Cinema lovers all over the world are eagerly awaiting the 95th Academy Awards, set to be declared on Monday. This year, Indians, too, have much to be excited about—RRR's 'Naatu Naatu' has been nominated for Best Original Song, and documentaries All That Breathes and Elephant Whisperers have bagged nods in Documentary Feature and Documentary Short categories.
Jimmy Kimmel will return for a third time to host the event. He last hosted the prestigious award ceremony in 2018 when a goof-up led to La La Land being mistakenly declared Best Picture award winner. Kimmel is back to host the event as the shadow of the infamous slap still looms over the red-carpet event—Will Smith slapped presenter Chris Rock on stage after Rock cracked a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith.
When and where to watch in India
Though the Oscars will be held on Sunday night at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, it will be broadcast live in India from 5:30am on Monday. The awards ceremony will stream live for viewers in India on Disney plus Hotstar. The ceremony can also be streamed directly on ABC's YouTube channel.
'Naatu Naatu', composed by M.M. Keeravani, will compete with 'Applause' from from Tell It Like a Woman, 'Hold My Hand' from Top Gun: Maverick, 'Lift Me Up' from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and 'This Is a Life' from Everything Everywhere All at Once. The Last Show, India's official entry in the International Feature category, however, failed to make the cut in the final five that were declared in January.
All That Breathes is competing for an Oscar alongside All the Beauty and the Bloodshed, Fire of Love, A House Made of Splinters and Navalny, has also emerged as one of the best documentaries this year. Set in Delhi, the documentary directed by Shaunak Sen follows two brothers who have devoted their lives to rescuing and treating injured birds, especially black kites.
Netflix's Tamil documentary The Elephant Whisperers, is a moving story of the bond between two abandoned elephants and their caretakers. It will compete with Haulout, How Do You Measure a Year?, The Martha Mitchell Effect and Stranger at the Gate.
