concept highlighted through the manipulation of powerful semiotics and the film maker’s strong comprehension of consumer ‘psyche.’ A potent example of this can be scene through the ‘coke bottle’ scene where the boys are offered the coca cola drink by the thug Maman, who to the appearance of the boys, comes to their rescue and offers the commercialised drink to Salim and Jamal with an association of offering a token that is so alien to them with the promise of a better life that will come with it.
The entire concept of the rise of the underdog is pervaded through the Oriental ‘exotic’ boy transgressing to a position of Western capital, making our confusing and ambiguous world almost intelligible, contributing clear, readable meanings to the struggles between moral positions of duty and the lives of the slum dwellers.
History of India and Orientalism
According to Edward Said, Orientalism dates from the period of European Enlightenment and the colonization of the Eastern World. Orientalism enabled the West to rationalize colonialism and their self serving history where the West constructed the East, exhibiting it as a place of extreme inferiority and therefore in great need of Western rescue or intervention.
Historically, India maintains a reputation of falling under superior mobility and leadership. Initialised by the Moghul empire and shortly after, the British Empire. By the early 18th century, India no longer was exporting manufactured goods, but supplying the British forces with raw materials. The initialisation of colonialism induced political, social and economic unrest in India. (Asher, 2008).
The film fervently displays contrast between East and West through use of technology; the shots of planes, motorbikes and trains are consistently used as devices which somehow set the Oriental character’s back a pace, not just physically (where the slum children have to walk barefoot to reach their destination) but emotionally too; Lakita is kidnapped twice within the mise-en-scene of a train’s journey, it is not until Jamal has won the money and acclaimed his destiny, that they can unite at the train tracks and embark in harmony, illustrating the Western weight of importance placed on money.
‘If the planes won’t kill you, we will’ – the audience is instantly confronted with an aspect of globalization through the modern technological advances of a plane swooping down across the slums and interrupting the children’s ball game. The semiotic connotations attached to the plane are significant; the plane represents a World the slum children will never have access to, an escape. Planes are generally associated with a higher power and something only the rich will be able to utilize, there is already the concept that the slum dwellers are suppressed by the capitalist World surrounding them. After the plane’s advancement the children are then confronted by their own people chasing them with threats on their motorbikes, the film immediately exposes here the juxtaposition of globalization and Orientalism – they are the victims of both the capitalist society that shuns them and their own people who taunt them with their greater power upon these motor engines.
The use of trains is a prominent theme within the narrative; the brothers first get thrown from a train to an emerging shot of the Taj Mahal, ethereally appearing through an ambiguous mist revealing this symbol of great hope and idealism. At the Taj Mahal Mise en scene we are bombarded with English language surrounding the children, with tourists from western countries flocking the site. The globalization here reinforces colonialism of India, we see the British influence over the country and the prevalence of the English language establishes the power that westernized civilization maintains over the whole of India, even amongst their great palatial symbol of culture. The boys swindling of money and shoes from the Western tourists’ implements stereotypical views upon viewers of Orientalism and insinuates the manner in which Indian’s transact business. Later in the film an American couple is compelled to give Jamal a one hundred dollar bill after he has been beaten by an Indian man as he cries – “this is the real India,’ the Americans respond by exclaiming ‘we’ll show you the real America.’ This dollar bill later on help’s him answer one of the questions on the TV show. An oriental aspect of this part of the narrative is highlighted through the Indian belief of ‘Karma’ – Jamal gives the money to his lost blind singer friend as an act of kindness, he is later rewarded by his destiny through gaining the knowledge attributed from the blind boy to win the question. There are the obvious connotations of globalization here as well through the American aid given and the audience is reminded how America constantly strives to give charity to underdeveloped countries. But their contribution represents the Western value of monetary gain and is not something Jamal, the Orient values; he trades his own capital for the sake of a good deed and friendship.
The narrative maintains the generally universal idealistic belief that ‘love will conquer all’ – we see this through Jamal’s motivation to win Lakita rather than the money. An aspect of perceived orientalism is shown through the inferior position of Lakita, where she is forced into domestic slavery and has no autonomy over her destiny until Jamal saves her, representing oriental women as powerless and weak. Lakita also risks her life to escape her abusive, suppressing master and run to Jamal when he most needs her. It is the characters with the good hearts and moral integrity who result in winning, in contrast Salim is reprimanded for his pursuit of monetary gain that he will do anything for and comes to his untimely end at exactly the same moment in time that Jamal wins the entire show.
