Did `All We Imagine As Light` have better chance for Oscars?

When Payal Kapadia’s ‘All We Imagine As Light’ emerged victorious at Cannes 2024 winning the Grand Prix, it seemed like a no brainer that the film would be selected as India’s official entry for Oscars. The independent film ended India’s 30-year dud phase at Cannes by winning one of the top honours of the prestigious festival. The film which also received a standing ovation was heavily praised by cinema lovers from across the world and hence establishing the worldly appeal of the movie set in India.

However, the Film Federation of India opted to go ahead with Kiran Rao’s much-acclaimed film ‘Laapataa Ladies’ as India’s official entry for Oscars. This led to divided reactions from movie lovers in India after the federation snubbed 'All We Imagine As Light'. ADVERTISEMENT Before we dive into whether India had better options than ' or not for the Oscars , here’s taking a look at the decision-making process that went behind selecting the much-loved film for the Oscars.

A 13-member selection committee was formed to select India’s official entry for the Oscars. Now, it is a mammoth task to achieve as the country annually produces over 1000 films. The committee narrowed down to 29 films across various languages in the country.

The films that were in contention were Telugu films like 'Hanu-Man', 'Kalki 2898 AD', 'Mangalavaaran', Tamil films 'Kottukkaali', 'Maharaja', 'Jigarthanda Double X', 'Thangalaan', 'Jama', 'Vaazhai', Malayalam films 'Aattam', 'Ullozhukku',.