'Most media texts target a range of different audiences'. How true is this for Slumdog Millionaire?

Slumdog Millionaire is unique, in that it doesn't simply target one specific audience; but rather a huge range. Very few films are able to do this well, however Slumdog executed it brilliantly.

       It's main feature appeal would be it's conventional narrative of a love-story, alongside side a commercialized block-buster film. It's advertising was conventional in the sense that it is extremely traditional and fitting for the romantic drama genre, therefore people who are a fan of this genre would find the film to be extremely appealing.  However, this narrative has been created in an unconventional and unique way. Using three linear story lines which all come to a collective end, the audience is able to see numerous different elements of the main characters lives. Boyle specifically chose no huge names for this film, and so this would specifically appear to people of a less mainstream audience, who enjoy discovering new talent or unseen actors. The film setting itself of India, and more specifically Mumbai would also offer as a novelty to many people. Having such an unconventional setting for such a Westernized film is rarely done in today’s society; and so therefore many people would enjoy discovering a new place and watching their expectations be either met or not in what they already believed regarding India.

      One element of a film that is increasingly difficult to create is a ‘social buzz’. However, Slumdog achieved this and more. The amount of rewards the film received is justifiable to this, including the more iconic Academy Awards. It was a ‘must-see’ film, and would have been seen by many who simply heard about it from word of mouth.

       The setting of India itself would also have encouraged fans from the place it was set to see the film. The narrative ‘from rags to riches’ would definitely have been appealing to them, and so therefore would have created a much wider audience.

         Finally, those who were fans of Danny Boyle himself, and his work as an auteur would also be encouraged to see the film. Though this audience would have been extremely limited, it still definitely adds to the overall target audience of Slumdog Millionaire.