Payal Kapadia's feature film All We Imagine As Light was the darling of the 77th Cannes Film Festival, where it had its world premiere. The movie received rave reviews from international critics and went on to win the Grand Prix award, becoming the first Indian film to do so. All We Imagine As Light stars Kani Kusruti, Divya Prabha, Chhaya Kadam, and Hridhu Haroon. Despite its success in May 2024, by September, the film is yet to find a wide release in India. All We Imagine as Light Review: Payal Kapadia’s Directorial Premieres at Cannes 2024; Critics Praise It As ‘A Glorious Film’

In any other situation, a film of this calibre would have had a strong chance at the Oscars and should have been India's first choice for submission to compete for Best International Feature Film at the Academy Awards. With its international production, involving companies from France, India, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Italy, any of these countries could have submitted the film.

However, France recently submitted Jacques Audiard's Emilia Pérez as its entry for Best International Feature Film at the 97th Academy Awards, passing over All We Imagine As Light. Like Kapadia's film, Emilia Pérez competed at the Cannes Festival earlier this year and won the Jury Prize, while stars Zoe Saldaña, Karla Sofía Gascón, and Selena Gomez collectively won Best Actress.

Watch The Trailer of 'All We Imagine As Light':

With France out of the picture, India now has the best chance to submit All We Imagine As Light as its entry for the Oscars. However, certain conditions must be met for that to happen.

Can 'All We Imagine as Light' Be Eligible for India's Submission to the Oscars 2025?

According to the Film Federation of India (FFI), a film must meet specific criteria to qualify as an 'international film'. It must be "a feature-length motion picture (over 40 minutes) produced outside the United States of America and its territories, with a predominantly (more than 50%) non-English dialogue track." All We Imagine As Light meets this condition, as it was produced by non-US countries, and the characters predominantly speak Malayalam and Hindi.

However, another critical condition is its release date. According to the FFI, "the country-selected film must be first released in the country of origin no earlier than November 1, 2023, and no later than September 30, 2024, and be publicly exhibited for at least seven consecutive days in a commercial motion picture theatre. This theatrical run must be for paid admission, either in the country of origin or another eligible country, provided it is not the United States."

This is where All We Imagine As Light has faced issues in India, as it has struggled to secure a proper release. Trade pundits suggest various reasons for this. Some argue that despite its award-winning credentials, All We Imagine As Light is still too niche for mainstream Indian audiences, making distributors hesitant. Others claim the delay is due to Kapadia's past opposition to the NDA government. In 2015, while studying at the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), she led protests against the appointment of Gajendra Chauhan as the institute’s chairman, resulting in FIRs against her and the denial of a scholarship. PM Narendra Modi Congratulates Payal Kapadia For Scripting History With All We Imagine As Light's Win at Cannes 2024!

While the exact reason for the delay remains unclear, two factors have recently given All We Imagine As Light a fighting chance to become India’s submission for the 2025 Oscars. One of these is...

Rana Daggubati

In September 2024, it was announced that Rana Daggubati’s distribution company, Spirit Media, would present All We Imagine As Light in India. This development was a much-needed breakthrough for the film, giving it a chance at an opportune theatrical release.

 

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However, time was of the essence. The announcement came on September 9, leaving only a couple of weeks before the submission deadline. Even in France, the film was scheduled for release only on October 2. That’s when Kerala stepped in to help.

Kerala’s Role in Boosting 'All We Imagine As Light' Oscar Chances

Perhaps due to Rana Daggubati’s involvement, All We Imagine As Light was certified by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) on September 10, 2024. However, to meet the eligibility criteria, the film needed to hit theatres immediately and run for seven consecutive days.

Kerala provided the solution. Spirit Media released the film in select theatres across Kerala with a Malayalam title, Prabhayay Ninachathellam. This made sense, given that the lead characters speak Malayalam, and the film stars Kani Kusruti and Divya Prabha, both well-known actors in Malayalam Cinema.

 

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Thanks to this limited theatrical release, All We Imagine As Light now meets the requirement for a seven-day theatrical run, allowing the producers to submit it for consideration as India’s entry for the 97th Academy Awards. Once this is accomplished, the film can take its time with a wider release across India.

Now that the eligibility condition has been met, we can only hope the jury responsible for selecting India’s final entry makes the right choice. In the past, we’ve seen some odd decisions regarding India’s Oscar submissions. For the 86th Academy Awards, The Good Road was chosen over The Lunchbox, despite the latter being nominated for a BAFTA. Similarly, for the 95th Academy Awards, Pan Nalin’s Last Film Show was selected over SS Rajamouli’s RRR, even though RRR was generating major buzz in the West and made it to the best film lists of several international publications of that year. While Last Film Show didn’t make it to the final round, RRR went on to win Best Original Song at the Oscars.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 20, 2024 12:25 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).