FFI jury head Jahnu Baruaa reacts to Laapataa Ladies’ Oscars exit, calls Payal Kapadia’s All We Imagine As Light ‘technically poor’

After Aamir Khan and Kiran Rao’s Laapataa Ladies, India’s official entry in the Best International Feature category at the 97th Academy Awards, exited the Oscars race, many took to social media, including filmmaker Hansal Mehta and musician Ricky Kej, to question the Film Federation of India’s (FFI) decision. They argued that Laapataa Ladies was not the strongest contender and suggested that Payal Kapadia’s All We Imagine As Light would have been a better choice. Now, FFI jury head Jahnu Barua has addressed the backlash and explained the reasons behind selecting Kiran Rao’s film while sharing criticism about Payal Kapadia’s project, calling it “poor technically.”

Speaking about the backlash, Barua told Hindustan Times, “That is very uncalled for actually. Why should people say such things? It is very unfortunate. People should try to accept it as the jury’s decision. I have had many of my films go to many competitions, at some places they were awarded and at some places they failed to win. That doesn’t mean I should have a negative review of that process… We should be respectful towards the process.”

While Barua refrained from commenting on why Laapataa Ladies failed to progress further in the Oscars race, she urged critics to focus on the jury’s reasons for selecting the film to represent India. “People need to understand that it was a democratic process that one has to go through. And the country needs to accept whatever the verdict is,” he said.

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He went on to explain, “The jury felt that the films which have gone to the Oscars in the last few years lacked Indian-ness. A film needs to represent the nation. We felt that Laapataa Ladies had all the right elements, and presented the social chaos we go through brilliantly.”

Commenting on Payal Kapadia’s All We Imagine As Light, Barua said, “The jury felt that her film was very poor technically.”

Interestingly, All We Imagine As Light has earned two nominations at the Golden Globes 2025. The film has been recognised in the Best Non-English Language Motion Picture category, while filmmaker Payal Kapadia secured a nomination in the prestigious Best Director – Motion Picture category.