Globalisation
Globalization is often defined as a process beyond that of internationalization, encompassing the spread of products, people and practices from one or several countries, it also entails interconnectedness between countries, which leads to their integration into one (or several) global economic, cultural, and to some extent also political, systems or networks. (Held et al., 1999; Friedman, 2000; Stiglitz, 2002; Amin and Cohendet, 2004).
As the film industry becomes more ubiquituously globalised, interconnectivity between cultures has integrated further through the device of film and general media. Film is therefore a poweful tool in determining cultural values and integrating social and political values Worldwide. (Mark Lorenzon, 2008)
Coyhen summarized succinctly in his article that the film is actually an ‘American Dream’ of an Indian boy who needs to participate in the American game ‘Who wants to be a Millionaire’ and answer questions about French, Western novels in order to succeed in a capitalist culture. We see how the Western World of knowledge holds the key to Jamal’s destiny throughout the film, whether that is through the characters’ names within The Three Muskateers or the face on the American dollar bill.
Moreover, the effects of globalisation can be seen through the actual people participating in the making of the film; Danny Boyle and screenwriter Simon Beaufoy are British. Dev Patel, who plays Jamal is from Nairobi. Frieda Pinto, who plays Latika is from Mumbai. Mumbai is the most Metropolitan city in India. thus not necessarily an authentic representation of classical orientalism. Whereas, the soundtrack of the film is by A.R. Rahman, who Boyle brought on because “not only does he draw on Indian classical music, but he’s got R&B and hip hop coming in from America, house music coming in from Europe and this incredible fusion is created.” (Coyhen, 2012)
Non-diegetic film music is used as a manipulative device to exert control over the audience’s emotions, in the same way as pathetic fallacy installs empathy, as displayed in the scene where Lakita as a child is out in the rain by herself, we are invoked to feel sympathy for her.(Helen Stewart, 2013) In the same way that music sets mood and can propel the audience to a different timezone, film music can propel the audience to the setting of a different culture. The music within slumdog therefore is so instrumental to the globalisation within the film and designed to appeal to the Western World who will comprehend the language of Western music over the tones of Indian music. Sound works completely in conjunction with picture and within several of the opening shots in particular we see english written on t-shirts complemented with the hip-hop beats, the association is immediately representive of the Western equivalent to slums; ghetto life and is cleverly devised so that a Western audience will appreciate this meaning. The connotations of music are derivative of the social meanings of the genres of music within different cultures. (Page 137)
Exploitation of children is a prominent theme within the film which was disputed heavily by the general viewing consumers of Indian origin. We see the exploitation of children employed as street beggars by Maman and similarly, Lakita being prostituted. These scenes are instrumental in highlighting the poverty and depravity of the East from a Western perspective and implement further stereotypes upon the culture of Indian life. Extensive quantative and qualitative research has been conducted in light of child slavery within India and according to studies, the film depicted these scenarios with general accuracy, children also contribute immensely to household survival strategies, generating income for families (Kjhorholt, 2007, p.34)
The use of the portmanteau ‘Slumdog’ aside ‘millionaire’ is a syntagmatic juxtaposition, representing an imminent oxymoron, as stereotypically the audience do not associate the word ‘slum’ with its antonymic ‘millionaire.’ (Dagmar, Taylor, 2009)
Straight away the viewer is confronted with orientalist denotation of the word slum next to the more westernised concept of the ‘millionaire’; Globalisation of the film is already in place through this syntactical juxtaposition as the gameshow and connotation of the word ‘millionaire’ are associated with the West. Moreover, the word ‘slum’ could be synonymously associated with ‘under’ or ‘scum’ – the title presents subtle manipulation through the homonym ‘slum/underdog’ providing the consumer with immediate preconceptions of what they are about to witness through the use of semantics. Using the word ‘Slumdog’ inevitably induces negative connotations through its denotation and assonance in regards to Indian culture where slums are a prevalent phenomena. The title therefore denotes a dehumanising, animalistic quality towards its inhabitants and Oriental culture, enforcing the controversial nature of the film.
Representations of Marxism and Capitalism
This concept of ruling ideas becomes significant when analysing the film Slumdog Millionaire; It is a Western production depicting the Indian culture. It depicts that to succeed in Oriental life, Jamal must acquire knowledge of the Western World, represented through the TV game show and the call centre where he works as ‘chai wala’ and is questioned over a British Soap, highlighting the prevalence of the post-colonialism of the British Empire and the potency of the West over the Orient. This highlights the theory that the ideas and works of the ruling class in every era are the ruling, the ‘correct ideals’- the West is therefore the ruling intellectual force in the World portrayed in slumdog millionaire.
