‘Hatred Towards British’, Sardar Udham Rejected For Oscars Nomination

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What has happened?

Vicky Kaushal’s Sardar Udham was among the 14 shortlisted films for India’s entry to Oscars 2022.
However, the jury decided to send Tamil film Koozhangal for the Oscar race.

About the film

The film directed by Shoojit Sircar follows the life of Sardar Udham Singh, a revolutionary freedom fighter.
He is best known for assassinating Michael O’Dwyer in London to take revenge for the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar.
Michael O’Dwyer was the Lieutenant Governor of Punjab, British India between 1913 and 1919.
It was during O’Dwyer’s tenure that the Jallianwala Bagh massacre occurred where British troops opened fire at peaceful protestors until their ammunition was exhausted.
Estimates of those killed in the incident vary between 379 and 1500 people.

Reason for not selecting

Explaining why Sardar Udham was not selected, Indraadip Dasgupta, one of the jury members, told Times Of India, “Sardar Udham is a little lengthy and harps on the Jallianwala Bagh incident.
It is an honest effort to make a lavish film on an unsung hero of the Indian freedom struggle.
But in the process, it again projects our hatred towards the British. In this era of globalization, it is not fair to hold on to this hatred.”
Another member of the jury, Sumit Basu said, “Many have loved Sardar Udham for its cinematic quality including camerawork, editing, sound design and depiction of the period.
I thought the length of the film was an issue. It has a delayed climax.
It takes a lot of time for a viewer to feel the real pain for the martyrs of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre.”

Backlash on the comment

Fans were not happy with the jury’s choice and they expressed their disappointment on social media.
They also compared Sardar Udham to the 2008 film Slumdog Millionaire and questioned why the latter was selected but not the Vicky Kaushal-starrer, which told the courageous tale of freedom fighter Sardar Udham Singh.

At least three members of a 15-person Film Federation of India (FFI) jury to choose India’s entry for Oscars 2022 have distanced themselves,
From Bengali music director Indraadip Dasgupta’s controversial statement on the decision to deny Shoojit Sircar’s Sardar Udhama shot at the Academy Award.
Malayali filmmaker Shaji N. Karun, who chaired the jury, said Koozhangalwas chosen unanimously simply because it was the “best of the lot”.
“For me, personally, choosing a film nomination for the Oscars is like strategising to win an Olympic match.
The jury agreed that this film had great cinematic content, and has the strength, capability and contestability to win at the Oscars.
This is not a National Award nomination. We have to pick a film that will stand out among nominations coming from 92 countries,” Karun said.
“How many Indian films have won an Oscar? Zero.
There’s a reason behind that.
One has to strategise and pick a film we think will match the sensibilities of the jury at the Academy awards,” he added.
Bengali actor Ananya Chatterjee, who was also a part of the jury, said she didn’t quite understand why Dasgupta would make such a statement.
“Maybe it’s a personal statement. But while I can’t delve into discussions within the jury, I can say this is not the opinion of all of us.
Fact is, there were better movies than Sardar Udham, and we in the jury chose a film which was cinematically sound and almost poetic.”
Only 3 Indian films
Only three Indian films — Mother India(Hindi, 1957), Salaam Bombay! (Hindi 1988) and Lagaan (Hindi, 2001) — have made it to the final nominations at the Oscars,
In the over nine-decade history of the prestigious awards ceremony held annually in the US.
None could win the trophy.

5 Indians who won the Oscar

Bhanu Athaiya, a popular costume designer claimed India’s first Oscar for the 1982 historical movie Gandhi.
Satyajit Ray, regarded as someone who gave Indian cinema some masterpieces, was awarded an Honorary Oscar 1992 for Lifetime Achievement.
Sound engineer Resul Pookutty won the award of Best Sound Mixing at the 81st Academy Awards for the film Slumdog Millionaire.
Legendary A.R. Rahman became the first Indian to have earned nominations in three categories at the Academy Awards for his score in a British-Indian movie Slumdog Millionaire.
He won two awards – one for the original score and another for the track Jai Ho.
The song ‘Jai Ho’ that got A.R.Rahman his second Oscar was penned by Gulzar who won an Oscar for the Best Original Song.

Q) Satyendra Prasad Sinha was the first Indian to joint the Viceroy’s Executive Council. Through which of the following act this provision was allowed?