Defamation case against A.R. Rahman, Anil Kapoor

An office bearer of a slum dwellers' body has filed a defamation case against music director A R Rahman and actor Anil Kapoor alleging that the award winning film Slumdog Millionaire calls Indians dogs and slum dwellers slum dogs.

In a complaint filed before a local court in Patna, Tapeshwar Vishwakarma, general secretary of Slum-dwellers Joint Action Committee, has alleged that the film depicted slum dwellers in bad taste as it used the derogatory and objectionable title Slumdog Millionaire thus calling Indians dogs and slum dwellers slum dogs, which is defamatory.

While posting the case for hearing on February 5, chief judicial magistrate Raghvendra Kumar Singh directed Vishwakarma to produce evidence in support of his complaint.

The meaning of Slumdog Millionaire in Hindi is the millionaire dog of slum dwellers, Vishwakarma alleged, adding that such a name was a violation of human rights and honour.

Vishwakarma said he has already approached the national and state human rights commissions for necessary action against Rahman and Kapoor. Kapoor portrays the role of a game show host in the film.

Slumdog Millionaire, which tells the rags-to-riches tale of an orphan from a Mumbai slum, won four Golden Globe awards, including one for Rahman, and has been nominated for 11 BAFTAs.