He left India, struggled as a UK immigrant but ultimately found love: 66 years later, his son is now an Oscar winner

The journey behind Alexandre Singh’s Oscar win this year is not just about cinema. It is also about migration, identity, and a family story that began decades ago in India. At the Academy Awards, Singh, along with Natalie Musteata, won Best Live Action Short Film for Two People Exchanging Saliva. In an unusual moment, the award was shared with The Singers, directed by Sam A. Davis and Jack Piatt.

But behind this win is a much older story, one that started in Punjab in the 1960s.

A father’s difficult beginning in the UK

During his acceptance speech, Singh spoke in detail about his father’s life after leaving India. He said, "In the 1960s, my father left the Punjab to come to the United Kingdom with a beard and turban. And can you imagine what the reception was like back in the 1960s. It was very difficult for him. Over that time, he got a BA, he got an MSc, he got a PhD. He worked his way up and he lost the beard and he lost the turban."


His father’s journey was not easy. Like many immigrants of that time, he had to adjust, adapt, and slowly build a life in a new country. Over the years, he pursued higher education and created stability for himself.

Singh also spoke about the more personal side of his father’s life. He shared, "He loved the Beatles. He loved France, French wine, a certain French woman, which is why I am here. And through all the time, he had the immigrant experience. He was so proud to be Indian."

Loss, identity and a complicated connection

Singh was born in Bordeaux, France, in 1980 and later grew up in the UK. He studied fine arts at the University of Oxford. However, his relationship with his roots became more complex after his father passed away when he was still young.

He said, "I lost my father when I was 21, and it pains me that in some ways I lost my connection to my heritage that way, that true connection."

He also recalled a difficult phase in his life when he chose to study art.
"One of the most difficult periods of my life was the week I got into art school to study fine arts at the University of Oxford, which on one hand was such a wonderful thing, but for father as an Indian immigrant was an abomination that I would study art. Because to be able to dream, to work in culture, is a privilege."

The film and its message

The Oscar-winning short film Two People Exchanging Saliva is a French-language project that first premiered at the Telluride Film Festival in 2024. The story is unusual, set in a dystopian world where even basic human intimacy is banned.

The film stood out not just for its concept but also for its layered storytelling. Singh, who has previously worked on projects like The Appointment (2019) and Plan Large (2016), has gradually built a space for himself in global cinema.