RRR team reacts to film not being selected for Oscars, invites Academy to consider it 'in all categories'

The RRR team has invited the Academy to consider the film 'in all categories', after it wasn't selected as India's entry for the Academy Awards.

The team of RRR has reacted to the film not being selected as India's official entry for the 95th Academy Awards. As per a new report, the US distributor, Variance Films, for RRR has requested the Academy to consider the film 'in all categories'. The Film Federation of India (FFI) on Tuesday announced that the Gujarati film Chhello Show is the country's entry for the Academy Awards.

Jr NTR and Ram Charan in a still from SS Rajamouli's RRR.

Titled Last Film Show in English, the Pan Nalin directorial will release in theatres countrywide on October 14. It is a coming-of-age drama about a young boy's love affair with cinema in a village in Saurashtra. According to FFI president TP Aggarwal, Chhello Show was unanimously chosen over films such as SS Rajamouli's RRR, Ranbir Kapoor-led Brahmastra: Part One Shiva, Vivek Agnihotri's The Kashmir Files and R Madhavan's directorial debut Rocketry.

Speaking with Variety, Variance Films president Dylan Marchetti said, “Over the last six months, we have seen the joy that SS Rajamouli’s RRR has brought to global audiences. We have seen the film gross over $140 million worldwide to become one of India’s highest-grossing films of all time and become the first film in history to trend globally on Netflix for over 14 weeks."

Dylan added, "We have seen the film fill up theatres with cheering audiences months after its initial release, including the historic TCL Chinese IMAX theatre in Hollywood, where it will play next Friday to an audience that sold out of one of the largest theatres in the country in just 15 minutes. Most importantly, we have heard fans from around the world tell us that they believe this is one of the best films of the year from any nation. We agree. We proudly invite the Academy to consider RRR in all categories.”

As per the report, RRR will be submitted for best picture, director (SS Rajamouli), original screenplay (SS Rajamouli and V Vijayendra Prasad), lead actor (for both Jr NTR and Ram Charan), supporting actor (Ajay Devgn), supporting actress (Alia Bhatt), original song (Naatu Naatu), original score (MM Keeravaani), cinematography, production design, film editing, costume design, makeup and hairstyling, sound and visual effects. The film is yet to be available on the Academy Streaming Room. The Academy Awards are scheduled to take place on March 12, 2023, in Los Angeles.

RRR features Jr NTR and Ram Charan as real-life revolutionaries Komaram Bheem and Alluri Sitaraman respectively. The film is set in the 1920s when India was under the British Raj. RRR earned $14.5 million ( ₹115 crore) in the US and minted over ₹200 crore overseas.