‘The class which has the means of material production at its disposal has simultaneous control over the means of mental production, so that thereby, generally speaking, the ideas of those who lack the means of mental production are subject to it.’
(Marx and Frederich Engels, 1976)
The class which controls media production, therefore also controls mental production; the very making of the film here is a form of globalisation via Western principles as the film makers are implementing Western values through material production which then controls mental production of the viewers. Essentially proving that the audience will view the messages of the film through the messages conveyed in the ruling class of production. As producers of ideas the regulaton of the distribution of these ideas are thus circulated making the ruling ideas of the epoch. In regards to this discource then, because of the representation of slum life within Slumdog Millionaire, India will now be seen amongst popular culture as a place of corruption, filth and poverty as it is portrayed so by the ruling class, the dominant ideas within the film are expressedly ideas of ‘eternal law.’ An inherently obvious supportive example relative to this could be expressed in the use of the english language throughout the film, where the localised hindu is subtitled, this is not reciprocated for Hindis, therefore an Indian lacking sufficient knowledge in English language will not be able to participate in the idealogy of the film.
Edward Said discusses another concept lying in the definition of ‘Orientalism;’ the notion of being able to control the orient – a form of political propaganda, reducing the actual concept of the oriental culture to a form of social order. The Marxist view of capitalism is represented through the game show Host claiming ‘it’s my show’ as an excuse as to why he can attempt to swindle Jamal into losing all his money. This is representative of capitalist culture where the rich have the autonomy to govern the poor and stay rich, alongside the resentment they might hold in the threatening success of an underdog who could overpower them with pure moral integrity. Contrastingly The entire game show could be viewed as a palliative juxtaposition of the Greed of the West verses the purity of the East, this implementing positive connotation of Indian heritage and integrity. (Silva, Tinu 2014)
The notion of an ‘invisible power’ maintains its roots partially in Marxist thinking concerning the pervasive power of ideology, values and beliefs in reproducing class relations and concealing contradictions (Heywood, 1994: 100). Marx recognised that economic exploitation was not the only driver behind capitalism, and that the capitalist system was reinforced by a dominance of ruling class ideas and values – leading to Engels’s famous concern that ‘false consciousness’ would keep the working class from recognising and rejecting their oppression (Heywood, 1994: 85). This is instrumental within my analysis of the film here as the essential Westernised production is a form of capitalism in action; the ideas presented within Slumdog are presented to the World objectively through the eyes of a production wanting to impact a global audience through the hardships of a typical subaltern/oriental boy.
Employing Gramsci’s model of hegemony and counterhegemony, we can analyse ‘hegemonic’ social and cultural forces of domination and locate counterhegemonic forces of resistance and contestation. We see the counterhegemonic resistance towards capitalism and colonialism in the film through Jamal’s disinterest in capital gain, similarly we see the influence of Western culture and hegemony upon the character of Salim who is driven by money and throughout the film morphs from an innocent Oriental boy into a Western paradigm of a gangster of corruptive wealth. Traditional Indian society is often defined by social hierarchy. The Indian caste system embodies social stratification and restrictions. ‘Social classes are defined by thousands of endogamous hereditary groups, often termed as castes’ (Gramsci, 1971). Jamal attempts to deviate from this hegemonic system throughout his life but ends up succumbing to hegemonic forces through the context of the game show, insinuating the World of the ruling class he must submit to, to succeed. Social turmoil between castes is illustrated in the scene where Jamal loses his mother in a particularly barbaric scene where we witness counterhegemonic forces applying physical violence in an act of revolution. The corruption of the Orient is also present here in that the erupted violence displayed was a portrayel of the riots in Dharavi after the demolition of the Babri Mosque, the outcome of the muslim anger in this constituted by the backlash of the Hindu forces that were aided and orchestrated by the police, planned by political machinations immediately portrays India as a place of political unrest and corruption. (Sebastian, 2009 p.902)
We also see the doctrines of caste systems in Jamal’s work place, the TV show and within Salim’s environment. The implications are that in order to succeed within the desirable World and functions of the West, the Oriental citizen must obtain sufficient Western knowledge and ideology in order to achieve their ‘dreams’ or their ‘dwanda.
Subaltern theory claims that norms are established by those in power and imposed on the other who has no voice because of race, class or gender (Sebastian, 2009, pp.899) We witness this through Jamal’s disposition as an impoverished class, Lakita’s suppression as a woman and the general denigrating of India’s corruption and principles as a race through the clearly superior roles played by the Westerners.
