In today’s Finshots, we discuss the economics of the Oscars and if it could change the game for ‘Laapataa Ladies’, India’s official entry for the 2025 Awards.

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The Story

Movie buffs have been caught up in a rather heated debate over the last couple days about the 2025 Academy Awards, or as we all know them, the Oscars.

Some are thrilled that the FFI (Film Federation of India) picked Aamir Khan’s production Laapataa Ladies as India’s official entry for Oscar nominations. But others? Not so much. They’re upset that All We Imagine as Light, a critically acclaimed film that wowed audiences at Cannes and TIFF (Toronto International Film Festival), was overlooked. In their eyes, Laapataa Ladies just doesn’t cut it.

But we’re not here to argue which film is more deserving. Instead, we want to talk about why reaching the Oscars matters for Indian cinema, and what this could mean for Laapataa Ladies.

And to do that, we’ll have to understand why the Oscars are such a big deal in the first place.

You see, the Oscars weren’t always the monumental event they are today. When Louis Mayer, head of the media giant MGM, founded the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (or just the Academy) in 1927, it was more about fixing Hollywood’s scandal-plagued image. And it wasn’t until 1953, when the awards were first televised that the Oscars became the glamorous, world-famous event we know now.

It’s no wonder that films are more competitive than ever today when it comes to securing an Oscar nomination. Studios even time film releases around the Oscar season, hoping for that “recency bias” bump, where movies released closer to the awards stay fresh in voters’ minds. It’s all part of the strategy to win the most prestigious award in the movie world.

But why do filmmakers go through all these troubles, you ask?

It’s simple really — because of the “Oscar Effect”.

See, just getting nominated, let alone winning, can give a movie a huge economic boost. The collection revenues soar, actors’ paychecks could get bigger, and directors and musicians could get more work.

On the flip side, these efforts and the Oscar spotlight can also backfire sometimes. Just ask Marisa Tomei, whose surprise Best Supporting Actress Award in 1993 for My Cousin Vinny, sparked rumours that her win may have been a mistake, casting a shadow over her career for years. Or Anne Hathaway, who won the same award in 2013 for Les Misérables, only to face backlash for her acceptance speech that seemed “over-rehearsed”.

Still, most filmmakers are willing to risk it for the rewards.

Take American Beauty, for instance. Released in 1999 on a $15 million budget, it made $75 million domestically before the Oscar nominations. In fact, just before the nominations, the movie had all but disappeared, playing in only 7 theatres. But once nominated, it surged back to the top 10, grossed another $5 million in a single weekend, and eventually made $130 million in North America alone. And about 43% of that revenue came after the nominations. So yeah, the Oscars can make a huge difference.

But hey, that’s Hollywood. What about non-Hollywood films? Can they reap the same benefits too?

Absolutely!

Just look at Parasite, the South Korean film that won four Oscars in 2020, including Best Picture. Before that, only a handful of North American theatres screened it. But when the movie started winning at film festivals, and especially after its Oscar victory, it went from being shown on 3 screens to 2,000 in North America, even expanding to European markets. And this “Oscar Bump” didn’t just boost box office revenues, it also put Korean cinema and culture on the global map.

A similar story could shape up for Laapataa Ladies if luck is on its side.

Just think back to RRR’s Naatu Naatu, which won the Oscar for the Best Original Song in 2023. Even before its win, the song created a buzz worldwide, helping the movie break into European and American markets, and beyond the Indian diaspora. This also contributed to RRR becoming the third-highest-grossing Indian film globally, with a total box office collection of nearly ₹1,200 crores.

And let’s not overlook Slumdog Millionaire. Though a British production, it had a distinctly Indian flavour — filmed in Mumbai with a predominantly Indian cast, crew and storyline. After its eight-Oscar sweep in 2009, profits soared nearly tenfold. And this success also piqued global interest in India, particularly in Mumbai’s slums, boosting tourism, even if it annoyed locals in places like Dharavi.

The same potential exists for Laapataa Ladies as well. In fact, it doesn’t even have to win any awards. Just making it to the nominee list for the Best International Feature Film could work wonders for Indian cinema.

And there’s proof to back this. A 2005 study published in the Journal of Cultural Economics found that just getting nominated can give a big boost to a film’s revenue. Winning isn’t even the biggest factor. The reason is simple. Nominations spark curiosity. So, if people haven’t seen the film yet, they might just grab a Netflix subscription to check it out. Not just that. A nomination raises the film’s visibility, both globally and locally, and can shine a spotlight on “Brand India”, whether it’s through cinema, tourism or cultural experiences.

But, of course, getting that nomination won’t be easy.

Laapataa Ladies and its team will have to invest a lot of time, effort and money to build the right campaign. Because the Oscars are as much about lobbying as they are about artistic merit. And to get noticed, the film’s producers will need to push hard. They’ll have to find global distributors, campaign heavily and most importantly, make sure that the jury or the Academy’s members actually watches the film. The goal is to leave a lasting impression, so when it’s time to vote, the majority remember it well enough for it to make the cut.

So, will Laapataa Ladies be able to ride the wave to the Oscars and bring glory back to Indian cinema?

We’ll just have to wait and see if it’s all worth it when the nominations roll out next year.

Until then…

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