India lose sheen at Oscars, but had its triumph moments

India’s no show at the 87th Academy Awards may have left cinema-lovers sulking, but a cursory glance at the time-line of filmdom’s most prestigious award highlights spread of Indian flavours at the ceremony. From Bhanu Athaiya, Resul Pookutty to A.R. Rahman, several stalwarts have clinched the coveted golden statuettes in the past.
Oscars 2015 have come with a disappointment for Indian fans as none of India’s probable contenders could make it to the final shortlist.
Four of Rahman’s compositions – three from “Million Dollar Arm” and one from “The Hundred-Foot Journey”, stood a chance to be nominated for an Oscar in the Original Song category. Sonu Nigam and Bickram Ghosh were also part of the Original Score category’s longlist, for their compositions in “Jal”, which also missed a possible nomination in the Best Picture category.
India had already lost hope of a nomination in the Foreign Language Film category as its official entry “Liar’s Dice” had failed to make a cut even to the longlist of nine out of the 83 films that had qualified for the category. In spite of India’s no show at the final nomination list this year, PVR Cinemas treated Hollywood aficionados by hosting a week long PVR Oscar Film Festival Feb 6 in 23 Indian cities including Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata.
India’s tryst with Oscars began in 1958 with Mehboob Khan’s “Mother India” in which late actress Nargis depicted the pain and agony of a mother with conviction. It was the first Indian movie to get nominated in the Best Foreign Language category. (IANS)