Why 'Dhurandhar' wasn't chosen as India's Oscars entry
What's the story
The announcement of the Marathi film Gondhal as India's official entry for the 99th Academy Awards has sparked online discussion. Many are surprised that it beat Ranveer Singh's superhit film, Dhurandhar. Now, Vivek Vaswani, a member of the Film Federation of India jury, has explained why Dhurandhar wasn't chosen. He told NDTV that while some members liked the film, they ultimately didn't think it was "Oscar material."
Jury's perspective
Only 4 jury members voted for 'Dhurandhar'
Vaswani further elaborated that Dhurandhar didn't portray Indian culture in the way the jury wanted when selecting India's official entry.
He said, "Couple of people liked it, but we didn't think that it was Oscar material."
When asked how many of the 14 jury members voted for Dhurandhar, he revealed that only four did.
Film selection
'Gondhal' was selected from these films
Gondhal was selected from a pool of 33 films, including 14 Hindi films, four Marathi films, four Telugu films, three Gujarati films, three Tamil films, one Malayalam film, one Nepali film, and one Nagaland film.
The final three contenders were Gondhal, Angh, and Main Vaapas Aaunga.
Ultimately, Gondhal was chosen as India's official entry for the 2027 Oscars.
Cultural representation
About 'Gondhal'
Directed and written by Santosh Davakhar, Gondhal is a thriller set in Maharashtra's traditional midnight ritual and folk-performance form.
The film's cultural setting and representation of Indian culture were among the factors that reportedly appealed to the jury.
It has also made a mark on the international festival circuit, with Davakhar winning the Silver Peacock Award for Best Director at the 56th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in 2025.
Commercial success
Meanwhile, 'Dhurandhar' franchise minted ₹3,000cr globally
Meanwhile, the Dhurandhar franchise, starring Singh and directed by Aditya Dhar, has been a huge commercial success.
The first film was released in December 2025 and its sequel in March 2026. The two films reportedly raked in around ₹3,000cr globally.
The franchise also stars Akshaye Khanna, Sanjay Dutt, Arjun Rampal, R Madhavan, and Sara Arjun.