Jamal’s past experiences essentially influence his future development and success in a huge way, it is his vast accumulation of street knowledge and life experience which attributes to his triumph, ascenuating the ‘natural process of the subaltern succeeding in his ascent from a subordinate social position to one of dominance.’ (Ohara, 2004, Green 2003)
The use of objectifying English as a background and foregrounding device is a functional method of globalization that dominates screen-space throughout the film, sustaining global english evanescence. There are shots depicting visual spectacles of English through the creative indexing of key elements such as the title of the film where the T-shirt becomes a metonym for the whole person wearing it as the Indian face is conveniently dismembered. (……..)
The globaliasation of English occurs with the game-show questions carefully conflating Indian schematic knowledge with selectively chosen global material-cultural awareness with the most valued final question being on a Western aesthetic trope, this is significant in implying that Jamal’s success can only be attributed to the advancement of the West. The globalised connection is cleverly construed through the presentation of universal beliefs in conjunction with the Orientalism, the audience feels they are getting a real taste of India through the use of language, semiotics, themes and camera techniques all speaking in a language they collectively can understand. In Slumdog Millionaire we see the hybridity of language where the lore of both West and East have been globalized to suit “the viewing tastes and linguistic preferences of the cross-continental global consumer.” (Bhatia and Baumgardner 380).
English serves as a key narrative tool utilised through a plethora of potent filmic strategies including the spotlighting of visual English content; the synergy maintained via globalization of native language content within a context of dominant global interests; sectacularization, of the “Indian figurehead” stereotype into a globally accepted cultural product and the syncretisation of filmmaking strategies which contextualise the economic and cultural situation within the realms of commercialism and creativity on screen. (Garwood, 179).
The imminent flashbacks of Latika on the train platform are further filmic devices utilised to hybridize a background of Hindi and English; the image consumes the mind of Jamal and, inevitably, the audience is consumed by the cinematic manipulation of the high shot, where the spectator is encouraged to look down upon the Oriental woman as a figure of inferiority, a suppressed figure as she stands helplessly looking up to Jamal from her position of incapacity.
The film starts and ends with the concept of destiny, written as ‘kismet’-immediately highlighting this theme of Orientalism, where it is shown that everything that happens in Jamal’s life was ‘written.’ Destiny and Karma represent a very Indian concept in Western society. Similarly, the more ‘oriental’ start of the film (with the characters speaking Hindi) shows the influence of religion and violence in India; Jamal’s mother gets killed as a result of political and social unrest, violence stemming from religious divide in India. The brutality of this scene highlights a barbarism associated with highly uncivilised countries and the transgression of the Hindi to English as the film progresses represents the influentialism of the West which translates to the positions of the character’s also. Stuart Hall maintains the ‘base image’ as that of the native; where the film portrays the primitive side of the native through the level of savagery performed by the Indians, the cheating of Salim, the Cunning of the game show host, the savagery of the mother’s decapitation by tribesmen, the degenerate Maman. The ambivalence of these images lies in the threat they impose to civilisation being undermined by the recurrence of savagery highlighted so prominently in the form of Orientalism. Jamal is exposed to such primitivism constantly through the nature of his environment. Another example of Western film making undermining the social construct of the Orient.
Likewise, a derogatory depiction of the female gender in India is another integral message that the global audience takes away the film; the women are generally shown as helpless through Lakita’s domestic enslavement, Jamal’s mother’s , where paradoxically Jamal and Salim have the autonomy to choose their own fates to uncover their destinies, Lakita and Jamal’s mother are incited to perform domestic chores, obligated to their ‘duty’ with only the dream of being rescued. These scenes are poignant in their representation of women to the global viewer, presenting social and gender inequality within India.
Universal Beliefs
The film depicts numerous ideological universal beliefs in showcasing the potency of love and determination where an Indian boy out of the Slums, against all odds, wins twenty Million rupees, his fame enabling him to be with the love of his life. It is the classic projection of the ‘rags to riches’ tale where a subaltern boy marginalised by the dominance of the adults and elitists overcomes the oppression of the ruling class and claims his destiny.
