Oscars 2025: With Aamir Khan-Kiran Rao’s ‘Laapataa Ladies’ out of the race, all eyes on Guneet Monga to bring the Academy a third time

India’s hopes at the 2025 Oscars now rest on Anuja, a live-action short film produced by Guneet Monga, after Kiran Rao’s Laapataa Ladies did not make it to the next round in the International Feature Film category. On Tuesday, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the shortlists for 10 categories for the upcoming 97th Academy Awards.

Laapataa Ladies, which was India’s official entry for the Best International Feature Film category, could not advance further, leaving many fans and filmmakers disappointed.

However, India still has a reason to hope. Monga’s Anuja has been shortlisted in the Best Live-Action Short Film category. The film sheds light on the important issue of child labour in the garment industry and features actor Nagesh Bhonsle in a key role.

This is Monga’s third nomination at the Oscars. Her earlier projects, The Elephant Whisperers and Period: End of Sentence, won Oscars, bringing glory to Indian cinema.Apart from Anuja, another film that remains in the Oscars race is ‘Santosh’, a British-Indian film directed by Sandhya Suri. Featuring actor Shahana Goswami, Santosh is the United Kingdom’s official entry for the Oscars. The film premiered earlier this year in the Un Certain Regard section at the Cannes Film Festival.The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences announced 30 shortlisted films in contention for the Best Live Action Short and Best Animated Short Oscar categories. Some other shortlisted contenders include Clodagh, The Compatriot, Crust, Dovecote, Edge of Space, and The Ice Cream Man.

Kiran Rao’s directorial and Aamir Khan’s production venture Laapataa Ladies, which was India’s official submission for the Best International Feature category, is out of the Oscars 2025 race. The Academy announced the films shortlisted in the category on Tuesday and Laapataa Ladies didn’t make it to the cut.

In a statement, Aamir Khan Productions said, “Laapataa Ladies (Lost Ladies) did not make it to the Academy Awards shortlist this year, and we are of course disappointed, but equally we are immensely grateful for the incredible support and belief we’ve received throughout this journey.”

With added inputs from agencies