After weighing the implications of bringing its youngest, poorest Indian actors to the Academy Awards, the makers of "Slumdog Millionaire" have decided to do so, and now expect the film's entire cast to arrive in time for Sunday night's Oscar ceremony.
If the film wins the best picture Oscar, all nine of the youthful performers are expected to join producer Christian Colson on the stage of the Kodak Theatre.
Colson, distributor Fox Searchlight and director Danny Boyle had worried that a trip to Los Angeles for the Screen Actors Guild Awards (where "Slumdog Millionaire" won the ensemble prize) and the Oscars (where "Slumdog Millionaire" has 10 nominations) might further complicate the already difficult lives of two children cast from Mumbai's slums.
Those "Slumdog Millionaire" costars are Rubina Ali, who plays the film's youngest Latika, and Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail, who plays its youngest Salim. (The film's other child actors are middle- and upper-class residents of either India or England.)