We might associate the moral of the story with films such as ‘Disney’s Aladdin’ – which of course is traditionally an Eastern tale, but was taken by the West and ‘globalised’ to appeal to the contemporary consumer. The film shows the prevalence of good over evil and Orientalism through the values of Karma, and ‘Kismet’ where Jamal attains success because of his inner good and moral integrity whilst Salim, the avaricious, suffers a terrible fate. Contrastingly, the film also challenges some universally accepted beliefs.; the source of knowledge for example, Jamal’s knowledge does not originate from a formal education, but is constructed from experiences and real life events, it eludes to the notion that from great suffering will come infinte wisdom. Jamal’s life experiences prove infinitely valuable when he is confronted by higher forces of power. The strength of the Orient pervades in that no matter how the figurine of capitalism might try and quash his status, it cannot suppress the knowledge the subaltern boy has gained through self experience. The essence of the oriental culture lives on in an ironic twist of fate through the divine notion that all the hardships that Jamal has been subjected to will help him achieve his destiny, enabling him to make sense of all the tragedies of his life. Reinforcing the Oriental belief s of ‘dwanda,’ ‘Kismet’ and ‘Karma,’ it motivates a somewhat spiritual ideology; that our destinies are in the hands of a higher force..
I like to take an objective point of view concerning the production, although I feel the promience of globalisation exacerbates the flaws of orientalism and fundamentally exploits use of poverty porn to appeal to a mass white bourgeoise audience typically, I ultimately believe that India and the beliefs maintained within Orientalism are also represented in their purest form within this film: We see the power of Western culture over the East, as is historically potent, but the intrinsically good characters are not influenced, they are not seduced by the ideology of the American dream and therefore cannot be suppressed by capitalism; Jamal is not deceived by the game show host and succeeds because his inner motivation is not for the Westernised valued prize of money but for love. The themes are resonant with the Republic of India’s chief motto -‘Truth Alone Triumphs,’ and will resonant with the Western concept of ‘Money is the root of all evil’ and here is captured the moral integrity of Orientalism.
Literary Reviews
Many critics have divulged that the film maintains a highly ostracised view of India, and is so devised to appeal to the aesthetic values of a global audience;
Edward Said discusses how the term and idealism of the ‘Orient’ was established by European invention. It has, since antiquity ‘been a place of romance, exotic beings, haunting memories and landscapes, remarkable experiences.’ He states how the principle attracting factor for the European visitor was a Western representation of the Orient, which is exactly what the film communicates (predominantly an American representation) which is of course as the Orient being a constitution of severe political, economic and social inferiority. We see this through the idealisation of the ‘American dream’ throughout the film, depicted from use of the English language, the demolition of the slums in place of industrial edifices and even in the appearances of character’s such as Salim and Lakita who resort to Westernised fashion in order to conform to a World they can only strive to belong in. The exception occurs in Jamal’s recurring vision of Lakita where she is dressed in a Sari – symbolising strong integrity to their roots; both lovers are integral representations of Orientalism, idealising theories such as dwanda and kismet. (Said, 1978, pp.112-120).
Nadine Chad’s article “Slumdog Millionaire and the troubled place of Cinema and Nation” establishes a connection between the film and neo-colonialism and Orientalism. Nadine states how the West in several films has linked slum dwelling to being a ‘neo-colonialist attempt to speak for a subaltern India through long-standing imperialist world views.’ Secondly, for masquerading as “globalized world cinema. “The film, for instance, opens with a torture scene in which Jamal recalls his childhood in the slums. A lengthy montage follows of Salim running through the slums of Mumbai, the camera tracking them as they race past aestheticized, denigratory visuals of rubbish, tin huts, open sewers and labouring women. The film sells out to what is often perceived in the Western popular imagination as the “authentic” Third World experience – poverty, squalor and repression, an example of the exploitation of poverty porn lending to the perverse enjoyment of a Western audience in the exotic perception of deprivation. (Chad, N)
In “Slumdog Comprador”, Ebert entertains a view of India that gratuitously circumscribes to patronizing notions of the primitive, inferior, and exotic other, exploiting multitudinous visuals inciting poverty porn through Western voyeurism into contrived depictions of slum life and the corruption of India (Chan, n.d).
Gehlawat has commented on the ‘poverty tour’ that Slumdog provides for typically Bourgeois white audiences, emphasised through the pervading edited visuals of slum imagery to the non-diegetic soundtrack of pulsating beats of A.R Rahman’s techno fusion (Gehlawat 2014). Where Shyamal Sengupta writes“It’s a white man’s imagined India,” in the Los Angeles Times. Madhur Singh reiterates this in his article in Time presenting an interesting perception about the audience that will be used as part of the analysis to support the psychoanalytic theories about voyeurism. Madhur mentions “A lot of Indians are not keen to watch it for the same reason they wouldn’t want to go to Varanasi or Pushkar for a holiday — it’s too much reality for what should be an entertainment. “We see all this every day,” says Shikha Goyal, a Mumbai based public relations executive who could not withstand the whole film. “You can’t live in Mumbai without seeing children begging at traffic lights and passing by slums on your way to work. But I don’t want to be reminded of that on a Saturday evening.” There is also a sense of injured national pride, especially for a lot of well-heeled metro dwellers, who say the film peddles “poverty porn” and “slum voyeurism.”
