Indiahas selectedLaapataa Ladies(Lost Ladies) as its candidate for theBest International Feature Filmcategory at the 97th Academy Awards.
Directed by Kiran Rao and produced byJio Studios, the Hindi film is described as a lighthearted satire on patriarchy.
It follows two brides, whose identities are hidden by an elaborate bridal head covering, who get mixed up on the eve of their wedding days, setting them on the paths of very different destinies from those they had envisaged.
‘Laapataa Ladies’Jio Studios
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A committee overseen by the Film Federation of India selected the title from 29 contenders which also included Bollywood hitAnimal, Malayalam National Award winnerAattamand Cannes titleAll We Imagine As Light.
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The latter film, directed by Payal Kapadia, had been cited in international circles as a hot contender to represent India this year, thanks to its Cannes credentials.
That picture, following two nurses who embark on a road trip to a beach town with a mystical forest, world premiered at Cannes as the first Indian work to compete in the festival since 1994.
Lead produced by Paris-based production company Petit Chaos, the film had also made it onto the French Oscar submission shortlist, but failed to make the cut withFrance selecting Jacques AudiardsEmilia Perez.
Lapaata Ladiesreceived a warm response when it world premiered in Torontos Centerpiece lineup in 2023, ahead of its release in India in 2024.
The picture is produced by Bollywood starAamir Khanand backed by Jio Studios, under a multi-picture deal announced last year.
Khan has previously been involved in three other Indian Oscar submissions as the star and producer ofLagaan, which nominated in 2001, as well asRang de Basanti(2006) andLike Stars On Earth(2008), which he also directed.
