Authors
Vasudha noticed the growing problem of mis/disinformation online after studying New Media at ACJ in Chennai and became interested in separating facts from fiction. She is interested in learning how global issues affect individuals on a micro level. Before joining Newschecker’s English team, she was working with Latestly.
Vivek Agnihotri’s directorial ‘The Kashmir Files’ had prompted enough stir online following its release in March 2022. The movie is again under social media spotlight after Agnihotri’s tweet claiming that his film has been “shortlisted for #Oscars2023 in the first list of @TheAcademy” went viral. Several news outlets also picked his tweet to report on the “achievement” of the movie based on the exodus of Kashmiri Pandit community in 1990. Newschecker found the claim to be misleading as only four Indian films have been shortlisted for the 95th Academy Award, and The Kashmir Files is not one of them.
In a tweet dated January 10, 2023, Agnihotri said, “BIG ANNOUNCEMENT: #TheKashmirFiles has been shortlisted for #Oscars2023 in the first list of @TheAcademy. It’s one of the 5 films from India. I wish all of them very best. A great year for Indian cinema. (sic)”
Soon after Agnihotri’s “Big announcement,” social media platforms were flooded with congratulatory messages for The Kashmir Files team. Some users, including the State President of BJP Bengal, Dr. Sukanta Majumdar, went a step ahead and hailed the movie for getting “nominated” for the Oscars.
Archived versions of such tweets can be seen here, here, here and here.
Fact Check/Verification
A Google search for “The Kashmir Files,” & “Oscar 2023” led us to a report by NDTV, dated January 10, 2023, titled ‘Oscars 2023: RRR, Kantara And The Kashmir Files On Reminder List.’ It stated, “The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has released a list of 301 feature films eligible for Oscars and Indian films that have made the cut include SS Rajamouli’s RRR, Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Gangubai Kathiawadi, Vivek Agnihotri’s The Kashmir Files and Rishab Shetty’s Kantara…”
The report further added, “FYI, the list includes movies that can officially compete in various categories but merely featuring in the list does not guarantee that the film will advance in the final nominations of the Academy Awards, which will be announced on January 24.”
There was no mention of the film being shortlisted for Oscars.
We further scanned the official website of Oscars to find any recent notification/announcement of movies shortlisted or nominated for the awards. However, the most recent release featuring names of shortlisted movies, available on the website was dated December 21, 2022.
It stated, “The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced shortlists in 10 categories for the 95th Academy Awards®: Documentary Feature Film, Documentary Short Film, International Feature Film, Makeup and Hairstyling, Music (Original Score), Music (Original Song), Animated Short Film, Live Action Short Film, Sound and Visual Effects.”
On scanning through the release we found the names of four Indian movies enlisted- The Elephant Whisperers, Last Film Show, RRR and All That Breathes- but could not spot we ‘The Kashmir Files.’ A keyword search for Agnihotri’s movie on the webpage did not throw up any result as well.
The release however stated, “Nominations voting begins on Thursday, January 12, 2023, and concludes on Tuesday, January 17, 2023. Nominations for the 95th Academy Awards will be announced on Tuesday, January 24, 2023.”
This helped us conclude that the nomination list for Oscars 2023 is yet to be released, and hence the viral claim about The Kashmir Files being “nominated” for the Academy Awards is not true.
We continued our investigation and came across a release published on the website, dated January 9, 2023, titled ‘301 feature films in contention for 95th Academy Awards,’ stating, “The ‘Reminder List of Productions Eligible for the 95th Academy Awards’ is available at http://www.oscars.org/oscars/rules-eligibility. The Reminder List also includes the performers eligible for consideration in the Acting categories.”
On inspecting the link, we were directed to a PDF listing film titles and names of actor/actress “eligible for the 95th Academy Awards. (Oscars 2023).” Notably, the list featured The Kashmir Files, in addition to other (more than 5) Indian movies including Iravin Nizhal, Vikrant Rona, All That Breathes, Kantara, and Gangubai Kathiawadi.
As per the release carrying the Reminder List, “To be eligible for consideration under rules implemented for the 95th Academy Awards year, feature films must open in a commercial motion picture theatre in at least one of six U.S. metropolitan areas…between January 1, 2022, and December 31, 2022, and complete a minimum qualifying run of seven consecutive days in the same venue. Feature films must have a running time of more than 40 minutes.” A comprehensive rulebook for the Oscars can be seen here.
But Does A Place In Reminder List Guarantee Nomination?
No, an entry into the Reminder List indicates that a movie is eligible to compete in a variety of categories and does not guarantee an Oscar nomination or shortlisting. So far, four Indian movies have been shortlisted for the 95th Academy Awards in different categories.
A mention in the Reminder List does not mean that the movie is “shortlisted” or “nominated” for the Oscars. Multiple news outlets have clarified the same. Such reports can be seen here, here and here.
We could thus conclude that The Kashmir Files, like 300 more movies, is just eligible to enter the race for the Oscars. Neither it has been shortlisted, nor nominated for the Academy Awards so far.
Conclusion
Viral claims that The Kashmir Files has been “shortlisted” or “nominated” for Oscars 2023 are not true. The movie has just entered the Reminder List, meaning it is eligible to compete for Academy Awards.
Vivek Agnihotri’s claim that it is”one of the five” Indian movies to make it to the Oscars’ “shortlist” is also factually incorrect. Reminder List has more than 5 Indian movies and series. So far only four Indian movies have been shortlisted for the 95th Academy Award.
Result: Partly False
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Authors
Vasudha noticed the growing problem of mis/disinformation online after studying New Media at ACJ in Chennai and became interested in separating facts from fiction. She is interested in learning how global issues affect individuals on a micro level. Before joining Newschecker’s English team, she was working with Latestly.