A significant scene lends itself to this criticism where Jamal discovers he can make a living as a tour guide and takes a Western couple to the Ganges River, “the biggest Laundromat in India.” The tourists lap up the scene of the women washing colourful cloth in the muddy waters. An indexical semiotic of how the West like to perceive orientalists – advanced, primitives bound by domestic obligation (for women) and exotic. The camera pulls back to a long distance shot establishing the vibrantly colourful image in alignment of the audience’s gaze to that of the tourists indicating that the spectator is encouraged to adopt a tourist’s gaze of India.
Methodology
Laura Mulvey’s work is built upon the psychoanalytic approaches of Freud and Lacan, discussing the two distinct modes of the male-gaze: “voyeuristic” (i.e. Seeing woman as an image “to be looked at”) and “fetishist” (i.e. Seeing woman as a substitute for “the lack,” the underlying psychoanalytic fear of castration). (Mulvey, 1975)
There is a scene where Latika looks through a type of peep-hole in the large gate. She looks on towards the camera, but is partially obscured on the left and right side of the frame. This is a voyeuristic shot, as both the audience and Jamal stare at her through these gates from afar, even with her knowledge and recognition that it is happening. In this shot, she is the subject of desire rather than a character with actions to commit to in the frame. Laura Mulvey’s ‘male gaze’ theory can be applied, as Latika is an object of desire here rather than a character with an agency in the scene. As a woman, she is to be looked at rather than to be comprehended, this is one representation of women in Slumdog Millonaire. The character of Latika, when her and an adult Jamal met for the first time in Javed’s mansion, is partially fragmented to the audience. Her appearance is scattered, obscured by the glass fixture between rooms. She isn’t fully formed, rather divided into pieces for the audience to digest rather than presented to us as a whole, perhaps in an objectifying way.
Another reading of the framing of this shot could be that the divided and fragmented image of Latika is indicative of her complex, layered character. She must hide these parts of her character away from Javed and the people who control her throughout the film as a slave rather than as an individual. Ultimately Lakita functions as an obligatory and loyal character, a tool to serve the male characters’ corruptive natures (Mulvey, 1975).
The shot of Jamal behind the bars looking through to see Lakita within her western riches is obviously symbolic of his own prison and the castigation he suffers without wealth. Without money he has no access to her or the western world of wonders. We see a male dominated World within the house of Lakita where she is victimised by Khan and seems to be trapped within a western world governed by an oriental man.
The concept of “poverty porn” or “slum voyeurism” can be linked to the works of Freud on fetishism and Lacan on the concept of Mirror Image: In Sigmund Freud’s analysis on “Fetishism,” he argues that a fetish is a – ‘Special form of penis substitute. For the boy who apprehends his mother’s “lack” of a penis as the representation of his own possible castration, the woman’s genitalia generates a “fright” (p. 154), which, Freud surmised, is universal. The woman’s genitalia is henceforth an object of horror and fear for the boy, although the “normal” adult man learns to transform it into an object of desire. For some individuals, such adjustment is impossible, the trauma is too great; in the effort to overcome it, the male psyche finds a substitute, this substitute is the fetish: a “token of triumph over the threat of castration and a safeguard against it”
This is relative to the concept of the enjoyment received through a viewer’s voyeurism into the poverty of the third World. Through Freud’s hypothesis, we can surmise that a Western audience will establish a substitute for their fear of deprivation in the form of ‘poverty porn’ (enjoyment of witnessing third world deprivation), this fetish acts as a token of satisfaction effectively in the triumph over the threat of poverty and acts as a safeguard against it.
Similarly, we can draw on Lacan’s analysis of mirror image: ‘The mirror stage establishes the ego as fundamentally dependent upon external objectsAs the so-called “individual” matures and enters into social relations through language, this “other” will be elaborated within social and linguistic frameworks that will give each subject’s personality (and his or her neuroses and other psychic disturbances) its particular characteristics.’
Drawing upon the fundamentals of ‘mirror image’ we can surmise that the ego of the viewer, being dependent upon what it’s viewing will forego a pleasurable experience in witnessing poverty porn as something alien and avoidable.
