Indian Film 'Homebound' Makes History by Reaching Academy Awards Shortlist

Neeraj Ghaywan’s Homebound, starring Ishaan Khatter and Vishal Jethwa, has become only the fifth Indian film tomake it to the shortlistof the Best International Feature category at the Academy Awards. Chosen as India’s official Oscars entry back in September, it’s traversed a long and tough road of competing with 86 films from around the globe to make it to the top 15 in the shortlist announced on Tuesday. Qualifying for the shortlist isin itself a monumental achievement,particularly in the Best International Feature category. In other categories, only the Academy members relevant to that category are eligible to vote. For instance, only documentary filmmakers are eligible to vote in the best documentary categories. However, in case of the Best International Feature, an Academy member has to watch all other contenders and then opt in to vote in the category. The competition is also quite huge and diverse, given India’s official Oscars entry competed with each country’s official entry. It’s managed to find a place among Jafar Panahi’s It Was Just An Accident (France) and Park Chan-wook’s No Other Choice (South Korea).