Still from the movie 'RRR'© DVV Entertainment

Is ‘RRR’ Getting Nominated For ‘Best Picture’ At The Oscars?

Salva Mubarak
Senior Features Writer

SS Rajamouli’s grand epic film RRR has become a cultural phenomenon in the West. The movie’s high-octane action sequences and larger-than-life performances have captured the imagination of people from Mumbai to Los Angeles. Post its re-release as part of the Beyond Fest in the US, it has gained even more fan following, even from some well-known names like the Russo Brothers, James Gunn, Seth Rogen, Patton Oswalt, and Joseph Morgan. The movie has earned over INR 1,000 crore worldwide.

Now the movie might be up for a ‘Best Picture’ award at Oscars next year, along with nominations in 14 other categories.

After being passed over as India’s entry in the ‘Best International Film Feature’ category in favour of the small-budget Gujarati film Chello Show, RRR made its bid to be considered for categories like ‘Best Picture’, ‘Best Director’, ‘Best Actor’ and more. The makers launched the ‘For Your Consideration’ campaign for Academy members by holding a grand screening of the movie last week at the iconic Chinese Theater in LA.

The official synopsis in the submitted entry reads, “Set years before India’s independence, RRR imagines a fictional meeting between two real-life freedom fighters who become allies in the struggle against the British Raj. When a young girl is stolen from her village, the two revolutionaries collide, encountering tigers, daring escapes, and dance-offs,” which to be very honest sound like a fascinating premise for a movie!

The film’s official account revealed that the movie is being considered for ‘Best Picture’ (DVV Danayaa), ‘Best Director’ (SS Rajamouli), ‘Best Actor’ (Jr NTR and Ram Charan), ‘Best Supporting Actor’ (Ajay Devgn), and ‘Best Supporting Actress’ (Alia Bhatt). In the technical categories, the movie has been submitted for its screenplay, score, editing, cinematography, sound, production design, and VFX.

But if the Internet’s reaction is to go by anything, the most anticipated category is ‘Best Original Song’ for ‘Naatu Naatu’ which would mean that the actors would be performing the song at the Oscars stage with the viral dance moves.

The makers released an official statement online about the FYC campaign, saying, “We are honoured that RRR’s overwhelming success represented Indian Cinema on the global stage by creating milestones at the worldwide box-office and uniting film buffs across the world by transcending linguistic and cultural barriers. We’re grateful to each and every one who loved our film and cheered us over the past few months. You made the journey possible. We applied to The Academy for Oscars consideration in general category. We wish our RRR family the best and thank them from the bottom of our hearts for making this possible. Here’s to continuing to win hearts and entertain audiences worldwide.”

BRB, fervently manifesting Jr NTR and Ram Charan doing the ‘Naatu Naatu’ jig at the Oscars!