India’s official entry for the 2025 Oscars has been announced, and it’s Kiran Rao’s ‘Laapataa Ladies’! The Film Federation of India, on Monday, chose this witty film about patriarchy from a pool of 29 contenders, including notable films like ‘Animal’ starring Ranbir Kapoor, the Malayalam National Award-winning ‘Aattam’, and the Cannes winner ‘All We Imagine As Light’.
The decision was made by a 13-member committee led by Assamese director Jahnu Barua, who unanimously selected ‘Laapataa Ladies’ for consideration in the Best International Film category at the Academy Awards. The film faced strong competition from other notable entries like the Tamil film ‘Maharaja’, Telugu films ‘Kalki 2898 AD’ and ‘Hanu-Man’, as well as Hindi films ‘Swatantraya Veer Savarkar’ and ‘Article 370’.
This isn’t the first time an Aamir Khan-associated film has been sent to the Oscars. The actor has a history of Oscar-bound movies:
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Lagaan (2001):
Directed by Ashutosh Gowariker and produced by Aamir Khan, ‘Lagaan’ was nominated for an Oscar and remains one of the most recognized Indian films internationally.*
Rang De Basanti (2006):
This critically acclaimed film directed by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, starring Aamir Khan, highlighted youth activism and patriotism.*
Taare Zameen Par (2007):
This Aamir Khan-directed film about a dyslexic child was selected as India’s entry but didn’t receive an Oscar nomination.‘Laapataa Ladies’ itself has garnered attention for its box office performance. Starring Nitanshi Goel, Pratibha Ranta, Sparsh Shrivastava, Ravi Kishan, and Chhaya Kadam, the film collected ₹ 20.58 crore in India during its 13-week theatrical run. With an additional ₹ 2.75 crore in overseas markets, the movie’s worldwide gross reached ₹ 27.06 crore, significantly exceeding its reported ₹ 5 crore budget. The film is currently available for streaming on Netflix.
With ‘Laapataa Ladies’ as India’s representative, the film industry eagerly awaits the outcome of the 2025 Oscars, hoping for another successful entry on the international stage.
