Makers of Swatantrya Veer Savarkar claim film as official submission for ‘Oscars’: FFI clarifies
Mumbai: After the official announcement of Kiran Rao’s directorial Laapataa Ladies being selected as India’s entry for the Oscars, the makers of Randeep Hooda-starrer Swatantrya Veer Savarkar caused controversy by claiming on social media that their film was also officially submitted for the prestigious award, IndianExpress reported.
The post, shared by the film's co-producers, Sandeep Singh and Anand Pandit, on Instagram, expressed gratitude to the Film Federation of India (FFI) for their "remarkable appreciation," leading to widespread confusion. The post stated, “Honored and humbled! Our film Swatantrya Veer Savarkar has officially been submitted for the Oscars. Thank you Film Federation of India for this remarkable appreciation.”
However, FFI President Ravi Kottakara debunked these claims, clarifying that only Laapataa Ladies had been officially submitted by India for consideration in the Best International Feature Film category at the 97th Academy Awards. He labeled the communication from the Swatantrya Veer Savarkar team as misleading, stating that “only Laapataa Ladies has been sent for the Oscars from India officially.”
While Swatantrya Veer Savarkar was among the 29 films initially considered by the FFI for India’s official Oscar submission, it was ultimately not selected. Despite this, the makers can independently submit their film to the Academy, which is allowed under the rules, although it would not carry the weight of an official country endorsement.
It is worth noting that, in 2022, SS Rajamouli's blockbuster RRR was independently submitted to the Oscars, despite Last Film Show being India’s official selection, and went on to win the Best Original Song category for "Naatu Naatu." Similarly, Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Gangubai Kathiawadi was independently submitted in several key categories the same year.
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Karnataka Assembly Speaker seeks probe after Aadhaar cards found on riverbank in Mangaluru
Mangaluru (Karnataka) (PTI): Karnataka Legislative Assembly Speaker U T Khader on Wednesday sought an inquiry after a large number of Aadhaar cards were found on the banks of the Nethravathi River here.
The cards were found at Farangipete in Pudu village of his Mangaluru Assembly constituency.
Khader, in a note to the Project Manager of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), Bengaluru, sought immediate intervention and necessary action against those responsible.
In the note dated March 4, he said that local residents noticed the Aadhaar cards along the riverbank on March 3.
Following information received from the public, the Pudu Gram Panchayat president and villagers collected the Aadhaar cards found scattered in the area. They subsequently brought the matter to his attention and the concerned authorities, he said.
Expressing concern over the incident, the Speaker has directed that a thorough investigation be conducted to ascertain how such a large number of Aadhaar cards ended up on the riverbank and to identify those responsible.
He instructed officials to initiate appropriate legal action through the concerned department at the earliest.
