New Delhi: The British Academy’s submission of a Hindi-language film, with an Indian cast, to the Oscars‘ international feature film category has drawn reactions, including from Indian parliamentarian Shashi Tharoor.
An acclaimed crime thriller, ‘Santosh’ is directed by British-Indian filmmaker Sandhya Suri who was born in England. It follows the story of a newly widowed woman, played by actress Shahana Goswami, who becomes embroiled in an investigation of a young girl’s murder.
The film was largely shot in and around Lucknow. It will compete alongside Kiran Rao’s ‘Laapataa Ladies’, India’s entry to the Oscars.
To qualify as an international feature film to the Oscars’, a movie must be a feature-length motion picture (over 40 minutes) produced outside the US and with predominantly (more than 50 percent) non-English dialogue. The country-selected film must be first released in the country of origin.
Senior Congress leader and MP Shashi Tharoor called it “utterly astonishing” for the UK to submit a Hindi film based in India, in a statement on ‘X’.
Filmmakers have cheered on Suri, also known for her previous documentaries ‘I for India’ (2005) and ‘Around India with a Movie Camera’ (2018) as well as the Toronto-winning and BAFTA nominated fiction short ‘The Field’ (2018).
“I was stunned by this film when I watched it at Toronto International Film Festival 2024. I could not recover for hours from the intensity of emotions Santhosh had created in me…Truly happy for the director Sandhya Suri and the team (sic),” wrote Indian filmmaker and poet Leena Manimekalai in a post on ‘X’.
I was stunned by this film when I watched it at #TIFF2024. I could not recover for hours from the intensity of emotions, Santhosh had created in me.
UK has chosen this film as it’s Oscar entry.
Truly happy for the Director #SandhyaSuri and the team. pic.twitter.com/4g7SrQwHQu
— Leena Manimekalai (@LeenaManimekali) September 25, 2024
In May, ‘Santosh’ premiered at the 77th Cannes Film Festival under the ‘Un Certain Regard’ section.
The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences will announce its 2025 Oscar shortlist, including those contending in the best international feature category, on 17 December. Oscar nominations will be unveiled thereafter, in January 2025.
Only one film will be accepted from each country as the official selection. In the past, three films from the UK have got an Oscar nomination. The country won its first Oscar this year when Jonathan Glazer’s Holocaust drama ‘The Zone of Interest’ took the trophy for best international feature film.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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