Topic > Cultural Diffusion in Slumdog Millionaire

Cultural Diffusion is present massively throughout the modern world, people in foreign nations have similar experiences to those in the United States despite being thousands of miles away. Television and social media bring people together in many ways by enabling cultural diffusion, but in many cases cultural diffusion is initiated by nations that dominate over others. “Slumdog Millionaire” is based in India, a nation that was once controlled and run by the British Empire. Although British colonialism in India ended in 1947, many aspects of British culture remained, including language, pop culture, and television. In "Slumdog Millionaire" Jamal explains his life story and how he managed to win 20 million rupees on the TV show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. The show itself exemplifies the effect of the British on Indian culture as well as the questions asked of Jamal throughout the film. As a result, “Slumdog Millionaire” is key to highlighting the vast amount of cultural diffusion found throughout the modern world. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get Original Essay Jamal was a poor farmer who faced many struggles throughout his life, he truly experienced hardship after hardship and the opportunity to be “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” was a once in a lifetime. The questions that were asked to Jamal they were extremely random and strange that a peasant like him would already know, many had to do with foreign ideas For example, Jamal was asked the name of the third musketeer in the film "The Three Musketeers" by Alexander Dumas was one French writer, not Indian. Jamal knew the answer to this question because, as a child, he was forced to learn about the characters in the book by his teacher. This shows how European literature had somehow found a way to maintain relevance and infiltrate the Indian company Furthermore, in the film, Jamal and Salim are offered two bottles of coke by Maman in an attempt to gain the trust of the two boys. Although it seems like a simple bottle of coke, it shows how popular American products are in other nations, it's a common drink over there that people like as much as people like in the United States. As a result, it can be seen that cultural diffusion is present in this film, but many other examples can be found. A prime example of globalization is the simple fact that English is spoken in India, there are many cultural groups in India that speak a variety of languages ​​and yet English is what many know and want to learn. Additionally, Jamal works as an assistant in a call center speaking to people in the UK. The entire workspace is dedicated to British culture and workers speak with Scots, English, Irish and even Welsh. This is a huge example of cultural diffusion, it shows that India desires to have a mentality and culture similar to that of Western nations. Finally, the film exemplifies how India was increasingly becoming a tourist destination. As India attracts more tourists to places like the Taj Mahal, cultures will intersect and ideas and concepts will combine and mix. Jamal and Salim begin to set up their own business at the Taj Mahal, allowing them to mingle with Americans, English and other prominent Western peoples. Jamal received a $100 American bill, something he had never experienced, yet he knew the importance of different currencies. Jamal knew that American money was worth much more, exemplifying how Western culture was praised and mixed into Indian society. Please note: this is just an example..