New Delhi

Payal Kapadia whose film All We Imagine As Light was not selected as India’s entry to Oscars 2025 despite Cannes honour, has said she is happy that Kiran Rao’s film Laapataa Ladies will be representing India at the Academy Awards. 

While speaking to the Times Of India, Payal expressed what it meant to win big at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year and how important Oscar awards are to her. 

"Cannes gave us so much attention in India, and the nicest thing is that recognition gave me distribution. There is no bigger joy than screening your film in cinemas, which people can buy a ticket for and watch. I have done that all my life for films that I liked. People wanting to watch a film in cinemas or film festivals is the reason we want to make films."

Many have speculated that Payal’s film may still be a part of the Oscar race an independent entry. The filmmaker reacted to the speculations and said, “The film will be released in India and the US next month, so we will see how people respond to it. Will we send the film independently? It's not really in my hands. I am happy that Laapataa Ladies has been selected as India's official entry to the Oscars. It's such a fun, wonderful movie. As an audience, I am happy about it. I also loved Kiran Rao's previous film Dhobhi Ghat. Whatever my film gets, it's a bonus for me."

About All We Imagine As Light

All We Imagine As Light recently opened with a full-house screening at the MAMI Mumbai Film Festival. The film made history as the first film from India to win the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year. 

It is a Malayalam-Hindi language movie about Prabha (Kani Kusruti), a Mumbai nurse whose life is thrown into disarray when she receives a rice cooker from her estranged husband. Divya Prabha plays Anu, her roommate and colleague, who struggles to find a private spot in the city to spend time with her boyfriend. Prabha’s best friend Parvati (Chhaya Kadam), a widow, is being forced out of her home by property developers.

Advertisment

About Laapataa Ladies

Kiran Rao’s Laapataa Ladies is a comedy-drama film directed by Kiran Rao. It stars Nitanshi Goel, Pratibha Ranta, Sparsh Shrivastava, Chhaya Kadam and Ravi Kishan and narrates the story of two missing brides in a fictitious state in India.