Kiran Rao’s directorial ‘Laapataa Ladies’ which was India’s official entry in the Best International Feature category at the 97th Academy Awards, is out of the Oscars race. On Wednesday morning, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) announced that the film is not part of the shortlist of 15 features that will be vying for a spot in the final five. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced the shortlists in 10 categories for the upcoming 97th Oscars ceremony.
Among those making an impression are Netflix’s Emilia Pérez and Universal Pictures’ Wicked both now firmly positioned for further consideration. However, British-Indian filmmaker Sandhya Suri’s Santosh, starring Indian actors Shahana Goswami and Sunita Rajwar, representing the UK, has made it to the shortlist that also includes France’s Emilia Pérez, I’m Still Here (Brazil), Universal Language (Canada), Waves (Czech Republic), The Girl with the Needle (Denmark), and The Seed of the Sacred Fig from Germany. Also, the Irish-language film Kneecap has been shortlisted for two Academy Award nominations. The final nominations for the 97th Academy Awards will be announced on January 17, 2025 and the awards ceremony will be held on March 2, 2025.
The awards ceremony will be available for free on your local ABC station between 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. ET. Or, if you have cable, ABC will be on your lineup. You can also watch the event live on streaming services like Hulu Live TV, YouTube TV, AT&T TV, and FuboTV. India’s official Oscar entry for 2025, ‘Laapataa Ladies’, is a feminist drama set in rural India in the early 2000s. Written by Sneha Desai, it follows two brides who are accidentally swapped on their wedding day during a train ride. The film stars Nitanshi Goel and Pratibha Ranta as the brides, with Sparsh Shrivastav playing the groom.
“Laapataa Ladies”, which had its world premiere at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), released in theatres on March 1 to great reviews. It is backed by Rao’s Kindling Productions, Aamir Khan Productions, and Jyoti Deshpande of Jio Studios. In September, the Film Federation of India (FFI) unanimously chose “Laapataa Ladies” as India’s official entry to the Oscars from a list of 29 films, including Bollywood hit “Animal”, Malayalam National Award winner “Aattam” and Cannes winner “All We Imagine As Light”.
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