Oscars 2021: 'Jallikattu' exits international feature race, short film 'Bittu' moves to next round
New Delhi: "Jallikattu", India's official entry in the Best International Feature category at the 93rd Academy Awards, is out of the Oscars race but the country is still in the fray with short film "Bittu" advancing to the next round in Best Live Action Short Film segment.
"Jallikattu", a Malayalam-language movie directed by filmmaker Lijo Jose Pellissery, is not part of the shortlist of 15 features that will be vying for a spot in the final five, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) announced on Wednesday.
Thomas Vinterberg's "Another Round", starring Mads Mikkelson, has made it to shortlist that also include Andrei Konchalovsky's "Dear Comrades!" (Russia), Agnieszka Holland's "Charlatan" (Czech Republic) and two documentaries -- "The Mole Agent" from Chile and "Collective" from Romania.
The other contenders are "Quo Vadis, Aida?" (Bosnia and Herzegovina), "Two of Us" (France), "La Llorona" (Guatemala), "Better Days" (Hong Kong), "Sun Children" (Iran), "Night of the Kings" (Ivory Coast), "I'm No Longer Here" (Mexico), "Hope" (Norway), "A Sun" (Taiwan) and "The Man Who Sold His Skin" (Tunisia).
Films from 93 countries were eligible in the category.
In the nominations round, Academy members from all branches are invited to opt-in to participate and must view all 15 shortlisted films in order to cast a ballot.
"Jallikattu" is based on the short story Maoist by Hareesh and stars Antony Varghese, Chemban Vinod Jose, Sabumon Abdusamad and Santhy Balachandran.
The film had its premiere on September 6, 2019 at the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival and received widespread critical acclaim.
Karishma Dev Dube-directed "Bittu" has made it to the Best Live Action Short Film shortlist for the Oscars.
The movie is part of 10 film shortlist that also include "Da Yie", "Feeling Through", "The Human Voice", "The Kicksled Choir", "The Letter Room", "The Present", "Two Distant Strangers", "The Van" and "White Eye".
Based on a true story, the movie is a short film about a close friendship between two girls, eclipsed by an accident at their school.
"Bittu" is presented by Indian Women Rising (IWR), a cinema collective that was recently formed by filmmakers Ekta Kapoor, Guneet Monga, Tahira Kashyap Khurrana, and Ruchikaa Kapoor.
Monga, whose 2018 production "Period. End of Sentence" had won an Oscar for Best Documentary Short Subject in 2019, celebrated the moment on social media.
"It's 4.30 am in India... am tossing & turning, stress eating and texting my IWR girls thru the night and here we are !! 'Bittu' is now shortlisted for the 93rd Academy Awards," the producer said in a post on Instagram.
"So so grateful for 'Bittu' and our incredible team... Say a little prayer and wish us luck for the next round of nominations," she added.
The final nominations for the Academy Awards will be announced on March 15. With "Jallikattu" exiting the foreign film race, India has once again drawn a blank in the category.
The last Indian film that made it to the final five in the Best International Feature category was Ashutosh Gowariker's "Lagaan" in 2001
"Mother India" (1958) and "Salaam Bombay" (1989) are the other two Indian movies to have made it to the top five.
In 2019, Zoya Akhtar's "Gully Boy", starring Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt, was India's entry to the Oscars.
The 93rd Academy Awards, which were postponed from their usual February date due to the coronavirus pandemic, will be held on April 25.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Ready to face no-confidence motion, says Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah
Hassan (Karnataka) (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday said that the Congress government led by him was ready to face the no-confidence motion if moved by the opposition during the legislature session from December 8.
With Deputy CM D K Shivakumar by his side, he reiterated that they would both abide by the high command's decision on the leadership issue.
"Let them (opposition) bring in a no-confidence motion or adjournment motion or any other motion. We are ready to face it. Ours is an open book, transparent government. We are ready to face anything," Siddaramaiah said in response to a question.
However, BJP state President B Y Vijayendra and Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Assembly R Ashoka, clarified that the party, along with the JD(S) has not discussed or decided anything so far regarding moving a no-confidence motion against the government.
ALSO READ: CM Siddaramaiah labels Kumaraswamy 'Manuvadi' over Bhagavad Gita curriculum push
The winter session of the Karnataka legislature will begin in Belagavi, bordering Maharashtra, on December 8 and will go on till 19th of this month.
Not wanting to react to a question on the leadership issue, the CM said the Congress high command is very strong.
"D K Shivakumar and I will be committed to whatever the high command decides," he said.
Earlier in the day in Bengaluru, Shivakumar accompanied AICC Mallikarjun Kharge till airport from Vidhana Soudha, after paying tributes to B R Ambedkar on his 69th death anniversary, which had led to some speculation about possible discussion between the two on the leadership issue.
The power tussle within the ruling party had intensified amid speculation about a change in chief minister in the state, after the Congress government reached the halfway mark of its five-year term on November 20.
However, both the CM and Deputy CM had recently held breakfast meetings at each others residences, on the instructions of the high command, which is seen as a move to pause the leadership tussle between the two and to signal Siddaramaiah's continuation as the CM for the time being, especially ahead of the Belagavi legislature session.
