Director elated over acclaim for Smile Pinki

Bagging the Oscar for her documentary on the pilght of a cleft-lip afflicted Indian girl, director Megan Mylan on Monday hoped its success will bring light to the lives of four million children suffering from the problem.

Mylan, who had shot her documentary in Varanasi, the cultural capital of India and Mirzapur, the home town of the little girl, Pinki, told PTI over phone from Los Angeles that "I feel very happy and fortunate that my real story on the plight of cleft-lip children has got due recognition."

"This is the happiest moment of my life, as I could transform the life of a small child from a little known wonderful place and even win an Oscar for that cause," the producer-director said.

Smile Pinki", the tale of a Uttar Pradesh girl and her fight against the social stigma of a cleft-lip, won the Oscar award for Best Documentary (Short).

"The success of the documentary may bring light of hope in the lives of over four million cleft-lip children all over the world," she said describing her experience in Varanasi and Mirzapur as amazing.