Sanjay Austa

Salim…Young Terrorist’s big Bollywood dreams

He lives in a Delhi slum and says he has no clue what the Oscars are all about. And ever since The Little Terrorist, in which he plays the protagonist, became the first Indian short film to be nominated for an Oscar, he has been besieged by journalists and photographers alike. Salim, the thirteen-year old class Vll student and a ragpicker in his spare time, is bewildered by all the attention. The film may have missed the Oscar, but his friends treat him like Shah Rukh Khan. The 15-minute film has already won awards for the best film at Montreal World Film Festival, Manhattan Film Festival, Flanders Film Festival and Tehran International Short Film Festival.

As The Little Terrorist…Fifteen minutes of fame

He is thirteen and is not familiar with all the hoopla surrounding the Oscars. And ever since The Little Terrorist, in which he plays the protagonist, became the first Indian short film to be nominated to the Academy awards, he has been besieged by journalists who scribble everything he says and by photographers who ask him to pose in a million different ways. And though the film may have missed the Oscar, Salim seems set for a career on the Bollywood fringes and his friends treat him like Shah Rukh Khan.

The teenager is bewildered by all the attention. Growing up in a Delhi slum, neglect was what he has been more accustomed to. His father Kalan doubles up as a cart-puller and a rag picker and is alcoholic and prone to beating his wife.

Salim and his eleven siblings have known that it is best to keep out of their father’s way. When he was four he got lost during a Muharram procession and the Salaam Balak Trus - an NGO for street children set up from donations from Mira Nair’s award-winning film Salaam Bombay - took him under its wing. After two years the NGO managed to trace his parents. But his father not only discontinued his education, he also made him work as a rag picker. The NGO stepped in again and since then has taken care of Salim.

Thus if you ask the thirteen-year-old, now a student of class seven in a government school in Delhi - how it feels to have worked in an Oscar nominated film, he mutters a tepid response, " It was good." He does not know what it implies nor is he very keen to know. "I know my aukaat," he says pointing to his father’s shanty in the slum. Yes, he says stoically, " I know my background. I know where I come from. I am a ragpicker’s son. It is my good fortune I was selected to act in The Little Terrorist," says Salim who was paid Rs. 7000 (around $ 150) for his seven days of shooting for the film.

The movie, written, directed and produced by Ashvin Kumar was shot on a shoestring budget in Rajasthan. `Little Terrorist' is based on a true story of a 10-year-old Pakistani boy, who accidentally crosses the mine-strewn border into India in pursuit of his cricket ball, and takes refuge with a Brahmin family in India, even as the army launches a massive manhunt for him. The 15-minute film has already won awards for the best film at Montreal World Film Festival, Manhattan Film Festival, Flanders Film Festival and Tehran International Short Film Festival. In a recent press conference, the film's producer and director Ashvin Kumar, said, ''though the setting of my film is political, the essential theme is that of humanity."

Salim is happy with the money he got for his efforts and gave it all to his mother Gudia, who is burdened with the responsibility of running the kitchen. "I did not give the money to my father as he would spend it all on alcohol. My mother has invested the money in a small plot of land to build a house," he says.

It was harder for his family to come to terms with Salim’s newfound status. "Kalan, my father just dismissed it off as a lie. It was only when he saw journalists coming to me for interviews that he began to take me seriously," he says.

Kalan has eleven kids from his two wives. Though he was scathing in his criticism of Salaam Balak Trust when it took Salim away from him, he now wants the NGO to adopt some more of his kids. That’s because Salim signed the movie through this NGO. "It would be nice to have a few more stars in the family," he smiles baring his betel stained teeth.

Salim’s parents have not watched the film as it involves arranging a computer or a video player to play the CD which is a big task for those eking out a living in the slums. But with the press and TV journalists hanging around their jhuggies they are convinced that Salim has done something big.

The Little Terrorist, however, is not Salim’s first foray into the media. He has been part of television serials such as Khullam Khulla and Kahani Jurm Ki - all thanks to the Salam Balak Trust. But perhaps his biggest break will be in Ashvin Kumar’s next film –The Forest - a 90-minute film in which he has a major role.

Ask Salim what he wants to become when he grows up and he predictably says an actor. However he has no idea how he can establish himself. Kapil Dev - not the former cricketer but his acting coach who himself rose from the streets to become a theatre activist and actor - has high hopes from Salim. "He is a natural actor. He has the requisite confidence to act," he says.

Now it remains to be seen whether Salim can convert this Little chance into a big acting opportunity.