logo

The Oscars elicit two broad reactions from the media and film industry in India. The media mourns our annual failure at achieving the acme of global cinema recognition, our film industry says bugger off, its no crowning glory we have our own vibrant industry and we don’t need em.

In my opinion both are equally shrill and misplaced reactions.

First off, the Oscars are an ‘industry’ award for excellence in the American film industry which, like it or not, has been successfully marketed to the world at large as a globally recognizable tag of high achievement in cinema. Yes it is monopolized by the Americans - but America is the worlds largest film market. It also happens to be the most competitive, visible, profitable, sustainable. Where else would you hold such a ceremony?

Does that mean that the best films get nominated and awarded? Of course not. But it doesn’t make the awards irrelevant either. It is equally undeniable that the quality of films nominated range from superior to genuinely excellent. Audiences use the awards in a crowded space to make viewing choices, distributors and exhibitors use them to market the films. Its a glamorized version of a trade fair or fish market if you like - buyers and sellers. And it works.

Case in point, what has my Oscar nomination has done for short films in India and my career in general - quite a bit. It has meant fast tracking a career choice fraught with hazards in the first place. It got a film about India and Pakistan boarder relations into theaters in the USA (a minor coup in itself). It got a short film released theatrically for a rare outing on Indian screens. Internationally, the short film route is often used as a rites of passage for film makers who want to present their credentials to the industry. In India, debutant film makers tend to go for their first feature without having made a film before, a practice that I feel can be damaging for a nascent talent and a long film career. My nomination meant that a lot of budding film makers in India were awoken to the purpose of a short film and how it can be used to sculpt a film career with minimum collateral damage.

For me, it was a pragmatic way of making an entry into the international film industry when I would have had no hope in hell of doing so otherwise. It helped me fashion my ideas about the kind of films I want to make and allowed me to communicate my ‘agenda’ as it were to potential partners and collaborators. It has helped me to make my debut feature film which was the goal of making a short. That’s quite a bit on the back of one film.

Americans by and large are insular. And that insularity is reflected in their choice of films and how they are put out. But at the same time the fact that the Academy persists with non-glamours categories like short film, animation, visual effects, documentary, foreign films; the hype and publicity that surrounds the actor, actress, best picture, director categories pushes us, who are nominated, to use the recognition as currency - both in the industry and in public perception at large, my entry into our local Page 3 being the only regrettable fall out.

Little Terrorist has been invited to one hundred and twenty international festivals winning twenty best film awards plus I am the only Indian to have a nomination at the European Academy Awards (which was presented by none other than Wim Wenders himself) and to be recognized by BAFTA/LA (which came long before the Oscar nod). It has been seen by audiences in Thailand, Iran, Korea, Brazil, India and of course Canada, United Kingdom and Europe and the USA. Its won esoteric awards, like the Satyajit Ray Award that was presented by one of my inspirational directors Mike Leigh who also cautioned that I should not become seduced by Hollywood while presenting it. These are the real, weighty recognitions that I personally prize and value, but how many people in India know about them? Truth is that in-spite of all these, it was the academy awards that brought the film into focus here in India as the rest of the world.

So, are the Oscars fair? But of course not. Are they influenced by money - certainly. But are they irrelevant - certainly not.

Addendum, it is quite interesting to note that the number of short films made around the world outnumber the number of feature films by a huge margin, I understand that more than 10,000 shorts are made each year. The competition for the biggest festivals, awards and nominations in the short film category is much greater than any of the feature film categories. However, it is the feature film categories that get the attention. They are market driven and there is a commercial logic.

4 readers recommend this post  Loading ...

Email This Post To Friends

Related Posts Oscar Entries - Short Film- Due Oct 1, 2008 Call For Oscar Entries For Short Film!! Oscar Updates - Foreign Category What should be Indian entry to Oscars this time? Rang De Oscar? Little Terrorist - Oscar Raging Bull : Sudhir Mishra speaks on the Oscar Controversy OSCAR 2007 - Best Actors/Actresses in Leading Roles Apocalypto, one of the best movies of 2006 Oscars: Coens and the Highlights