Danny Boyle’s “Slumdog Millionaire” has already won big in terms of prestigious awards. However, as the Academy Awards ceremony is approaching, the buzz surrounding the film increases and many movie critics admit their preference for the Indian production.

 

Although “Slumdog Millionaire” was the first Indian film to win a Golden Globe and a record number of prizes and nominations at the high-status Bafta ceremony, it is widely believed that the movie will score big at the upcoming Oscars, as it has received several nominations which oppose it to prominent masterpieces such as “The Reader” and “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.”

 

While the success of the film helped its actors and musicians land into a glare of publicity, the film’s technicians could expect cinematic magnificence as well. Take Resul Pookutty for example, who won the Bafta award for sound design for “Slumdog Millionaire” along with Glenn Freemantle, Richard Pryke, Tom Sayers and Ian Tapp.

Thus, the sound technicians who recorded on location and editing and tested sound effects throughout post-production, have drawn attention ever since their enormous accomplishment.

 

These people, who are generally called in India sound engineers, sound technicians or sound designers, do not always have the same duties, since their jobs depend on the artistic liberty they benefit from and are permitted to obtain. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that their obligations vary from simply recording and adjusting to composing, combining, editing sounds, as well as dubbing and composing background scores.

 

Resul Pookutty, a graduate of the exalted Film and Television Institute of India, has been working in the film sound industry for more than a decade and has contributed to various big screen productions. He has already attained a glorious status in India and is broadly believed to be a favorite in the Oscar race this year.

 

Resul Pookutty and three other sound technicians work in the former’s studio, which is located in suburban Mumbai.

 

Amrit, who collaborated with Resul Pookutty on “Slumdog Millionaire,” told the BBC that more than 50 or 60 sounds are combined in order to give life to a particular sound which may not go on for more than 20 seconds. In addition, he informed the source that in spite of the fact that being a sound engineer usually implies hard work and long hours, people fail to acknowledge these merits and barely observe their efforts. He explained that “Slumdog Millionaire” “was not an easy film to do” and that although the film did not benefit from a very impressive budget, “it was one of the most advanced” in conditions of technicality.

 

Nevertheless, all the hard work helped “Slumdog Millionaire” reach an unprecedented spot. And everybody hopes for its success to increase from now on as well.