Director Neeraj Ghaywan’s Homebound has been selected as India’s official entry for Oscars 2026 in the Best International Feature category. Produced by Dharma Productions, the film features Ishaan Khatter, Vishal Jethwa and Janhvi Kapoor. The film is executive-produced by Martin Scorsese. The award was announced officially at the Bengal Club in Kolkata on September 19, 2025.
The film portrays the story of two childhood friends, a Dalit and a Muslim, from an Indian village who chase a police job that promises them the dignity they have long been denied.
The decision was unanimous from the Oscar Jury appointed by the Film Federation of India (FFI). The Jurors this year were veteran Mumbai filmmaker-writer-editor, N. Chandra (of Tezaab fame) as the chairperson, writer Ranbir Pushp, art director Angelica Monica Bhowmick (all from Mumbai), producer-director Abhishek Jain and editor Apurva Motiwale from Gujarat, writer Ratnotamma Sengupta and producer Surinder Singh from Kolkata, producer Akshay Kumar Parija from Orissa, actress Aimee Baruah from Guwahati, editor Suresh Urs from Bengaluru, filmmaker-actor-writer Tammareddy Bharadwaja from Hyderabad, filmmaker-writer Rajiv Anchal from Kerala, who in 1997, made Guru, India’s official submission for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, and filmmaker-writer-lyricist R.V. Uthayakumar from Chennai.
The 14th member was South Asian Herald’s Entertainment Editor and National award winner 2021 (Best Book on Cinema) Rajiv Vijayakar.
A jubilant Karan Johar shared in a media release, “We are deeply honored and humbled that Homeboundhas been selected as India’s official entry to the Academy Awards… Neeraj Ghaywan’s labor of love is sure to a find a home in a million hearts across the world.”
Neeraj Ghaywan added, “I’m deeply honored that Homebound has been chosen as India’s official entry to the Oscars. Rooted in the love for our land and our people, it carries the essence of the home we all share. To take our stories to the world and represent India at one of the biggest global stages for cinema is both humbling and a matter of pride, and for this I’m extremely grateful.”
The year’s other 23 entries were as follows: I Want to Talk, Tanvi The Great, The Bengal Files, Kesari Chapter 2, Superboys of Malegaon, Vanvaas, Humans in the Loop, Jugnuma, Phule and Pyre in Hindi, Sthal, Paani, Sabar Bonda, Dashavtar and Aata Thambaycha Naay in Marathi, the silent film, Meta The Dazzling Girl, Kannappa, Kubera, Gandhi Tatha Chettu and Pushpa 2 in Telugu, Boong in Manipuri and Veera Chandrahasa in Kannada.
Said jury chairperson N. Chandra, “We were not being judges here, but we were like coaches identifying players for the final match and training them. The decision was tough and we also had to consider the power to promote the film.”
The film has been appreciated internationally and has just hand its Indian theatrical release.
