Oscars 2023: RRR Gets Nominated For ‘Naatu Naatu’, Misses Out In Other Categories

SS Rajamouli’s fan-favourite RRR got an Original Song nomination at the 95th Oscars for MM Keeravani’s ‘Naatu Naatu’. The film, which is a fictionalised take on two Indian revolutionaries (played by Jr NTR and Ram Charan) and their brotherhood, recently won big at the Critic’s Choice Awards and the Golden Globes (it won Best Foreign Language Film and Best Song at the Critic’s Choice, and won Best Original Song at the Golden Globes)

Although the nomination for original score was expected, excited fans of the blockbuster hoped for SS Rajamouli’s film to get perhaps a nomination each in the Best Visual Effects and Best Production Design categories too. 

Other Indian titles that were nominated include Shaunak Sen’s documentary All That Breathes, under Documentary Feature Film, and Kartiki Gonsalves’ Netflix documentary The Elephant Whisperers, under Documentary Short Film.

Pan Nalin’s Chhello Show, India’s official entry under the Best International Feature Film category, did not feature in the short-list.

Other Nominees

Best Picture:

All Quiet On The Western Front, Edward Berger

Avatar The Way of Water, James Cameron

The Banshees of Inisherin, Martin McDonagh

Elvis, Baz Luhrmann

Everything Everywhere All At Once, Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert

The Fablemans, Steven Spielberg

Tár, Todd Field

Top Gun: Maverick, Joseph Kosinski

Triangle of Sadness, Ruben Östlund

Women Talking, Sarah Polley

International Feature Film:

All Quiet On The Western Front (Germany)

Argentina, 1985 (Argentina)

Close (Belgium)

EO (Poland)

The Quiet Girl (Ireland)

Actress in a Leading Role 

Cate Blanchett (Tár)

Ana De Armas (Blonde)

Andrea Riseborough (To Leslie)

Michelle Williams (The Fablemans)

Michelle Yeoh (Everything Everywhere All At Once)

Actors in A Leading Role 

Austin Butler (Elvis)

Colin Farrell (The Banshees of Inisherin)

Brendan Fraser (The Whale)

Paul Mescal (Aftersun)

Bill Nighy (Living)

India at the Oscars

India’s first taste of the Oscars can be traced back to Mehboob Khan's Mother India in 1957, which was nominated in the Best Foreign Language Film category. Other titles that have made it to the nominations list include Mira Nair’s Salaam Bombay! (1988) and Ashutosh Gowariker’s Lagaan (2001). However, five Indians have won the prestigious award so far — AR Rahman, sound designer Resul Pookutty and lyricist Gulzar (all for their work in Danny Boyle’s Slumdog Millionaire, 2008), costume designer Bhanu Athaiya for Richard Attenborough’s 1982 biopic Gandhi, and auteur Satyajit Ray, who won an honorary Oscar for lifetime achievement in 1992. 

The ceremony of the 95th Academy Awards will take place at the Dolby® Theatre at Ovation Hollywood on March 12, 2023