Rival studios trying to sabotage Slumdog’s Oscar chances?

New York, Feb 02: The mounting criticism surrounding Oscar-frontrunner ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ is believed to be the result of negative campaigning from rival studios, which are trying to sabotage the film’s chances of winning the prestigious award.

According to a story by LA Times, the Indian audiences were not impressed with the movie`s "white man" depiction of the subcontinent as a land of squalor and corruption. It also attracted criticism for portraying India as "third world dirty underbelly". Director Danny Boyle and producer Christian Colson are also tackling the accusations for underpaying its child actors Rubina Ali and Azharuddin Ismail, and they were still living in poverty with no access to education. However, according to Britain’s news daily, Boyle and Colson refuted the claims insisting that welfare of the child actors was the top priority of people working at the critically acclaimed film. "Due to the exposure and potential jeopardy created by the unwarranted press attention, we are looking into additional measures to protect Azhar and Rubina and their families,” the Fox Searchlight said in a statement. The film, which tracks the story of an 18-year-old boy from rags-to-riches, has been nominated in 10 categories at the Academy Awards. Although there`s no proof that Fox rivals are behind any of the slams, some within the studio are convinced it is dirty trickery. "It`s a sad state of affairs for the industry that the race for Oscar has to come down to this level," a news daily quoted an insider as telling the LA Times. ANI