After much anticipation, India’s official submission for the prestigious Oscars 2027 has finally been unveiled.
Following last year’s selection of Homebound, the Film Federation of India (FFI) has officially chosen Gondhal , a gripping Marathi thriller directed by Santosh Davakhar, to represent the country in the Best International Feature Film category at the 99th Academy Awards.
“We shot the film continuously in around 26 to 27 days, doing night shifts near Thane in November and December. When asked about the first person he reached out to after hearing the life-changing announcement, the actor revealed an emotional exchange with his mother while remembering his late father.
When I heard about this news, everyone was there on the video call and Sir told us that Gondhal has been selected for the official Academy Awards from India by the Film Federation of India. “Actually, it’s like a dream come true. Absolutely, I’m speechless and I don’t know how to express my feelings. I was given the audition for a different role initially, but after seeing it, the director called me for a narration and offered me the lead role instead, telling me I would pull it off with precision. Seeing how he narrated it and how involved the HODs were, there was no point saying no. I am completely overwhelmed. The weather outside was extremely cold, going down to eight or nine degrees. My co-actor Anuj and I were shooting a fight sequence in pitch-dark, muddy water. Given the freezing temperature and dirty water, that was definitely the toughest sequence to shoot. Though the thriller saw a quiet opening at the box office, strong organic word-of-mouth eventually carried the film to national recognition. Being only the fourth Marathi feature film selected as India’s official Oscar entry in history, Yogesh believes this milestone marks a turning point. Reflecting on the journey from an underdog release to an Academy Award contender, Yogesh extended his deepest gratitude to the audiences who backed the film from day one.
In an exclusive conversation with Zee News Digital, Gondhal lead actor Yogesh Sohoni opened up about his emotional reaction, the gruelling shoot conditions, and what this selection means for Indian cinema.
