Channel 4, Dispatches: The Slumdog Children of Mumbai

Following our national press coverage on the release of Slumdog Millionaire in 2009, we were approached by a film company called True Vision who work on behalf of Channel 4 and film the ‘Dispatches’ documentary series.

True Vision contacted us for more information as they were looking to produce a documentary entitled ‘The Slumdog Children of Mumbai’. We assisted with their research and set up a visit to Railway Children in India for the producer. The film was broadcast on Channel 4 at 9pm on January 21st 2010.

Channel 4 also held a preview the evening before broadcast at the Royal Society of Arts in London which included a panel session that featured on the Channel 4 News. We were invited to sit on the panel alongside the film director, the producer, a senior representative from Plan International and the news presenter. Mrinalini, our Programme Director for India, represented Railway Children. We’re over the moon at this fantastic recognition of our work.

The broadcast, which was watched by over 2 million viewers, resulted in an instant and overwhelming response. We’ve received over £2,000 in one-off donations, and gained 124 new regular donors.

Regular donors are particularly good news for us, because they provide regular, sustainable income that allows us to plan for the future. The money we’ll receive from our new regular donors will indefinitely sustain the activities of one of our partners. If you’re one of our new donors, we’d like to thank you for your support. If you’re not a regular donor but would like to become one, please click here to sign up.

If you missed the film, you can still catch it here, along with the panel session in which we participated. www.channel4.com/dispatches