Why can't Indians win Oscars? Is it cuz our movies hv songs? - Page 3

Originally posted by: wat_up

maybe you should lobby as you seem to understand the ins and outs. Plus, it’s more productive then the politics in this place

That seems rather mean spirited 😆

Originally posted by: wat_up

Songs have nothing todo with it, otherwise a movie like Slumdog millionaire would not have been watched by the American audiences( yes this movie was made by an American but still it had Indian actors, Indian composer, etc). I am sure it’s some other reason.

Yep “jai ho” was everywhere for several years - clubs, weddings, flash mobs. Everywhere.
“Moulin Rouge” had multiple Oscar nominations and Baz Luhrman said he was inspired by Bollywood musicals. The soundtrack even featured a song by Alka Yagnik. The songs are not the issue, its a known fact Americans don’t like reading subtitles 😆

Originally posted by: semantic.error

That seems rather mean spirited 😆

Originally posted by: semantic.error

You don't just get nominated for Oscars. It's a long and expensive campaign. For most Indian studios, it isn't worth it to put that kind of money into an Oscar run.

Lunchbox was the one film that had the right buzz and content to actually get an Oscar campaign going. I think if it had been selected as the Indian entry, Kashyap and Karan at that time would have pushed it because they were both in better positions too.

RRR is a different case altogether. It seems to have become a phenomenon of it's own. It's popular enough that it might sneak through without the usual campaign. But it's not the kind of film that gets nominated in that category.

I do think streaming will somewhat make it easier for Indian films to find international popularity and some of the more stylistic directors to get international fame, like a lot of East Asian filmmakers do. Rajamouli, Bhansali (Gangubai has taken off in a lot of random countries) etc.

Lunchbox was an amazing movie but it fell in the “indie/art film” category imo. It would have done well at places like Sundance but I don’t know about the Oscars. Although low-key acting-intensive foreign movies like that have done well in the international category so maybe you have a point.

Originally posted by: wat_up

I meant it in a positive way !! Plus you seem like a good lobbyist 😄

Well I did try to work in film marketing a while back. It wasn't meant to be. Maybe I should go be a general lobbyist😆

Originally posted by: GaramAloo

Lunchbox was an amazing movie but it fell in the “indie/art film” category imo. It would have done well at places like Sundance but I don’t know about the Oscars. Although low-key acting-intensive foreign movies like that have done well in the international category so maybe you have a point.

Lunchbox is almost exactly the kind of film that gets nominated in the international feature category. Of course realistically for a win, it's campaign would had to start with a much bigger splash. But it could have made it to a nomination with the right push.

If you all mean the main categories, I don't think a Bollywood film is making it in there. Bong Joon Ho is on a different plane. But even Ryusuke Hamaguchi has a long filmography that screens at film festivals regularly. Drive my car didn't just happen. Though of course the Korean/Japanese films are building off each other's hype in the last few years.

Originally posted by: semantic.error

Lunchbox is almost exactly the kind of film that gets nominated in the international feature category. Of course realistically for a win, it's campaign would had to start with a much bigger splash. But it could have made it to a nomination with the right push.

If you all mean the main categories, I don't think a Bollywood film is making it in there. Bong Joon Ho is on a different plane. But even Ryusuke Hamaguchi has a long filmography that screens at film festivals regularly. Drive my car didn't just happen. Though of course the Korean/Japanese films are building off each other's hype in the last few years.

Yes you’re right, I was just looking up past international category nominees and the films are a different style and caliber than the domestic categories. I haven’t actually watched the Oscars in years but back in the day we used to have pre-Oscar watch parties. I remember this Iranian movie “Separation” which was so good - performance based, focused on relationship dynamics much like Lunchbox and if I remember correctly it won in it’s year. Personally I don’t get the Korean/Japanese hype, I couldn’t get through Parasite. My knowledge of Japanese films ends with Kurosawa so I’m not all that informed…

Originally posted by: GaramAloo

Yes you’re right, I was just looking up past international category nominees and the films are a different style and caliber than the domestic categories. I haven’t actually watched the Oscars in years but back in the day we used to have pre-Oscar watch parties. I remember this Iranian movie “Separation” which was so good - performance based, focused on relationship dynamics much like Lunchbox and if I remember correctly it won in it’s year. Personally I don’t get the Korean/Japanese hype, I couldn’t get through Parasite. My knowledge of Japanese films ends with Kurosawa so I’m not all that informed…

A Separation is a lovely film. Asghar Farhadi is another example of how these nominations work. He is brilliant, of course. He started with very small film festivals with his earlier work, but is now a regular at every major festival. Bollywood directors go present their films in one or two festivals and call it a day.

Korean and Japanese films have been building off each other very specifically. It is Broker this year. Drive my car year before. Parasite before that. Shoplifters and Burning before that. And you could keep going back for the pattern. Social issues, very similar festival runs, very similar stylistically. I can't even think of a pattern to make out of India's Oscar entries.

I just watched Vishal Bharadwaj’s Shakespeare adaptation trilogy on the recommendation of several forum members. I think with the right marketing, those movies would’ve done really well with international audiences and award shows, especially given their familiar source material. “Haidar” in particular had all the right ingredients to do well with Academy voters but I think Omkara is the one that would have had killer crossover appeal with the audience - authentic Indian atmosphere, great acting, effective use of the songs.

But these sorts of mainstream Bollywood movies almost never seem to make it across the ocean.

(Guddu Pandit-ji - hope I’m not violating unspoken IF etiquette by tagging you in a thread where you haven’t posted but you deserve a shout-out here)

Originally posted by: semantic.error

A Separation is a lovely film. Asghar Farhadi is another example of how these nominations work. He is brilliant, of course. He started with very small film festivals with his earlier work, but is now a regular at every major festival. Bollywood directors go present their films in one or two festivals and call it a day.

Korean and Japanese films have been building off each other very specifically. It is Broker this year. Drive my car year before. Parasite before that. Shoplifters and Burning before that. And you could keep going back for the pattern. Social issues, very similar festival runs, very similar stylistically. I can't even think of a pattern to make out of India's Oscar entries.

You’re spot on about Farhadi! And reminded me that I didn’t follow his work after The Salesman and I should revisit his more recent offerings.
If I should watch one of the movies you mentioned above, which one would you recommend?