The family of Slumdog Millionaire star Rubina Ali, 12, have lost all their worldly possessions after a fire destroyed their very meager home in a slum of Mumbai. Over 2,000 people were left homeless by the fire and at least 12 were injured. Rubina issued a statement that she’s lost everything, and told CNN that “my awards are gone, my memories are gone.” This begs the question as to why this girl was still living in a slum two years after Slumdog won the Oscar and over a year and a half after her co-star, Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail, was moved to a one bedroom apartment with his brother and parents through a trust set up by producers.
According to an administrator of the trust, they were just a month away from putting Rubina and her family in an apartment, but the water and electricity needed to be installed first. Let’s get this straight – Rubina’s costar Azhar was given an apartment in June, 2009, and it took until March, 2011 and a fire in the slum for the trust to get around to securing an apartment for Rubina’s family. This same thing scenario when Azhar got his apartment too: there was a lot of press surrounding the fact that the Indian government had destroyed Rubina and Azhar’s homes, and then the trust announced with much fanfare that Azhar’s family was getting an apartment. It looks like they “forgot” about Rubina until right after her home was destroyed again.
Slumdog Millionaire” child star Rubina Ali says her home was gutted by a fire that tore through her Mumbai slum.
“There was fire everywhere, there was so much chaos, my house was completely burned down, the whole slum was burned down,” Rubina told CNN on Sunday.
The 12-year old said she was watching TV Friday when her neighbors started yelling “fire, fire!”
She then grabbed everything she could get her hands on and ran out. “But my awards are gone, my memories are gone,” she said.
Ali was referring to the numerous awards she received for her role as the young Latika in the critically acclaimed film that nabbed multiple Academy Awards..
Rubina said the her family is now living in a temporary shelter. Rubina’s father Rafiq Qureshi said they plan to move into a new home provided by a trust set up by the film’s director Danny Boyle next month.
“They were in transit. They were just about to move to an apartment the Jai Ho Trust has allotted for them,” said trustee Nirja Mattoo said. “But as the building is new, they were waiting for the water and electricity to be installed. But unfortunately this incident happened.”
Mattoo confirmed Rubina and the family were still residing in the Garib Nagar slum when the fire broke out.
“Our social worker has been meeting Rubina and her family and assessing the situation,” Mattoo said. “They lost everything except for an LCD TV and some clothes.”
Rubina said she is grateful for the support she and her family have been receiving from the trust.
I get that this issue is complicated, and that there are many more people involved than just these children. Producers may have a legitimate fear that by lifting one family out of poverty they’ll be exploited by friends and other family desperate to leave the slums. In Rubina’s case her father and uncles were caught in a sting operation by News of The World offering to sell her. Still, this little girl has suffered so much. She was even hospitalized for a viral infection in May, 2009 and still had to return to the slum where she still lived afterwards. News reports at the time showed her living in a tin shack.
There’s a trust set up for the children by producers for an unknown amount that they will allegedly have access to if they finish high school. (The trust fund administrators have complained that the children have been skipping school to attend events however.) In the mean time their families receive $130 a month along with $3000 a year. Slumdog Millionaire grossed about $378 million worldwide.
It’s worth noting that there were more than just two child actors in that film but all the reports I’ve read focus on Azhar and Rubina. I hope that producers are making sure that the other child actors have a meager stipend and a trust fund to look forward to, but given the way they’ve treated Rubina so far that’s doubtful.
Danny Boyle is shown with Rubina Ali, Azhar Ismail and some of the other child stars of Slumdog in May, 2009 and October, 2009. Credit: Fame Pictures. They’re also shown at the Oscars in February, 2009. Credit: WENN
Reprehensible. Yeah, it’s complicated, but how many years worth of complicated is it?? They don’t want her/her family taken advantage of but come on – at least put them into some kind of housing until you figure it out. “Slumdog” producers should be ashamed of themselves – and not a ‘Hollywood’ kind of shame, a ‘Humanity’ kind of shame.
This bothers me in so many ways.
Something smells very very wrong herre.
They were caught in a sting operation trying to sell her yet she still lives in the slums? They get money IF they finish highschool? I wonder how difficult it is to go to school everyday when you live with people who try and sell you. There is something very, very wrong here.
