Oscars Shortlists: A closer look at the four Indian films up for glory

For at least one more month – up until the final nominations for the 95th Academy Awards are announced on January 24th, 2023 – Indian cinema can do a little jig. After years of failing to crack the Oscar riddle, no less than four homegrown Indian films have made the initial shortlist of contenders advancing to the next round across 10 categories. Mind you, this is not the final list of nominees. But the signs are promising, especially in a year where RRR is expected to bring more glory in the main categories. For now, though, the shortlists announced involve documentary feature, international feature, documentary short, animated short, live-action short, and technical categories such as makeup and hairstyling, visual effects, sound, original score and original song.

Let’s take a closer look at the four Indian titles and their chances to make it to the final round:

Best Original Song: Naatu Naatu (RRR)

Remarks:
In a shortlist of 15 that features the star voices of Rihanna, Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, Drake and Selena Gomez, MM Keeravani’s Golden Globe-nominated Naatu Naatu is that rare song making waves more for its electric and physics-defying choreography than its actual music. Nobody’s complaining, though. The sight of Ram Charan and Jr. NTR going toe to toe in a boisterous and dusty period dance-off on palace grounds is music to the eyes, turning Naatu Naatu into more than just a sum of its catchy mainstream beats. It’s designed like a musical action sequence of sorts, where the sound seems to be scoring the extreme physical athleticism of the two actors. It’s also fitting that a piece in the Indian tradition of movie soundtracks – where the song-and-dance sequence is a physical part of the film narrative – makes the cut. A measure of RRR’s global success is the fact that we are using terms like “snubs” in categories like Sound and Visual Effects (!), the disappointment of which is partially true.

Prediction:
The competition is tough, but the Academy might just sneak Naatu Naatu into the final list, given the fresh RRR and Rajamouli hype across the West, the visual language, and its sheer audacity in the face of more conventional music. It’s a left-of-field pick that might even go on to win the Oscar, especially because the Academy might find it difficult to resist a live performance at the Dolby Theater in 2023. The five or six to make it might be: Lift Me Up (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever), Ciao Papa (Pinocchio), Time (Amsterdam), Hold My Hand (Top Gun: Maverick), Naatu Naatu (RRR) and This is a Life (Everything Everywhere All At Once).

Best Documentary Short: The Elephant Whisperers

Remarks:
India has seen more success in this category than most – titles like Smile Pinki and Period: End of Sentence have gone on to actually win the coveted trophy – but it’s mostly been as an exotic foreign environment. The gaze has been Western. The makers have seldom been Indian. But the Netflix-streaming The Elephant Whisperers has been directed and executively produced by Kartiki Gonsalves, who trains her camera on an old South Indian couple who adopt an orphaned elephant. The 40-minute documentary is far more authentic and keenly observed than previous winners, thriving on the little moments and silences that can only come with a lived-in eye. Ironically, it is centered on the one animal that the West has routinely stereotyped India with.

Prediction:
I expect The Elephant Whisperers to make the final round, irrespective of competition, simply because this is a golden era for Indian non-fiction, and the world has started to take notice. Not to mention that this is a disarming, moving portrait of an India that transcends poverty-porn tropes.

Best International Feature: Chhello Show (The Last Film Show)

Remarks:
Pan Nalin’s visually striking Gujarati-language coming-of-age drama about a rural boy who falls in love with the medium of cinema was a controversial submission to the Oscars in this category – following in the footsteps of The Good Road pipping The Lunchbox to the line back in 2013. RRR was the odds-on favourite this time, not just to be nominated but also to perhaps win the entire category. Yet, Chhello Show – the ‘villain’ of this error-strewn narrative – now finds itself on a shortlist of 15 titles: the first Indian film in 21 years to reach this stage in the International Film category. It’s a pleasant surprise, of course, but also a strange one.

Prediction:
Chhello Show deserves all the credit for making it this far, but I’m afraid this is where its journey might end. The category is probably the strongest of the lot, as usual, and it’s difficult to see Pan Nalin’s semi-autobiographical and showy picture make the final round. I expect Pakistan’s first shortlisted title, Joyland, to make the cut – along with Decision to Leave (South Korea), Close (Belgium), All Quiet on the Western Front (Germany), Corsage (Austria) and Saint Omer (France). Every title is a favourite in its own right, though it would be lovely to see a genuine underdog – like the stunning, heartbreaking Joyland – to win it for South Asia.

Best Documentary Feature: All That Breathes

Remarks:
There’s not a main prize that Shaunak Sen’s socio-ecological masterpiece hasn’t won in its inevitable run to the Oscars. After winning at Sundance and Cannes, All That Breathes won big at the Gotham Independent Film awards and, more importantly, the IDA (International Documentary Association) Awards. The momentum is unprecedented in terms of its sweeping of non-fiction categories across the globe – and this could only mean one thing. Pinch yourself. It’s coming home.

Prediction:
After Writing With Fire made history last year by getting nominated, All That Breathes is expected to go one-up this time. Believe it or not, it’s the overwhelming favourite to win the whole category. Winning the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance was only the beginning. The culmination could yet result in India’s finest moment on the world stage since the days of Satyajit Ray. Its competition is expected to come from five other titles: All The Beauty and Bloodshed, Fire of Love, Navalny, Descendent, A House Made of Splinters and Last Flight Home. But it’s written in the stars.

Rahul Desai is a film critic and programmer, who spends his spare time travelling to all the places from the movies he writes about.

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