Semiotics and General Themes
Film as a medium utilises a language system consisting of aural and visual indexical signs which will be iconic and denotative in order to resemble their referent. These images are in themselves coded and mythic, they depend on the codes of composition, perspective and framing to convey the denotative dimension of photographic realism in order to institute three-dimensional reality within the two dimensional image. The iconic nature of visual signs on screen through narrative, editing, music and composition bear resemblence to what they represent, there exists a unique relationship and connotation of realism. Part of the semiotic function within the contextual analysis of the film is to transport what is the ‘unknown,’ being the culture of Oriental India into the realm of the familiar by denoting it so in familiar ways. Realism is as much a ‘consensual code’ – dependent on the shared acceptance of codes by the audience who allows realism to be connoted and understood. We see this through the use of gangster music, familiar to a western audience, used to denote the corruption of the streets of Mumbai as well as the use of the gameshow who wants to be a millionaire which is a popular quiz programme in the western world, used as a platform of familiarity to narrate the story of the unfamiliar subaltern boy to the audience and educate them about the Eastern World through the channel of questions that Jamal is asked. Realistic cinema has connotations of responsibility, inclusion and community which the East saw as patronising. As well as being authentic or truth to life. It’s political, ideological role lies in cinema’s claim to denote realities within a fictional context. Cinema maintains a mythic identity as responsible to society as it often denotes other societies, showing them in ways which encourage reflection and education on contemporary social life in various parts of the World.
(Bignell, J 2002, pp.131-150)
Barthe’s social phenomenon dictates the importance of mythic attachment, demonstrating how semiotics are used to trigger connotations to more than the Signifier denotes. As opposed to linguistic signs, iconic signs have the property of merging the signifier, signified and referent together. Visual semiotics such as the coca cola bottle, for instance integrate all signified reasoning; the commercialized image, the American dream, the promise of a better life – this is all communicated to us through use of semiotics, regardless of the use of Hindi lexicon, a Western audience will receive the subtext of that shot’s intrinsic message which is one of Western superiority.
(Barthe, 1964, p.p 33-48)
Mythologies use semiotics as the predominant means of metalanguage inanalysing everyday culture where the audience’s pleasure comes from being able to read and identify the stock character’s coded signs. Indexical signs such as grins, sneers and malicious gestures which we see in Maman and Javed so clearly are all indicative, indexical signs connoting corruption; the characters combine these signs in synthases and exaggerate them to emanate the black and white message of the stock characteristics of the villain. (Pandey, A 2010)
The scene in which Jamal is looking on at Lakita in her house of riches is rich in semiotics,
the euphoric value of the initial shot lies in Jamal’s oppression and his restricted access to the Western World of power and choices, this is signified by the use of the bars as a poetic device and is a linguistic metaphor signifying both his and Lakita’s prison. No words are needed in this scene as the symbolic message is sufficient in guiding identification and interpretation. (Barthes)
Exploitation of children is a prominent theme within the film. Children contribute immensely to household survival strategies, generating income for families (Kjhorholt, 2007, p.34)
Slumdog Millionaire is rich in semiotics and paradigms which help enforce the story, the viewer is pervaded by not only linguistic but by visual semiotics throughout the film. The use of colour for instance
is operational – The juxtaposition of the tri-coloured hues of the gold and blue palettes signify the cold verses warm, where the Oriental characters of moral integrity are frequently dressed in yellows and oranges, the gangs are dressed in pastels to show all the goodness and life has been drained out of them. Blue is similarly the signature colour of the Millionaire game show, the colour inside Javed’s house, inside the call centre, where the beggar van is painted yellow on the outside with a blue interior. This connotes the appearance of innocence and hope which attracts the children contrasted to the harsh blue reality of their exploitation once they have been taken by the people of the van. (Syed, B 2009)
Lakita’s yellow sari for instance does not just denote her ethnicity through the use of costume, but connotes hope through the use of colour and influences the viewer’s perception of her character through her religion – a mythic meaning is attached to her person – Indian women are helpless as she has no control over her destiny unless she can break away from the Oriental Caste system which so restricts her. The foreboding ticking of the clock at the start of the film immediately creates a foreboding sensation quickly alternating to a sepia drained mise-en-shot of Jamal being tortured which snaps the audience into the reality of the harsh colourless corruption of India.
