Oscars 2022: India’s Official Entry ‘Koozhangal’ Out Of Oscar Race, Documentary ‘Writing With Fire’ Makes The Shortlist
On Tuesday, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences declared the shortlisted Oscar nominations in 10 categories. Well, India has some good news as well as bad news for its nominated films. India’s official entry for this year was the Tamil film Koozhangal (Pebbles) but it couldn’t make it to the next round. Meanwhile, the documentary Writing With Fire has qualified for the next round for Oscar 2022.
People expressed their dissatisfaction when the jury chose Koozhangal directed by debutant PS Vinothraj as the official entry instead of popular choice Sardar Udham directed by Shoojit Sircar. The jury explained their decision by saying that the film projects India’s hatred towards the British which is not good to hold on to it. Even though it failed to qualify for the next round, a lot of people believed that it was the right choice for the Oscars.
View this post on Instagram
Directed by PS Vinothraj and backed by Nayanthara and Vignesh Shivan, Koozhangal is a well-crafted and personal story about the relationship between an alcoholic, abusive husband and his wife, who deserts him. The USP of the film is that the story is told from the viewpoint of their child. The father-son duo travels to the neighbouring village to bring home the wife. The film has already won the prestigious Tiger Award at the 50th International Film Festival Rotterdam held in the Netherlands and many believed that this film had the potential to win the prestigious Academy Award. Vignesh Shivan shared this news on Twitter and expressed his gratitude to everyone who supported this film.
Would have been great to be on this list !
— VigneshShivan (@VigneshShivN) December 22, 2021
Nevertheless I thank @PsVinothraj for giving such a pure cinema!
I thank the Indian jury members for selecting our film as the official entry for the oscars this year🙏🏻
Thanking all our well-wishers & friends for rooting for us😇 pic.twitter.com/Flz5krtZsa
:( to check if our film has come in the list itself is a big achievement,yes ! But still! The happiness & pride that we could have brought in to independent cinema makers and producers like us would have been remarkable! If we could have made it to the short list! 😔 @TheAcademy https://t.co/mMICm22Hxb
— VigneshShivan (@VigneshShivN) December 21, 2021
The good news is that the documentary Writing with Fire is qualified for the next round and still has a chance at the Oscars. Helmed by Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Ghosh, the story of the film revolves around a newspaper run by Dalit women. Khabar Lahariya is India’s only women-led newspaper. Many of the women have never used smartphones or any digital devices, the film shows their bond while they are helping each other to report the news and the issues they face in their personal lives. One hundred and thirty-eight films were considered in the category and only 15 made it to the next round.
View this post on Instagram
Also Read: Vidya Balan, Ekta Kapoor Amongst 395 Invitees Asked To Join Oscar Academy’s Class Of 2021
The final Oscar nominees will be announced on 8th February. The 94th Academy Awards will be held on March 27. Until then, we are keeping our fingers crossed!
Oscars 2021: Chloé Zhao, Emerald Fennell, Yuh-Jung Youn And More Women Made History At The 93rd Academy Awards!
