Desi Making Waves

By Elaine G. Flores

Dev Patel: One to Watch

Critically Acclaimed Slumdog Millionaire Launches Newbie Star to the Big Screen

Director Danny Boyle's upcoming movie, Slumdog Millionaire, is already generating Oscar buzz. The ambitious film based on the novel Q&A by Vikas Swarup tells the tale of a poor, uneducated street kid from Mumbai who may be on the cusp of winning the jackpot in the Hindi version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire. The stunning movie rests largely on the shoulders of Brit newcomer Dev Patel, who stars as Jamal. The young actor is best known as Anwar in the English teen drama Skins on E4. We caught up with the performer when he was in New York City on a press tour for the movie, which opens in limited release on November 12th and expands to additional cities in the weeks following.

Your character goes from impoverishment to being caught up in organized crime to overnight celebrity to torture victim. Talk about a stretch!
Of course, that's an understatement. I mean it's a massive opportunity. Things like this don't come around every day, you know … I'm truly blessed with a great director, and the script is truly original. And the character's brilliant; you never get things like this every day. Especially coming from being in a minor role on a show on E4 in London and being put on a massive feature film with Danny Boyle out in India. It's just a whole different ballgame.

How did Boyle discover you?
I think they were having trouble casting the lead guy, and then his daughter saw me on Skins and said, “Why don't you give this guy a go? He may be all right.” So they put me on tape, and Danny saw the tape and liked me, so I met him in person and auditioned from there.

You're a gold medalist in tae kwon do championships. Did you draw on your martial arts skills for any of the scenes in the movie?
I loved those. I really relished those bits where I got to run somewhere or do something. I really loved doing those scenes where he is under tension and he's got to get somewhere in time. There's a scene at VT Station, Victoria Terminus, where Jamal's brothers and his goons get Latika [Jamal's love interest] and Jamal's chasing after her. Obviously, martial arts really helped me. I was running so fast the steady cam guy couldn't even keep up with me, which was quite funny. I really got into those scenes.

You had to go through a lot of range in this role. Innocence. Tough guy. Romantic lead. What was the most challenging part?
When I read it, the thing that drew me to him was that at nine-years-old or something like that, he watched his mother get clubbed to death. And then he and his brother had to fend for their lives. After that, it was just empty. His innocence remains and he's experienced so much at such a young age … he shouldn't have been made to grow up at that age. But his brother gets enticed by gangs and the power that you can get with gangs and guns and women and drugs and money. But Jamal manages to stay pure, and it's just amazing how he manages to rise above and stay untainted. That part was a stretch to be honest.

What was the hardest part: action sequences or dancing?
Oh God, I love the action sequences. I've done the tae kwon do for ages. Physically, I know I can exert myself. The dancing is something else. That's more to do with my inhibitions because I don't dance really. And when Danny told me I was dancing, I had no confidence at the start, and I think everyone was banging their heads against the wall, thinking, “How are we going to get this guy to dance?” But by the end of it, I warmed to it. By the end of it, I really got into it. I think the hardest part of dancing is selling it with your face, because, physically I could do it, but it's the smiling the big cheesy smile, which was hard to do.

What reaction have you had from your TV fans?
I don't know really. I don't have that many fans, to be honest. So I don't know.

That might be different now.
I don't know. I'm not expecting much.

Well, you're probably going to have a lot more female fans now. So, I have to ask, are you seeing anyone?
No, I'm single. I'm still just a little baby.

You live in London; how much have you been traveling to promote the film?
Man, it's been wicked. I haven't traveled that much before, and the film has helped me to see the world. It's my first time in New York and America. It's crazy because I've played all these video games, and all of the good ones are based in New York—you see all the streets. And then I was finally here and riding a taxi down to the hotel, and it was crazy. There were all these rappers and stuff like that. I was like, "Man, it's here. It's really happening."

What's the farthest you've traveled before?
When I was a little kid, I went to Kenya. And India and that's the farthest I've been.

How much time did you spend shooting in India?
I was there and back for five months.

How long had you spent there previously?
I just went for a family wedding prior to that, which wasn't in Mumbai. But when you stay there, you won't forget it in a rush.

Who are your icons?
I've got quite a few, actually. I love Leonardo DiCaprio. I think he's a great actor; I love the intensity in his eyes and his performances. Actually, doing a movie and knowing how hard it is, you can hit the intensity, but to keep it going a whole day is something else. It comes from experience, I think, and he's great. On the other spectrum, I really like Jim Carrey, and I think comedy-wise, he's a great, great actor who manages to be so funny—and at the same time you can empathize with his characters and feel sorry for them in a way that's just crazy. No one else can do what he can do. Personality-wise, I'm a fan of Will Smith. I think he's a cool guy.

What types of role would you like to do next? You managed to do a lot in this movie: musical, romance, drama.
I would love to do something where I use a lot of my body, action or drama, where I stretch myself. The great thing about being an actor is that you experience things that you've never experienced. I was 17 doing the film and I got to experience these things in a controlled environment — well, as controlled as it gets with Danny Boyle. I would love to do a thriller, or an action thing would be wicked. If I was the new Bourne. Bourne Patel. Make a spin-off, Asian Bourne.

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