I remember reading at the time that the child’s parents had refused several apartment offers (that the producers set up for them) because they were too far from the slum where all their friends and family lived. I think everyone sort of thought they could give these children money and apartments and they would be like Cinderella. I think there were also reports that the girl’s family was selling items/clothing/ etc that had been given to the child for her schooling. I feel sorry for everyone in this case–especially this little girl.
I believe, also, that the other two child actors were from a better economic situation to begin with and were able to handle the transition better than Rubina and Azhar, who were from the slums.
If any of those producers or bigwigs that helped finance Slumdog Millionaire and profited from its enormous success gave up a tenth of what they earn yearly, that little girl would be living like a queen. This seems really strange, but not out of line from what I expect from Hollywood types. They want to act like they give a shit, but at the end of the day, those kids were just a means to a very wealthy end.
From what I remember, Mollyb is right. They tried to get them into new apartments, but the parents kept refusing because they were either too far or in some other way not what they wanted. There were also issues with the fact that the parents were having Rubina go off and do television appearances to cash in on her fame rather than attend school. Honestly, her parents sound shady at best and criminal at worst (trying to sell the girl? Really? Ugh!).
Despicable. They did a job and should get paid fairly for it. And I am curious what happens if the kids don’t graduate high school who gets the money then? This goes against the very heart of that movie.
If the other posters are correct about her parents behavior, this is indeed complicated. Surely there is some way to motivate them to get her to school.
so sad
and angering
Her Father is a bhenchod. He has kept her in the slums because he squanders everything the girl makes.
@ Celebitchy – From what I’ve read, it’s the girl’s father. He’s been a real problem for her, acting like a total divo and as if nothing is good enough. The big-wigs were horrified at the kids’ living situation, but they wanted conditions in place for the trust. For exactly this reason.
Children are a monetary black hole, not a source of income. (Speaking from experience.)
It makes me sick how they have exploited these children.
yes, from what i had read, the girl’s father & stepmother refused to live in the house provided by the producers cuz they wanted the producers to buy them something much bigger for all their relatives. i guess they were getting really greedy. another thing, this girl’s father & stepmother & other male members of the family were caught on undercover camera by a news media org. trying to sell adoption rights to a couple from dubai (who were actually undercover reporters) – to which rubina’s father & stepmother later said there was a misunderstanding. this situation led to rubina’s bio mother coming over & demanding custody of rubina which led to a physical altercation by the stepmother upon the bio mom. so rubina could have lived elsewheres by now, but that was her father’s fault.
i tried to edit my previous comment, but no go, so i’ll just add here that the amount of adoption rights for rubina by the father & the other male family members was reported to be about $250k.
I hate when CB reports on this story. I t always causes alot of hysterical “Wont someone think of the children?” whining. Personally, Im really beginning to feel directors and casting agents need to stop using locals for roles and just go with established actors form an agency. As harsh as it sounds, I do believe things would have been better for everyone involved with this movie if the child roles had gone to professional child actors and not local children. It will cost more upfront, but then you wont be treated to stupid outcries like this, when a majority of people only care for the children they see, and not the two million others living in the exact same slum.
“It makes me sick how they have exploited these children.”
As tempting as it is to blame the big, bad movie producers, in this particular case, Rubina’s family bears much, if not all, of the blame. The producers set up a fund for her education, and attempted to move her family out of the slums and into an apartment, but as other posters have already pointed out, her family continually refused the accommodations. Do you honestly believe that if Rubina had been paid in cash, any of that money would have gone toward providing a better life for her? The father tried to SELL HER, for God’s sake. He would have gone through that money like it was air. At least now she has still has a chance for an education, which is her primary ticket out of there and away from her father and his cronies.
There’s a TV in the tin shack? Huh?
This is heartbreaking and shameful. Where is St. Angie when you need her?
lol chacha
@18. I thought the SAME thing, filthycute! And the family chose to save that o’er the girl’s mementoes (sp)! Too sad…
fuck that, what a disaster. that poor child, and she’s just one of many.
I wish the producers had set up the trust fund for when they turn 18, NOT for when they graduate high school. With her family, it will be a miracle for her to finish, and as others have said, what happens if she doesn’t?
May God bless her and give her a better life, with people who actually care for her well being.
How does Danny Boyle sleep at night?
It would be great if Angelina could have adopted her, maybe follow in her acting footsteps.She actually looks a bit like an Indian Zahara.
A father SELLING his child! *Shakes head in disbelief*
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