Gujarati film 'Chhello Show' has been named as India's official Oscars entry. The film is called 'The Last Film Show' in English.
On Tuesday, the Film Federation of India made the announcement.
Released in 2021, the coming-of-age drama is directed by Pan Nalin. It stars Bhavin Rabari, Bhavesh Shrimali, Richa Meena, Dipen Raval and Paresh Mehta in lead roles.
Producer Dheer Momaya said, "We are very excited, this is just a first step. We aim to get a nomination and eventually win. Hoping we can make our country proud."
The film revolves around nine-year-old Samay from Chalala, a village in Saurashtra in Gujarat, who enters a cinema hall projection booth by bribing a cinema projector technician, and watches several films through summer.
'Chhello Show' is semi-autobiographical as director Nalin was born and brought up in Adtala village in Saurashtra. According to media reports, six village boys from local communities of the region were cast in the film.
It may be mentioned that SS Rajamouli's 'RRR', Vivek Agnihotri's 'The Kashmir Files' and Sanjay Leela Bhansali's 'Gangubai Kathiawadi' were being speculated to be India’s entry for the category at Oscars.
