India's mythological animated film Mahavatar Narsimha is one of 35 films eligible for the Academy Awards, which will be held next year on March 16.
With the film, India is possibly looking at its very first animated feature nomination and Oscar.
The final shortlist will be announced on December 16.
The film Mahavatar Narsimha will be competing with 35 other international film titles, which include Netflix’s Hit Kpop Demon Hunters, Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle, Zootopia 2, Chainsaw Man, and Disney’s Elio. China’s highly anticipated and popular film Ne Zha 2 was absent from the list.
A statement from the Academy said, “Thirty-five features are eligible for consideration in the Animated Feature Film category for the 98th Academy Awards. Some of the films have not yet had their required qualifying release and must fulfil that requirement and comply with all the category’s other qualifying rules to advance in the voting process."
The film, which tells the story of two avatars of Vishnu, Varaha and Narasimha, was released in July this year in both 2D and 3D formats. It was directed by Ashwin Kumar and is the first instalment in a seven-part series. It became one of the highest-grossing films of the year, earning Rs 400 crores globally. It was subsequently released on Netflix.
The film made it to the list as it meets the qualifying criteria of having a commercial run in the United States. The Academy states that the qualifying films must have a minimum commercial run of seven consecutive days in one venue with at least three screenings per day and one between 6 pm and 10 pm. Other eligibility criteria include: having a duration of more than 40 minutes and featuring animation for at least 75 per cent of the movie.
Since the film meets this criterion, it has a shot at getting a nomination.
The sequel, Mahavatar Parshuram, will focus on Vishnu’s sixth avatar and will be out in 2027.