Kiran Rao's 'Laapata Ladies' was selected as India's official entry for the Best International Feature Film category. However, the film did not make the shortlist.
Published Jan 07, 2025 | 3:34 PM ⚊ Updated Jan 07, 2025 | 3:34 PM
'Aadujeevitham', 'Kanguva', 'All We Imagine As Light' in the Oscars race. (X)
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, on Tuesday, 7 January, revealed the list of 323 feature films eligible for this year’s Oscars. Out of these, 207 films have met the eligibility requirements for the prestigious Best Picture category.
Among the 207, six Indian films have made it to the list. They are: Kanguva (Tamil), Aadujeevitham (The Goat Life) (Hindi), Santosh (Hindi), Swatantrya Veer Savarkar (Hindi), All We Imagine as Light (Malayalam-Hindi) and Girls will be Girls (Hindi-English).
The nomination voting process for the Oscars will commence on 8 January, and conclude on 12 January. The final list of nominees will be revealed on 17 January. The Academy Awards ceremony is set to take place on 2 March, at the Dolby Theatre in Ovation Hollywood.
Kiran Rao’s Laapata Ladies was selected as India’s official entry for the Best International Feature Film category. However, the film did not make the shortlist.
A day after losing at the Golden Globes, Grand Prix award winner All We Imagine As Light made its place on the contender’s list.
The Malayalam-English film directed by Payal Kapadia, starring Kani Kusruti, Divya Prabha, and Chayya Kadam is about three working women in Mumbai. The film follows the women, as they navigate love, sisterhood and loneliness.
It was also featured on the BAFTA longlist, it received three nods— Best Director, Original Screenplay and Best Film not in the English language. Sight and Sound magazine named All We Imagine As Light the best film of 2024. The film was also named the Best International Film at the New York Film Critics Circle (NYFCC).
Apart from this, All We Imagine As Light also won the Best International Feature trophy at the reputed Gotham Awards 2024.
“All We Imagine As Light is a daring and sincere movie from Payal Kapadia that speaks about the lives of three working-class women in Mumbai. The movie is realistic to its core and is definitely a masterpiece,” our review read.
Blessy-directed Aadujeevitham (The Goat Life), starring Prithviraj Sukumaran, has become a major success in the Malayalam film industry, earning over ₹150 crore worldwide. The film, based on Benyamin’s popular novel, depicts the real-life experiences of Najeeb, a Kerala expat who faced harsh conditions while working as a slave in Saudi Arabia.
Blessy’s adaptation presents his unique vision rather than a direct retelling of the book.
The film’s music composer AR Rahman in November 2024 won the prestigious Hollywood Music in Media Awards 2024 for the background score of Aadujeevitham: The Goat Life in the Independent Film (Foreign Language) category. The awards are also considered a precursor to the Oscars.
“Aadujeevitham (The Goat Life) is a masterpiece crafted by Blessy. The magnificent performance by Prithviraj and the delightful music by AR Rahman elevate it further,” read our review.
Suriya’s Kanguva, released in November also has been named in the contender’s list. The highly anticipated period drama opened to mixed reviews. While the audience and critics almost unanimously praised Suriya’s performance, many had complaints over the writing and sound design of the film.
With Kanguva being an action drama, director Siva used loud elements in the film to make it more dramatic. However, this technique wasn’t appreciated by many audience members leading to widespread criticism.
“Kanguva has an ambitious world set by its director Siva and Suriya delivers an impressive performance. The movie also has stunning visuals and is a technically sound film, but more focus on the story was needed,” our review read.
Apart from these three films, Richa Chadda and Ali Fazal’s production Girls Will Be Girls, written and directed by Shuchi Talati was also on the list. Incidentally, the film also is led by Kani Kusruti, along with Preeti Panigrahi. The film set in 80s/90s tells the tale of a mother and daughter, how they deal with their interpersonal bond and the coming of age of the teenage daughter.
The Academy has also unveiled the shortlists for 10 categories.
(Edited by Sumavarsha Kandula)
