Kiran Rao's light-hearted comedy with a deep social message, Laapataa Ladies, was chosen as India's official Oscar entry for the Best International Feature Film in September. A new poster of the film was unveiled on Tuesday. The caption read, "Official entry: India. Best International Feature Film - 97th Academy Awards." The poster also reveals a major change in the title of the film, as it reaches out to an international audience. The Hindi word Laapataa has been changed to its English version "Lost." Nitanshi Goel, who played phool in the film, shared the new poster on her Instagram handle and she wrote, "Presenting the official poster for #LostLadies-a glimpse into the wild, heartfelt journey of Phool and Jaya!" Take a look:
Laapataa Ladies was selected over 29 other films, the FFI chairman Jahnu Barua said. A 13-member jury considered 12 Hindi films, six Tamil and four Malayalam films to select India's Best International Feature Film Oscars pick. The other films in the running included names such as Animal, Kill, Kalki 2898 AD, Srikanth, Chandu Champion, Joram, Maidaan, Sam Bahadur, Article 370, the Malayalam film Aattam - which won the National Award for Best Feature Film this year - and Payal Kapadia's All We Imagine As Light, a Cannes winner.
"I am deeply honoured and delighted that our film Laapataa Ladies has been chosen as India's official entry to the Academy Awards. This recognition is a testament to the tireless work of my entire team, whose dedication and passion brought this story to life. Cinema has always been a powerful medium to connect hearts, transcend boundaries, and ignite meaningful conversations. I hope that this film will resonate with audiences across the world, just as it has in India," filmmaker Kiran Rao said in a statement.
Laapataa Ladies, directed by Kiran Rao and produced by Aamir Khan, was headlined by a fresh cast - Nitanshi Goel, Pratibha Ranta, Sparsh Shrivastav and Chhaya Kadam - with a powerful cameo by veteran Ravi Kishan. The film released in theatres on March 1 and was applauded by critics and audiences alike, gaining more and more traction through word-of-mouth.