Barfi goes to Oscars 2013 as India's official entry for Best Foreign Language Film category

Barfi's success comes in a year when more out-of-the-box content has been working for the Hindi film industry than ever before.

By Agencies | Updated: Sep 22, 2012, 10.41 PM IST

MUMBAI: Anurag Basu's Barfi goes to Oscars 2013 as India's official entry for Best Foreign Language Film category.

At Rs 62.8 crore net box collection for 8 days, the Disney UTV film has definitely held audience interest.

Also Read: Barfi holds audience interest post opening weekend | Barfi will leave you speechless!

"We are honoured that Barfi! has been selected to represent India as its official entry to the Academy Awards 2013. Barfi! is very close to the hearts of all of us at UTV, and it gives us great satisfaction that a film we have developed and nurtured from its inception has met with so much love from audiences and critics worldwide. An added source of pride is that this is the 4th UTV film in the last 7 years to have been selected to represent India at the Academy awards; our earlier selections being Rang De Basanti (2006), Harishchandrachi Factory (2009) and Peepli Live (2010)", said Siddharth Roy Kapur, Managing Director - Studios, Disney UTV.

Around 20 films from various languages were being evaluated by jury members of the Film Federation of India. Vidya Balan's two films, 'Kahani' and 'The Dirty Picture', was nominated.

A number of Hindi films top the list of entries with about seven films including 'Paan Singh Tomar', 'Gangs of Wasseypur' 1 & 2, Ranbir Kapoor's 'Barfi', Madhur Bhandarkar's 'Heroine' and Vidhu Vinod Chopra's 'Ferrari Ki Sawari'.

Barfi's success comes in a year when more out-of-the-box content has been working for the Hindi film industry than ever before.

"Barfi!" is a moving tale of love beyond words - between a deaf and mute boy Murphy, played by Ranbir Kapoor, and an autistic girl Jhilmil, essayed effortlessly by Priyanka Chopra.

From Viacom 18 Motion Pictures Kahaani with a highly pregnant lead, to Balaji Telefilms, Dirty Picture which was inspired by a life story of a star, to Eros' Vicky Donor which deals with sperm donation, the year has been marked with varied content which the audiences have lapped up and the results have shown in the box office collections making not just this content being taken seriously but also give it more back bone in terms of support.

Made at a cost of Rs 35 crore plus another Rs 12 crore for prints and marketing, Barfi saw many delays in shoot for which trade sources add another ten crore to the cost. For director Anurag Basu the success means it is vindication and time make his brand of cinema.

It is for the first time the NFDC has sent this year's national award winning Punjabi film 'Anhey Ghorhey Da Daan' and Chidlren Film Society of India too makes its debut with 'Gattu'.

There are representations from regional cinema too. There are three Marathi films including Mahesh Manjrekar's 'Kaksparsh', Umesh Kulkarni's 'Deool' which has already won National award in three categories and 'Tukaram'. Some of the other films are Balaji Sakthivel's 'Vazhakku EN 18/9' and Rajmouli's 'Eega'.

Industry pundits feel the number of entries to the Oscar has gone up and there is an interesting mix of films. A senior member said, "It is going to be difficult for the jury to make the right choice this time as films from all kinds of cinema has made it to the list".

Last year, Salim Ahamed's 'Adaminte Makan Abu' (Malayalam film) had been chosen as India's official entry to the Oscars.

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