Director Kiran Rao’s acclaimed film ‘Laapataa Ladies‘ has been chosen as India’s official submission for the Oscars. In response, Academy Award-winning producer Guneet Monga, known for her work on documentary shorts ‘The Elephant Whisperers’ and ‘Period. End of Sentence’ emphasized the importance of selecting films that have U.S. distribution for Oscar consideration.
In a recent interview with Mid-Day, Guneet Monga pointed out that while the committee in India often believes they should send the country’s best film, it is crucial to submit a film with American distribution since the Oscars are an American award.
She explained that for India to make an impactful selection for the Oscars, having strong U.S. distribution is essential. While she acknowledged that it’s possible to handle the process independently by investing heavily in publicists and other resources, she noted that this approach can be quite challenging.
Reflecting on her experience with ‘The Elephant Whisperers’, Guneet Monga expressed appreciation for the well-structured system in place, where a significant investment of time, money, and effort from the global community is crucial. She also pointed out a troubling trend, noting that no Indian film has been nominated in the Best International Feature category at the Oscars since ‘Lagaan’ in 2001.
Meanwhile, Kiran Rao’s ‘Laapataa Ladies’, a light-hearted satire on patriarchy, has been selected to represent India in the Best International Feature Film category at the Academy Awards. It was chosen from a list of 29 films, including the Bollywood hit ‘Animal’, Malayalam National Award winner ‘Aattam’, and Cannes winner ‘All We Imagine As Light’.
‘Laapataa Ladies’ also starred Pratibha Ranta, Sparsh Shrivastav, Ravi Kishan, Chhaya Kadam, and Geeta Aggarwal Sharma in pivotal roles.
