Slumdog actor gets a flat

Noshir Dadrawala, spokesman for the Jai Ho Trust, states that the Trust has bought a 250 sq ft flat in Vile Parle for Slumdog Millionaire actor Azharuddin Ismail. "We signed the papers on Monday (June 8). We have the keys and we will hand them to the family on Tuesday,” he told The Hindustan Times (HT) on June 2009. This will be the young actor’s first home. At present he resides in a shanty in a Bandra slum. Earlier, the actor’s father had said he would not live in a flat that was in his son’s name, but Dadrawala informed HT "he doesn’t seem to be worried now.”

"This is a moment of great pride and joy for me today,” the Bombay Parsi Punchayet (BPP) trustee wrote in an e-mail sent to Parsiana. "I am not sure when our 104 Parsi applicants will be housed by the BPP,” he added, referring to the housing dilemma facing the community.

Rubina Ali and Azha-ruddin Ismail: from a slum to a proper home

Dadrawala refused to disclose to HT how much the flat had cost but revealed that the Trust had managed to raise more than the Rs 10 lakh budgeted for each flat. According to The Indian Express (IE) of June 12, 2009, the one-bedroom-hall-kitchen flat is "reportedly worth Rs 25 lakh.” The actor’s mother Shamima told IE: "Once the plastering work is done, we will be moving into the house. We have seen the house and it’s perfect. Our family will have a strong roof over our heads when this year’s monsoon arrives.”

The Jai Ho Trust is still looking for a flat for the other Slumdog actor Rubina Ali, but her family has been "very finicky about where they want to move,” according to HT.

The Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) has reportedly also offered a flat of 180 sq ft worth four lakh rupees in Malvani to the child actor. "They can keep both the houses if they want to. The property will be in the Trust’s name until they are 18, then it will be transferred to the children,” Dadrawala explained to HT. "There is a clause in our agreement and in the MHADA one which says the flat cannot be sold until they are 18.”