Salaam Bombay is an Indian Hindi drama released in 1988. It is not only directed but also co-written and co-produced by Mira Nair. This film is a haunting depiction of the dark side of Mumbai. A side which is seldom shown in films, a side often overlooked, thanks to the city’s glamour.
Shafiq Syed plays as Krishna or ‘Chaipau’, a wafer-thin boy hustling around the vicious streets of Mumbai, desperately trying to earn 500 bucks so he could go back home. He meets Chillum, played by Raghubir Yadav, someone who Krishna thinks is his friend but is he really? Both wanting to desperately escape poverty, their dire necessity is what keeps them together. Chillum never had nor wanted any friends, he believed it all to be futile. Though Chillum might have never realised it till the end, Krishna was indeed his friend. I mean, hey, he agreed to rob an old man’s house with a bunch of other kids just so he could help Chillum. And we all know Krishna isn’t the shut-up-you-old-hag-or-you’ll-be-in-big-trouble as he steals stuff from the wardrobe kinda kid.Â
And then, there’s Baba played by Nana Patekar. Although the name ‘Baba’ means father in Marathi, he’s nothing like a father figure. He is terrible to quite literally everyone he interacts with, and not to mention that stunt he pulled with Chillum when that foreign reporter had come. What was that about? His sadistic need to control just about everyone in his life. Didn’t your face have at least a tiny hint of a smile when Krishna stabbed him? Mine sure did. Good riddance.
Rekha, played by Anita Kanwar, on the other hand, is quite the opposite and deeply cares about her daughter as well as Krishna. Manju, played by Hansa Vithal, would always be craving attention from Krishna but he was much more interested in Sola Saal, played by Chanda Sharma. A very timid kid, barely speaks throughout the film and perhaps that’s what makes her character such an intriguing one.
This neorealism film is quite heartbreaking with prominent themes like marginalised groups, poverty, sex work and child labor among others. By the end of the film, you see all the characters making peace with the things they dread the most, which in turn, concludes the sour reality they live in. Unlike other films which feature Bombay, this one wasn’t merciful at all; It certainly doesn’t scream city of dreams. There weren’t very many aerial shots of the city. Every different location in the film seems to have its own set of characters. You probably won’t find any hopeful or much less happy moments throughout the entire film, perhaps apart from the scene where Krishna and Manju are in the police van and the man sitting opposite them says,’ ek din Hindustan mein sab theek ho jaega’. Also, a cleverly subtle commentary about India’s atmosphere at the time.
This film has been nominated for the Academy Award for the Best International feature film at the 61st Academy Awards among many others. After the initial release, on 11 May 1988, Salaam Bombay! was highly praised at the 1988 Cannes Film Festival. This film was also among the list of ‘The Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made’ by The New York Times.
After watching this film, you’ll never look at street kids the same ever again.