Hollywood star Dev Patel was the guest of honour at an event that recognises people for their inspiring work. The intimate ceremony, attended by around 120 guests, was held at Play restaurant, in the H Hotel, Dubai, on Tuesday night.
Patel was being recognised by Chivas Icons for his Lionheart Campaign, which helps charities that support the rehabilitation of street children in India. The campaign was partly inspired by his Oscar-nominated movie Lion. The actor spoke about the importance of the project and how his character Saroo was one of the luckier children on India’s streets. “There are millions of children that have a far worse fate than Saroo,” he said during a Q&A session.
In Lion, Patel plays a lost Indian boy who is tragically separated from his family in India and is then adopted by an Australian couple. He then traces his way back home as an adult. The film was adapted from the book, A Long Way Home, by Saroo Brierley.
At the Dubai event, Patel was his awkward but cheerful self as he navigated himself through tables of people congratulating him. Bashful as the host spoke about his achievements, he spoke about his journey as an actor, his favourite movie and more.
The 27-year-old credited his mother as being one of the main reasons he became an actor, saying that had it not been for her making the decision to take him to his first audition for the British TV series Skins, he might never have taken that step.
He also spoke about his experience dealing with fame, recounting the moment he knew things were changing.
“I was on my way to Central London and my [face] was on the front page of the Metro on the train. One by one, everyone looks at the paper and starts to recognise [me]. That was confronting as a 17-year-old. That was the moment I felt a shift,” he said.
Speaking about success, Patel added: “Success is like an energy and that energy needs to be shared, To have it within arm’s reach and not be able to grasp it is important.”
He also stressed that he has always been drawn to films that have a social message and can create a change in society.
Before taking the stage, Patel spoke to Gulf News tabloid! about the impact Lion has had on him and his future projects.
Can you tell us more about the Lionheart Campaign?
The campaign was created in conjunction with the film and the film has really changed my life in an amazing way. To be able to give back to the essence of what the story is about, which is adoption and taking children from the streets of India and giving them a second chance at life, that’s really important.
How has Lion changed you as an actor?
To find a story as rich as that one, there are very few. And to be able to work with a director like Garth Davis, who I think is one of the legends, and tell a story that is born from Australia and India and for it to be recognised on a such a global scale like that is life-changing. It’s changed my career and allowed to me to step into the roles of a character that is really soulful and full of pain.
A lot of your films have connections to Indian culture. Are you in touch with your Indian roots?
Yes and no. I’ve grown up eating Indian food, when my mother’s angry she’ll shout at me in Gujarati. But I embraced it more when I went to visit India, shooting Slumdog. That’s when I really fell in love and understood the culture. I hadn’t really visited India before that, I went when I was very young but you can’t really absorb stuff when you’re so young.
Tell us about your next project, Hotel Mumbai.
We’ve finished filming it. It’s in the editing process right now. It’s a true life story that is really personal to me. I’d left India [after Slumdog Millionaire] and arrived home and saw my parents in front of the television crying, that’s when the Taj attacks were happening. When there [were] whisperings of a movie, I really wanted to make sure they told it with some sensitivity and it just so happened that the director was writing a role for me.
The night ended with a silent auction, the proceedings from which will be donated to the Lionheart campaign.
—Anieka Sequeira is an intern at Gulf News.
