The team behind Oscar-winning Hindi film Lost Ladies, including star producer Aamir Khan, is mounting a strong international campaign, with Oscar-winning director Alfonso Cuaron lending his support by hosting a special screening For the movie.
Khan, one of India’s biggest stars, discovered the project while serving as a jury member for a screenplay competition. “I fell in love with the script,” Khan said. diverse. “The plot itself was really interesting. And besides, the movie was saying some really important things… with a lot of warmth.
Khan shared the script with director Kiran Rao. After Rao’s involvement, the humor aspects were developed in later drafts. The film explores themes of women’s independence and their right to make decisions for themselves.
Produced by Reliance Industries Limited’s content arm Jio Studios, Aamir Khan Productions and Kindling Pictures, the film, set in 2001 in rural India, follows two young brides wearing matching crimson veils who are exchanged during a train ride to their husbands’ villages after their respective nuptials. It bowed in Toronto before enjoying a successful theatrical release in India.
Drawing on his experience with “Lagaan” (2001), which received India’s last Oscar nomination in the International Feature Film category, Khan is focusing on maximizing the number of performances by Academy members. “Your effort is to make your film watch them, to get their attention to your film. Then, once they see it, it’s really up to them,” Khan said. “And that’s what we did in Lagaan.” And that’s what we’re doing here.
For the Bafta campaign, the team is focusing on in-person screenings, including sessions at Bafta headquarters with Q&As for directors. Producer Jyoti Deshpande of Jio Studios emphasized the film’s cross-cultural appeal: “Everyone who has seen the film has really loved it, and it has resonated with people across different cultures… Even though it is a satire, it resonates with anyone who watches it.”
Rao highlighted the collective viewing experience as key to their strategy. “As a comedy, it’s a really fun movie to watch with other people,” she said.
Deshpande praised Rao’s meticulous approach to the material, noting that the film surprises the audience with its skillful narration, performances, colors and music.
Cuarón is hosting a show on December 5 in London. “This shows that there are different filmmakers around the world who want to support the film,” Deshpande said.
The universal themes of the film really strike a chord. At one show in Los Angeles, Deshpande said, “A woman came up to me and said, ‘It took me 40 years to become a rabbi in my congregation. Isn’t this like lifting the veil?’”
That comment stayed with her, she said, “because I thought there was a completely different culture, and you watch it and be able to relate to it in terms of your plight as a woman who tried to do something that was outside the norm.” natural. There are many simple home truths that the film presents in a very simple way, and it makes people angry by being a comedy.
Regarding India’s prospects for an Oscar, Deshpande noted, “India has done a lot for the global film industry, in terms of the number of films it produces, the number of languages we have, the richness of our culture… I think India has reached this stage.” Age and deserves to win an Oscar.
Media House Global, a London-based agency with a global footprint, is handling the BAFTA campaign for the film.