Unfortunately, India’s entry to the Oscars this year Newton, didn’t make it to the list of nominees competing for the statuette. And sadly, as Indians, we don’t have anything to root for this year. But that’s not always been the case. Over the years, there have been many films which have either represented India in the Best Foreign film category or have been shot in India or the story is based in India. Let’s take a look at five such films. 

Mother India

Starring Nargis, Mother India was nominated for the Best Foreign Film category in 1958. One of the reasons it caught so many eyeballs, was because it showed a mother killing her own son. 

Salaam Bombay

Directed by Mira Nair, Salaam Bombay! was the second Indian film to be nominated in the Best Foreign Film category in 1989. The film was based on the life of slum children and their struggles, and was also featured in New York Times’ list of ‘1000 best films ever made’. 

Lagaan

A master piece by Ashutosh Gowariker, this one was India’s entry to the Oscars in the 2002 edition. The film was about a group of Indian villagers taking on a team of British administrators in a game that they had no clue about prior to accepting the challenge. A game we now know as Cricket. 

Water

Even though this film was Canada’s official entry to the Oscars, it starred mainstream Bollywood actors like Lisa Ray and John Abraham. It was also written by popular Bollywood director Anurag Kashyap. Set in Varanasi (but shot in Sri Lanka), the film is based on the plight of widows at an ashram. 

Slumdog Millionaire

It stars popular Bollywood actors like Anil Kapoor and Irrfan Khan, along with Indian-origin actors like Dev Patel and Freida Pinto playing the lead. It’s based on a concept of a chaiwallah entering the hit show Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? and actually winning a million by knowing all the correct answers.