Dev Patel was "so excited" to take his mother to the Oscars.
The 26-year-old actor – who lost out on the Best Supporting Actor prize for his role in ‘Lion’ to ‘Moonlight’ star Mahershala Ali – walked the red carpet with his mum Anita by his side and credited her for helping him follow his dreams.
Speaking on the red carpet at Los Angeles’ Dolby Theatre, Dev told Baz Bamigboye for the Daily Mail newspaper: "She encouraged me to act in the first place. She always told me to work hard and do my best and I’ve followed her instructions. She’s worked hard all her life and I hope that I’ve followed her example
"I’m so excited that my mum is my plus one."
And Anita was stunned to be by her son’s side at the glamorous event on Sunday (26.02.17) evening.
She said: "I never thought I’d be here…
"I went to his first audition and today I’m here,"
But Dev felt it was only right he brought along his parent because of the themes of ‘Lion’, in which he plays Saroo Brierley, who tries to trace his Indian birth family after being adopted by an Australian couple.
He told ‘Entertainment Tonight’: "This is a film about mothers and sons and their love.
"So to bring [my mother] you know – I didn’t even think it was going to… fathom that this was going to happen and it has so, I’m very grateful."
The ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ star’s mother insisted she wasn’t surprised by Dev’s success because he has always been "destined" to be an actor.
She recalled of his younger years: "He was a cartoon really. A comic at home as well. He’d make fun of everyone. He could pretend to be anyone really, he’d copy everyone’s accents — he’d make us all laugh."
Dev Patel brought mum to the Oscars
