GOA CHIEF minister Digambar Kamat has congratulated Slumdog Millionaire and Smile Pinky team for winning the prestigious Oscar Awards. The entire Slumdog team, he said, deserves a big pat for the success and bringing laurels to India and creating a history. They have made the country proud.

Kamat conveyed his special wishes to AR Rahman for making the world dance to the Indian tune, sound-mixer Resul Pookutty and Gulzar (lyricist) and the Varanasi girl Pinki after the documentary based on her life won the Oscar award. India's excellence in films is no secret and sky is the limit for our achievements. Slumdog Millionaire he said has finally put India on the global map of films.

Kamat said he wants to promote Goan film makers to produce quality films. The success of Indian films at the international level will definitely motivate Goan producers to come to that level. He said that the government also wants to promote Goa as a peaceful destination for film shooting. Efforts of the state government he said are focused towards creating a world class film infrastructure in Goa.