Salaam Bombay!

1988 1h 53m HI

👍

7.3

SOLID

★7.3TMDB · 132

CrimeDrama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

When a revengeful Krishna destroys his brother's motorbike, his mother asks him to return home only when he earns INR 500 to repair it. In a turn of events, he finds himself in a Bombay slum.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Shafiq Syed
Krishna / Chaipau
Hansa Vithal
Manju Golub
Chanda Sharma
Sola Saal
Anita Kanwar
Rekha Golub
Nana Patekar
Baba Golub
Anjaan
Child at the Circus
Amrit Patel
Circus Boss
Irrfan Khan
Letter Writer

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Mira Nair
Writers: Mira Nair, Sooni Taraporevala, Sooni Taraporevala
Languages: English, Hindi
Countries: France, India

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $0.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Grossed $7M — a 16.5× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

38 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Hindi.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: France, India.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Mira Nair, shot by Sandi Sissel. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by L. Subramaniam. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Barry Alexander Brown shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Mira Nair directs. Sandi Sissel behind the camera. L. Subramaniam scores. Barry Alexander Brown cuts. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in France, India. Dialogue in English, Hindi.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $0.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Grossed $7M — a 16.5× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.
338 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
4Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Hindi.
5International production across 2 countries: France, India.
6Directed by Mira Nair, shot by Sandi Sissel. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
7Original score by L. Subramaniam. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
8Editor Barry Alexander Brown shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
9Shafiq Syed and Hansa Vithal and Chanda Sharma carry the top of the cast.
10IMDB entry: tt0096028 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Released under 12 different titles around the world.