{
  "id": 9099862,
  "title": "How India ended up with two films in the Oscar race for best international feature",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/22/how-india-ended-up-with-two-films-in-the-oscar-race-for-best",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-22T06:32:35.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The National Business",
    "slug": "the-national-business",
    "url": "https://www.thenationalnews.com/arts-culture/film-tv/2026/09/22/india-oscars-2027-angh-gondhal/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "India has secured two films for the Oscar race in the Best International Feature category this year. Marathi film Gondhal, directed by Santosh Davakhar, was selected as the country's official submission. Meanwhile, Theja Rio's Nagaland-set drama Angh has also earned a spot after winning the Platform Prize at the Toronto International Film Festival. This is made possible by a recent rule change by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, allowing non-English films to enter the best international feature category if they win one of six prestigious film festival awards. Angh's victory at Toronto has granted it an alternative path into the Oscar race alongside Gondhal.",
  "summary": "For decades, the route to the Oscar for Best International Feature Film has been straightforward: each country selects one film to represent it at the Academy Awards. But this year, India has two films in the race. Marathi thriller Gondhal , directed by Santosh Davakhar, was selected from 33 contenders as India's official submission for the 99th Academy Awards , to be held in March next year. But…",
  "key_points": [
    "India submits two films to Oscar's Best International Feature category.",
    "Marathi film Gondhal selected as official submission.",
    "Nagaland drama Angh wins Platform Prize at Toronto Film Festival."
  ],
  "editors_take": "A recent rule change by the Academy has opened an alternative path for films to enter the Oscar race, allowing Angh to compete alongside India's official submission, Gondhal.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The National UAE",
        "title": "How India ended up with two films in the Oscar race for best international feature",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/22/how-india-ended-up-with-two-films-in-the-oscar-race-for-best-9104767",
        "published": "2026-09-22T06:32:35.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}