A win of the past

Sadly, this year none of India’s probable contenders could make it to the final shortlist of the Academy Awards but in the past many stalwarts have grabbed the golden statuette

India’s no show at the 87th Academy Awards may have left cinema-lovers sulking, but a cursory glance at the time-line of filmdom’s most prestigious award highlights spread of Indian flavours at the ceremony. From Bhanu Athaiya, Resul Pookutty to AR Rahman, several stalwarts have clinched the coveted golden statuettes in the past.

• India’s tryst with Oscars began in 1958 with Mehboob Khan’s Mother India in which late actress Nargis depicted the pain and agony of a mother with conviction. It was the first Indian movie to get nominated in the best foreign language category. lAfter a long dry spell, costume designer Bhanu Athaiya walked away with an Oscar in the best costume design category at the 55th Annual Academy Awards for Richard Attenborough’s film Gandhi in 1983.
• late legendary Indian filmmaker Satyajit Ray, who gave iconic films like Pather Panchali and Aparajito, was also ennobled with the Oscar for his contribution to cinema in 1992. late iconic actress Audrey Hepburn presented the award to him and said: “The award recognises Mr Ray’s rare mastery of the art of motion pictures and of his profound humanism which has had an indelible influence on filmmakers and audience throughout the world.”
• British filmmaker Danny Boyle’s film Slumdog Millionaire, tracing the rags to riches story of a slum boy, swept eight Oscars at the 81st Academy Awards including best adapted screenplay, cinematography, sound mixing, film editing, original score, original song, direction and motion picture. Indian music maestro AR Rahman brought home two awards for Jai Ho composition in the same year. Veteran writer-lyricist-filmmaker Gulzar and sound engineer Resul Pookutty were also one of the winners for the movie and made India proud in 2009.
• Another movie Smile Pinki with an Indian theme grabbed the award under best documentary short subject category that year. American filmmaker Megan Mylan’s short documentary narrates a tale of a poor village girl called Pinki whose cleft lip made her a social outcast, till her life changed after a meeting with a social worker.
• In 2013, Ang lee’s life of Pi, a fantasy adventure drama widely shot in India, bagged the 85th Academy Award for best cinematography, best visual effects, best direction and best original score. The film narrated journey of an Indian boy who survives a storm with stars like Irrfan Khan, Tabu and Suraj Sharma coming together to bring story of the family alive on the silver screen.
• Another Indian link at the 85th Academy Award was lincoln, a historical drama about the last few months of 16th US President Abraham lincoln, which was co-produced by Indian business tycoon Anil Ambani’s Reliance Entertainment and DreamWorks. lOther Indian films like Water and lagaan were also nominated for Oscars, but failed to take the trophy home.