Salaam Bombay! (1988)

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Banished from his home and abandoned by the travelling circus he sought refuge in, 11-year-old Krishna (Shafiq Syed) joins the swathes of dispossessed Mumbai street children struggling to survive. To earn the money he needs to get back into his mother's good graces and return home, Krishna finds work as a tea boy – a job that brings him into contact with an array of local characters, including prostitutes, pimps and drug-dealers.

Salaam Bombay! is the heartrending and impassioned debut fiction feature by director Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding) and her frequent collaborator Sooni Taraporevala. With a cast of real-life street children, this celebration of the spirit of survival is an authentic and unflinching portrayal of India's impoverished underbelly.