Laapataa Ladies, directed by Kiran Rao, has now been added to the prestigious Oscars 2025 list. Out of a list of 29 films, including Ranbir Kapoor’s Animal, the movie stars Pratibha Ranta, Sparsh Srivastava, and Nitanshi Goel.
At a special ceremony held in Chennai, a 13-member committee of The Film Federation of India, led by Assamese filmmaker Jahnu Barua, selected the Aamir-backed movie as the official submission for the 97th Academy Awards. The film is slated to compete in the category of Best Foreign Film.
Notably, the coveted list featured the names of films such as Animal, starring Ranbir Kapoor, Aattam, the winner of the Malayalam National Award, All We Imagine As Light, the winner of the Cannes Film Festival, Maharaja, Telugu films Kalki 2898 AD, and Hanu-Man. Yami Gautam’s Article 370 and Randeep Hooda’s Swatantraya Veer Savarkar were other contenders on the list.
On Monday, Kiran Rao took to Instagram, sharing her heart felt appreciation, “I am deeply honored and beyond delighted that our film Laapataa Ladies has been chosen as India’s official entry to the Academy Awards. This recognition is a testament to the tireless work of my entire team, whose dedication and passion brought this story to life. Cinema has always been a powerful medium to connect hearts, transcend boundaries, and ignite meaningful conversations. I hope that this film will resonate with audiences across the world, just as it has in India.”
Notably, the director had stated, “My dream would be fulfilled if it was, if it would go (to Oscars)” in an interview with PTI last week. However, it’s a process, and I’m hoping Laapataa Ladies will be taken into account. Whoever they select in the grand course of things, I’m sure the best movie will win.
Laapataa Ladies is Kiran Rao’s second film as director, following the 2010 release of Dhobi Ghat. With Pratibha Ranta, Sparsh Srivastava, and Nitanshi Goel playing the key characters with Ravi Kishan, Chhaya Kadam, Satendra Soni, and Durgesh Kumar, the movie showcased new potential to the industry.