Narayana Murthy's son-in-law Rishi Sunak named new British finance minister
London: Indian-origin politician Rishi Sunak was appointed as the UK's new finance minister on Thursday by Prime Minister Boris Johnson in a Cabinet reshuffle.
Sunak, the son-in-law of Infosys Co-founder Narayana Murthy, will join Home secretary Priti Patel on the top government bench as the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
Earlier, Pakistani-origin Sajid Javid resigned as Chancellor in a shock move in one of the biggest shakeups since Johnson won a thumping majority in the December 2019 general election.
He is replaced by Sunak, who was until now Javid's junior as the Chief Secretary to the Treasury and seen as a rising star within the Cabinet.
The 39-year-old is set to move into No. 11 Downing Street, next door to the Prime Minister's Office as he takes charge of the second most important government position as the finance minister.
"The Queen has been graciously pleased to approve the appointment of Rt Hon Rishi Sunak as Chancellor of the Exchequer," Downing Street said in the official announcement.
The MP for Richmond in Yorkshire, married to Murthy's daughter Akshata, first entered the UK Parliament in 2015 and has fast risen up the Conservative Party ranks as a staunch Brexiteer who had back Johnson's strategy to leave the European Union (EU).
The UK-born son of a pharmacist mother and a National Health Service (NHS) general practitioner (GP) father is an Oxford University and Stanford graduate.
"From working in my mum's tiny chemist shop to my experience building large businesses, I have seen how we should support free enterprise and innovation to ensure Britain has a stronger future," Sunak had said during the Brexit referendum.
He co-founded a 1-billion pound global investment firm and specialised in investing in small British businesses before his entry into politics. He strongly believes that small businesses in the UK would flourish as a result of Brexit as the vast majority of British businesses (94 per cent) don't have anything to do with the EU; but they are still subject to all EU law .
Indian-origin MPs Alok Sharma and Suella Braverman are some of the other Indian-origin MPs expected to get a promotion in this week's Cabinet reshuffle, dubbed a purge due to some high-profile resignations and sackings expected.
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'Homebound' makes it to Oscar shortlist for best international feature
Mumbai (PTI): Neeraj Ghaywan's much acclaimed "Homebound" is among the 15 films shortlisted in the best international feature category at the Oscars, moving a step close to the final five nominations and maybe a win.
The movie, inspired by a true story that became the basis of a news article during the pandemic, has been creating a global buzz since its debut in the Un Certain Regard category at the Cannes Film Festival this May.
Hollywood legend Martin Scorsese is a fan and has come onboard as an executive producer ahead of the award season.
Produced by Karan Johar and Adar Poonawalla, and starring Ishaan Khatter, Vishal Jethwa and Janhvi Kapoor, "Homebound" is Ghaywan's second movie after "Masaan".
"Homebound" will compete for an Oscar nomination alongside Argentina's “Belén”, Brazil's “The Secret Agent”, French drama "It Was Just an Accident”, Germany's "Sound of Falling” and Iraq's "The President's Cake".
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The other movies in the shortlist include Japan's “Kokuho”, Jordan's “All That’s Left of You”, Norway's “Sentimental Value”, Palestine's “Palestine 36”, South Korean hit “No Other Choice”, Spain's “Sirat”, "Late Shift" from Switzerland, “Left-Handed Girl”from Taiwan and Tunisian drama “The Voice of Hind Rajab”, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced in a release on Tuesday.
The award for best foreign film, now re-categorised as best international feature, has so far eluded India.
Only three Indian films have received nominations in the category -- Mehmood Khan’s “Mother India”, Mira Nair’s “Salaam Bombay” and Ashutosh Gowarikar’s “Lagaan”. Deepa Mehta’s “Water”, starring John Abraham and Lisa Ray, also received a nomination but it was submitted from Canada.
Gujarati film "Chhello Show" in 2023 was the last film to get shortlisted.
Costume designer Bhanu Athaiya was the first Indian to get an Oscar, bagging the coveted prize in 1983 for the film "Gandhi". Other than her, A R Rahman, Resul Pukootty and M M Keeravani have also won individual Oscars.
Team "Homebound" celebrated the shortlist news with posts on social media.
"We made the shortlist... Way to go team Homebound'!" Johar shared in Instagram Stories.
In a post, the producer said it was difficult for him to articulate how "proud and elated" he was with the news.
"All of us @dharmamovies are privileged to have this proud and important film in our filmography... thank you @neeraj.ghaywan for making so many dreams of ours come true... from Cannes to being on the Oscar shortlist this has been such an overwhelming journey! Love to the entire cast and crew and teams of this special special film! Upwards and onwards...."
Ghaywan also shared the news on X.
"#Homebound has been shortlisted for Best International Feature Film at the 98th Academy Awards! We are deeply grateful for the extraordinary love and support we've received from around the world," he wrote on X with a special poster of the film.
Jethwa, who plays one of the two friends in the story opposite Ishaan Khatter, said the moment feels "surreal and incredibly humbling".
"To see 'Homebound' being shortlisted and progressing towards the Oscars is something I could have only dreamed of. I am deeply grateful for the love and support the film has received from audiences around the world," he said as he acknowledged Johar, Ghaywan and co-star Khatter and the rest of the team.
Khatter also shared the news on his Instagram stories and wrote, "Oscar ab dur nahi".
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"Homebound" is inspired by journalist Basharat Peer's The New York Times article “Taking Amrit Home”, also titled "A Friendship, a Pandemic and a Death Beside the Highway".
The film portrays the childhood friendship between a Muslim and Dalit who chase a police job that promises them the dignity they have long been denied due to their surnames.
The Academy on Tuesday also announced shortlists in 11 other categories, including the newly added casting Oscars, animated shorts, cinematography, documentary feature, documentary short, original score and song, sound and visual effects categories.
Nominations for the 98th Academy Awards will be announced on Thursday, January 22, 2026.
Twenty-four categories will be awarded at the 98th Oscars. Each category has five nominees, except for best picture, which has 10.
The 98th Oscars will be held on Sunday, March 15, 2026, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.
