Nalin Pandya becomes first Gujarati to join Oscars committee
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has invited Indian-born filmmaker Nalin Kumar Pandya to join the Oscars committee as a member for the year 2022, making him the organization’s first inductee from Gujarat. Each year, the Oscars are presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Pandya remarked of his nomination, “I feel gratified and emboldened. I made the mistake of choosing a difficult and impassable path many years ago. It’s a glorious day today. Finally, countless people have heard what I did in solitude. I appreciate the Academy’s support in helping me continue by believing in my film. I am giddy with anticipation for this new chapter. The start of a new journey is today.
“It’s ( The Academy selection) a huge recognition for me. I was invisible to the rest of India, but very visible to the world. Huge honour, finally what I have been doing for 17 years alone, somewhere is echoed by big directors,” he said.
According to the Oscars website, Pandya was chosen for the award based on the two films he has directed, “Samsara” (2001) and his most recent Gujarati film, Chhello Show (The Last Film Show) (2021), “which are creative beautiful moments across the world.”
The Last Film Show, one of his films, was the first Indian film to be purchased by the American studio Samuel Goldwyn Films. It is scheduled to be released in India after September.“I am super happy that my films are seen worldwide. I am super sad that nobody in India cares for my movies. It is very hard to release them. We are entertainment driven, star driven, industry driven, one kind of cinema. I don’t mean to say it’s like an art house or festival.. I mean just different kinds of cinema,” added Pan Nalin.“The saddest part….for my last movie, Chhello Show, we had the biggest Hollywood distributors….we had more than 40 countries, even the small countries like Taiwan and Singapore, but as we speak now, we don’t have any distributors (for the film) in India,” Pandya added.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has welcomed Pandya, Tamil actor Suriya, Bollywood actress Kajol, Oscar-nominated documentary filmmakers Sushmit Ghosh and Rintu Thomas, and Indian-American producers Adiya Sood of the films Deadpool and Murder on the Orient Express as new members for this year.
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