Mon Sep 23 15:00:17 UTC 2024: ## Kiran Rao’s “Laapataa Ladies” Chosen as India’s Oscar Entry, Director Seeks Wider Audience

Kiran Rao’s “Laapataa Ladies,” a film focusing on the lives of women in rural India, has been selected as India’s official entry for the Best Foreign Film category at the 2025 Oscars. This news comes as director Kiran Rao expresses a desire to reach a wider audience with her film, which she believes speaks to women across all social strata.

In a recent interview, Rao highlighted the film’s universal appeal, emphasizing that women in cities also resonate with the story’s themes of guilt, balancing work and family, and overcoming personal struggles. Despite its rural setting and lack of big stars and dance numbers, Rao believes the film’s powerful message transcends geographical and social barriers.

However, she acknowledges the challenges of reaching a wider audience in the current cinematic landscape, where single-screen theatres have been largely replaced by multiplexes, which are often unaffordable for a large segment of the population. This, coupled with the film’s unconventional approach, makes it difficult to achieve mass appeal.

Rao has appealed to NGOs, schools, colleges, and social groups to help promote the film and facilitate conversations around its key themes. She believes “Laapataa Ladies” has the potential to spark important discussions about the realities and challenges faced by women in India, and she’s eager to share it with as many people as possible.

The film, based on Biplab Goswami’s award-winning story, was released in India on March 1, 2024, and was previously screened at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) last year.

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