Dev Patel talks about his Slumdog Millionaire role

Dev Patel says his ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ role is both a “blessing and a curse”

The 26-year-old actor rose to fame starring in the lead role in the 2008 movie but admits whilst it put him “on the map”, he has to fight against it and “prove he is more than that”.

He told Variety magazine: “It’s a blessing and a curse, that film, for me. It put me on the map and did great things, but you’re fighting against it. To lots of people,

I’m the dude from ‘Slumdog.’ You have to go out there and earn your stripes and prove more than that.”

Meanwhile, Dev previously admitted he felt like he became “a man” when he filmed his latest movie ‘Lion’.

He said: “After the audition, [Davis] said ‘If we decide to go with you. I really want you to change.’ He said he wanted to see a Dev Patel that no one has ever seen before. I become a man, really … Journeys like this don’t come around very often for someone who looks like I do.”

The film has received rave reviews and there is a lot of Oscar buzz surrounding the drama, which also stars Nicole Kidman.

Speaking about the “flattering” Oscar buzz, Dev shared: “It’s totally flattering, but I didn’t sign up for this role because I thought I was going to get an Oscar. That was the last thing on my mind. When I read the script, I was a puddle of tears. I couldn’t believe this was a true story. We were all in it because we loved these people, and we wanted to live in their skin for a year of our lives.”