Occasionally, those dishing out awards actually get it right. 'Slumdog Millionaire' deserves all the hype…and more. If there is one movie you watch this year — make that this decade — let this be it.

Director Danny Boyle ('Trainspotting') tells a tale of unimaginable sorrow in such a beautiful way that, while the tragedy of a life marked by extreme poverty and hardship slips into your heart and subtly changes your perception of the universe, you leave the cinema celebrating the triumph of the human spirit.

With the help of cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle, writer Simon Beaufoy ('The Full Monty'), editor Chris Dickens, an evocative score by A.R. Rahman, a cast of talented actors and the slums of Mumbai, Boyle creates a visual masterpiece. Throbbing with energy, saturated colour, innovative shots and infused an inexplicable lightness, the film portrays life in all its diverse, serendipitous, brilliant, heart-wrenchingly tragic glory.

Jamal Malik (Dev Patel) is a young man from the slums of Mumbai who, through a series of unlikely events has found himself on the Indian version of 'Who wants to be a Millionaire?'. Even more unlikely, however, is the fact that he seems to be answering all the questions correctly. When he is one question away from the ultimate prize of 20-million-rupees, the show takes a break for the evening and Jamal is immediately arrested on the suspicion of cheating.

Subjected to various forms of torture and interrogation, Jamal eventually begins to reveal how it is that he knows the answers to every question. Each question prompts a trip into the past. The story that unfolds in disjointed segments follows the life of Jamal, his older brother Salim (Mahur Mittal) and a slum girl called Latika (Freida Pinto), as they struggle to survive the cruel realities of being orphans in a slum.

Unconditional love, friendship, bravery, determination, hope and triumph somehow find a place in a world of squalor, hate, abuse and betrayal.

'Slumdog Millionaire' is storytelling at its best. Don't let a few awards and over-zealous reviewers put you off…