Similarly, presenting the good characters in pastel colours and the bad in the dark is not only implemented to enforce a pleasing aesthetic value, but is operational in the anchorage of the elucidation of vibrant Indian culture juxtaposed against the dark, low camera angles imposed to represent the slums. (Barthes, R 1964, pp.32-51)
Variation in interpretations is not anarchic but is polysemous to the individual dependent on different bases of knowledge involved; national, cultural, practical, aesthetic invested in the imge. Each sign corresponds to a body of attitudes with a plurality of lexicons which form a person’s idiolect – each person’s understanding of language is unique, much like the psyche. The knowledge upon which the signs within the opera scene depend are heavily cultural and aesthetic. (Barthes)
Opera is very much a Western form of entertainment it is also connoted with being very high brow which is suggestive of the superiority of the West of the Orient here. The use of diegetic music represents a juxtaposition of cultures – a scene into which the boys do not have access to and no hope of comprehending is beautiful and profound – It is a scene from Orfeo and Eryidice, which depicts the tale of a man so in love with the nymph eryidice he is ready to walk to the depths of hell to bring her back. This is a clear reference to Jamal’s dedication towards Lakita and reflects how even though he cannot understand what they are singing, he can relate to the character. The juxtaposition of Orientalism and Westernism come alive – Here is a boy with the capacity to love like an Orfeus, but he is trapped in the world of the slums where there is no music or hope the fantasy is contrasted with the brutal realism the boys are faced with every day and signifies how there is no escape for the subaltern boys, even in the form of art which often provides great escapism. (Macfarlene, R 2012)
There is also the ideology of ‘Dante’s inferno’ and the concept that Jamal must conquer each deadly sin upon his journey to enlightenment, enforced through the transgression presented from the hellish repression of slum life to the Western World of acceptance and liberalism.
There is a poignant scene where Salim offers Lakita the keys to escape her captivity. There is a shot of low light and the presentation of Salem’s hand holding out the offering. This maintains strong elusion to Michaelango’s ‘The creation of Adam’ painting here where God is supposedly breathing life into man. The semiotic value of this image is intrinsic to the narrative – The painting maintains a Christian depiction, ironically Western,conveying the implication that the integrity of the West has the power to free the East
the foundations of capitalism succumbing to goodness and love. Salim has found the light of his moral integrity and decides to free Lakita from her duty to Orientalism, in saving her, he frees himself. At the end of the film when Salim is killed, his death mirrors the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi. Both were shot in the chest at point blank range, and Salim’s last words – “God is great” – were, according to a number of eye-witnesses, also Gandhi’s. (Stein, K 2013)
The celebrity status of Ambitha at the start is also significant in its establishment of how the slum dwellers glorify the wealthy and famous. Jamal is so enthralled by his appearance from the helicopter (again another aviation symbol representing the freedom so alien to the slums) that he is prepared to reach his hero via any means and approaches him covered in excrement. The power of the Westernised affluent is what is being communicated here and is reinforced through the first question presented to Jamal in the game show, presenting Orientalism as the inferior contrast to Western wealth accumulated. The irony is that by the end of the film Jamal will transgress to this superior power of the celebrity. (Stein, K 2013)
Similarly, the representation of the three musketeers conveys three heroic characters that the oriental boys aspire to emanate, they are a product of Western literature but the boys only know two of their names. Jamal wants to assign Lakita as the third, but he cannot think what the name is,Latika has no musketeer name until the end of the show where Jamal is rewarded the answer to the one question that was so integral to his partnership with Lakita. Latika is initially exposed with an oriental identity, she is then exploited as a prostitute by the name ‘cherry’ – this is highly symbolic of a western, commercialized product and maintains sexual connotations through the mere denotation. Her freedom is only accumulated at the end under the guise of her third identity – the third musketeer, a product of highbrow French literature. Jamal did not need his education to teach him the third name after all as his intuition provides him with the correct answer. There is astute irony in the fact that the one question that he was exposed to learn in his school classes is the one he cannot draw an answer on, but the beauty within the Indian value of ‘kismet’ is that it is his destiny to win regardless of this. (Thompson, K and Bordwell, D 2009)
Conclusion
The highly lucrative production of Slumdog Millionaire has been a result of the filmmaker’s effectively globalized marketing through the use of the English language aside American, Western and European icons with a touch of local colour. The use of spotlighting, synchronization, spectularization and syncretization were all implemented to globalize the product, thus appealing to the masses. Utilisation of semiotics through technical camera work, language and powerful imagery has contributed to the film’s highly controversial nature in exposing Western perspective of authentic Orientalism in a derogatory manner. The film capitalizes upon globalization, Orientalism and integration of universal beliefs in order to appeal to the mass market of consumerism. (Anjali Pandey 2010, Americana).
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