The film Slumdog Millionaire has been criticized for showing the underbelly of life in Bombay Mumbai. Like Beijing, Mumbai is going through rapid transformation as India’s economy develops and one by one the slums are replaced with skyscrapers.

But Vikas Swarup, author of the book Q&A which inspired the film, insists it is mainly a story of hope and survival.

How can a child of the slums know enough to win a quiz show? This prejudice is the founding premise of the book and film.

In an interview on BBC World (unfortunately it doesn’t seem to be online) Swarup explained that he was surprised to see how Indian slum children have embraced the internet.

Mumbai may have its underbelly - where doesn’t? - but that shouldn’t make us underestimate those who live there.

While we´re on the subject of India, an excellent slideshow from Guardian Unlimited looks at another side of India´s economic success. Dharavi in Mumbai is famous for being the largest slum in Asia, however it is also full of entrepreneurs. According to this article in 2006 Dharavi had a total economic output of over 1bn US dollars. Amongst other activities, it is the centre of recycling for Mumbai.

Another article on Dharavi, from the Economist, focuses not only on the small businesses that thrive within the slum, but also on government plans to destroy the existing buildings in the area and replace them with high rise flats.