Ali Fazal-starrer 'Victoria and Abdul' loses out on Oscars

LOS ANGELES: Indian actor Ali Fazal-starrer "Victoria & Abdul", with Judi Dench in the key role, lost out on a chance to win an Oscar at the 90th Academy Awards here on Sunday.

The movie was nominated in two categories - Best Costume Design for Consolata Boyle and Make-up and Hairstyling for Daniel Phillips and Lou Sheppard.

The Best Costume Design award was bagged by Mark Bridges for black comedy "Phantom", and in the movie Make-Up and Hairstyling segment, the team behind "Darkest Hour" --A Kazuhiro Tsuji, David Mallinowski and Lucy Sibbick -- took away the accolades for the prosthetic work required to turn actor Gary Oldman into Winston Churchill.

The awards were presented by screen legend Eva Marie Saint, who won Best Actress in 1955 for "On The Waterfront". She received a standing ovation when she took the stage.

Helmed by Stephen Frears, "Victoria & Abdul" is based on a novel by Shrabani Basu. It revolves around the relationship shared by Queen Victoria and Abdul, who was a Munshi in her government. It also shows his journey on how he became one of the most powerful figures in the court.

The role of the queen is played by Dench and Abdul is essayed by Ali.

Ali had earlier spoken out about the hard work that went in for the movie.

"I remember sitting for hours in a day just for my fittings and markings. And how meticulously Consolata Boyle would tailor them to match the period we were depicting. It was like watching a painter unravel a masterpiece.

"The same goes for Daniel Phillips, a Golden Globe winner, who was responsible for all our looks," he had said earlier this year when the two nominations were announced.