SS Rajamouli’s ‘RRR’ song ‘Nattu Nattu’, ‘Chhello Show’ Make It to Oscars 2023

New Delhi, Dec 22, 2022: India’s official entry to the upcoming Oscars “Chhello Show”, critically acclaimed documentary feature “All That Breathes”, documentary short “The Elephant Whisperers”, and “Naatu Naatu” — the song from Rajamouli’s blockbuster “RRR” have made it to the 95th Academy Awards shortlist, the organisers revealed on Thursday morning.

On Thursday, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences unveiled the shortlists in 10 categories: documentary feature film, documentary short film, international feature film, makeup and hairstyling, music (original score), music (original song), animated short film, live action short film, sound, and visual effects.

“Chhello Show” (‘Last Film Show’) was helmed by director Pan Nalin and is a Gujarati-language coming-of-age story about a young boy’s love affair with cinema in a village of Saurashtra. The team behind the film expressed their gratitude and said that they were humbled and overjoyed that their heartfelt ode to the cinematic medium has been recognised by the Academy.

Producers Siddharth Roy Kapur and Dheer Momaya, along with the director, released a joint statement saying, “We would like to thank the FFI, the millions of people who watched and admired ‘Chhello Show’, as well as our international distributors who gave the film a well-deserved push. This is a historic moment for India and we hope to bring the Oscar home very soon.”

“Naatu Naatu” from “RRR” has also made it into best music (original song) shortlist. This is the third major international nomination for “Naatu Naatu”, the popular Telugu song from SS Rajamouli-directed film.

Shaunak Sen’s acclaimed film “All That Breathes”, an internationally co-produced Hindi title, has also made it into the shortlist and is looking for a spot in the top five of the best documentary feature category. The film had previously clinched the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Documentary at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, a film gala which aims to promote independent cinema and filmmakers, and earned the Golden Eye award for the best documentary at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival.

Kartiki Gonsalves’ “The Elephant Whisperers” is a documentary which depicts an unbreakable bond between two abandoned elephants and their caretakers. Produced by Oscar winner Guneet Monga of “Period. End of Sentence” fame, the documentary has also made it into the Oscars shortlist and is vying for a place in the top 5.

The nominations for the 95th Academy Awards will be announced on January 24, 2023 and the Oscars ceremony will take place on March 12, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles.