Gujarati films excel in the National Awards and Oscar race

Gandhi & Co. received the Golden Lotus (Best Children’s Film) last year, Chhello Show won Best Gujarati Film, and Bhavin Rabari won Best Child Artist (for Chhello Show) at the 69th National Film Awards—a glorious occasion for Gujarati film.

 

There’s a good vibe in the business since D-Town movies are being attention at major film festivals (such 21mu Tiffin), winning prizes, and being remade in various languages.We look at several Gujarati films that have garnered national and international attention ahead of Gujarat Day (May 1).
Making a stir at the Oscars:

2022’s Chhello Show:
The Pan Nalin-directed National Award-winning movie was officially submitted by India for the 2023 Oscars, where it was shortlisted in the Best International Feature Film category. Even though the film ultimately lost, it is still regarded as one of Gujarati cinema’s greatest achievements. The movie lasted more than 25 weeks in Japanese theaters and was played in many other countries!
(2013) The Good Road:

This National Award-winning film, which was written and directed by Gyan Correa, was India’s official submission for the Oscars, however it was not selected for the shortlist.
2012’s Veer Hamirji-Somnath Ni Sakhate:

Although the movie only lasted one week in theaters, it was one of the 17 movies that were considered for Indian entry to the Best Foreign Language Oscar category. It finally was eliminated from the final version.

“It was not an easy journey without any big distributors or stars, and when Chhello Show was announced as India’s official entry to the Oscars, we were subjected to some terrible trolling,” explains filmmaker Pan Nalin. However, after seeing the movie, people’s perceptions shifted. It was a triumph of straightforward, profound filmmaking. The film’s progress on the Oscar shortlist was rather positive, and the excitement around the picture contributed to further interest in it.

FotoJet II
History is made by Hellaro:
Abhishek Shah’s Hellaro (2019), which established a high standard for Gujarati cinema, made history by becoming the first Gujarati film to receive the coveted Best Feature Film Award at the 66th National Film Awards. “The National Award for Hellaro was much more than just a personal achievement,” says Abhishek Shah. It meant that Gujarati film would be acknowledged throughout the country, which made me delighted. I was humbled to learn that we had made history from others. Authenticity was almost a main character in Hellaro, and despite several obstacles, the whole team put in a ton of effort on the movie. Magic was produced on the big screen by that.
Gandhi & Co. is incredible at the Oscars:

At the 69th National Film Awards, Manish Saini’s film took home the Golden Lotus for Best Children’s Film. “The Golden Lotus was a significant milestone for Gujarati cinema and aise recognition se honsla badhta hai, ki hum kuch sahi kar rahe hain,” Manish said us.

Remakes are inspired by D-Town:

Two famous D-Town film remakes have already been released in 2024. Chaal Jeevi Laiye! (2019) was remade in Marathi as Ole Aale, whilst Vash (2023) was recreated in Hindi as Shaitaan. The author-director of Ole Aale and Chaal Jeevi Laiye!, Vipul Mehta

declares, “We believed that Chaal Jeevi Laiye! could be reproduced in a variety of languages since it had an international appeal. We may also rework it in other languages. Prior to this, Chhello Divas (2015) was recreated in Hindi (Days of Tafree), then Oxygen (2018) was remade in Telugu (Entha Manchivaadavuraa).

Were You Aware?
Ketan Mehta’s 1980 film Bhavni Bhavai took home the National Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration. For the same movie, Meera Lakhia took home the National Award for Best Production Design.