Arts & Entertainment

India ecstatic after Oscars glory for best song, short documentary

New Delhi, Mar 13 (EFE).- India woke up ecstatic on Monday after two films from the country ended up with wins at the Oscars, accounting for the country’s sixth and seventh Academy Awards in all.

The song “Naatu Naatu” from the movie “RRR” won the Best Original Song, while “The Elephant Whisperers” won the Best Documentary Short Film at the 95th Annual Academy Awards, held late Sunday at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles, US.

“Exceptional! The popularity of ‘Naatu Naatu’ is global. It will be a song that will be remembered for years to come. India is elated and proud,” Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted.

“Congratulations to Kartiki Gonsalves, Guneet Monga and the entire team of ‘The Elephant Whisperers’ for this honour. Their work wonderfully highlights the importance of sustainable development and living in harmony with nature,” he added.

Mainstream media channels were quick to stress on this achievement, with headers such as “India shines at Oscars,” while highlighting “Naatu Naatu’s” as the first song from an Indian movie to win the award.

Naatu Naatu went viral on social media both in India and abroad for its catchy song and dance sequence, which had earlier won the Golden Globe Award in the same category in Jan 2023.

The award was received by the song’s composer, M.M. Keeravani, and lyricist, Chandrabose, as it beat competition from the likes of Lady Gaga’s “Hold my Hand” for the movie “Top Gun: Maverick,” Rihanna’s “Lift Me Up” from “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” “This Is a Life” from “Everything Everywhere All at Once” and “Applause” from the movie “Tell It Like a Woman.”

The other big win was the Best Documentary Short Film for “The Elephant Whisperers,” which tells the story of an orphaned baby elephant in the care of an indigenous couple, portraying the strong bond between them, while surrounded by exquisite natural beauty.

Directed by Kartiki Gonsalves and produced by Guneet Monga, the documentary was released on Netflix in Dec 2022.

The 95th edition of the Oscars turned out to be the most memorable one for the south Asian country since 2009, when “Slumdog Millionaire,” a British movie set in India, bagged eight awards, three of which went to Indians.

India won its first Academy Award in 1983, when Bhanu Athaiya received the Oscar for Best Costume Design for the movie ‘Gandhi’.

Later in 1992, legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray received an Honorary Award a month before he died. EFE

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