Paheli is India's entry for Oscars 27th Sept 2005
06.00 IST
The Hindi film Paheli has been selected as India’s official entry for the 2006 Oscars.
The Amol Palekar directed film ‘Paheli’ is an adaptation of a Vijaydan Detha novel and stars Shah Rukh Khan who also produced the film. Shahrukh's co-star in the film is Rani Mukherjee Though Paheli was dubbed as a ‘successful failure’ at home, the film grossed close to $1.5 million in the US.
Paheli beat 14 other films including Swades, Veer Zaara, Black, Parineeta, Page 3, Iqbal, Mangal Pandey and Anniyan.
The entries in the last few years include the Aamir Khan starrer Lagaan, directed by Ashutosh Gowarikar and Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Devdaas. Aamir's Lagaan actually got an Oscar nomination in 2001. Last years nomination was the Marathi film Shwaas.
Some of India’s other notable entries to the Oscars have been : Mehboob Khan's Mother India (1957), Guru Dutt's Sahib Biwi aur Ghulam (1963), Shyam Benegal's Ankur (1974) and Manthan (1978), Mahesh Bhatt's Saransh (1985).
It remains to be seen if Paheli will gain a nomination in the best foreign film category at the 78th Academy Awards. All the best to Amol Palekar and the entire cast and crew of Paheli.