Indian Women Combine Submissiveness and Dominance: Laapataa Ladies Receives Oscar Nomination

The Film Federation of India (FFI) had earlier submitted the film Laapataa Ladies as India’s official entry for the Oscars. Now, a documentary of their nomination is going viral for all the wrong reasons. In the documentary, the federation apparently defined Indian women as those who are a “strange mix of submissive and dominant.” In fact, this is mentioned as the first sentence in the documentary, explaining why Laapataa Ladies is the top candidate in the category at the Academy.

Several social media users highlighted the problem with this definition. Many even pointed out that the federation’s selection committee consisted of 13 members, all of whom were men. “Indian women combine submission and dominance: Laapataa Ladies crushed (sic),” wrote one X user, while another stated, “ChatGpt probably wrote that the Jury awarded Laapata Ladies (sic).”

The description of Laapata Ladies in the same documentary continues: “Well-defined, strong characters in a single world, Laapata Ladies (Hindi) captures this diversity perfectly, albeit in a semi-idyllic world and in a humorous way. It shows that women can happily yearn to be homemakers, and also rebel and be entrepreneurial. A story that can be simultaneously seen as one that needs change and one that can bring change (sic).”

Laapataa Ladies, a film released in March this year, is about two village brides who have different dreams and are inadvertently switched at a train station. The incident leads to hilarious and emotional adventures not only for the two of them but for everyone around them.

In an official statement to IndiaToday.in, Aamir Khan, who produced the film, called it the happiest news. He said, “We are all so happy with this news. I am so proud of Kiran and her entire team. I would like to thank the selection committee of Film Federation of India who selected our film to represent India at the Oscars (sic).”

Laapataa Ladies, considered a true feminist film, directed by Kiran Rao and written by Sneha Desai. Currently available on Netflix. The film beat 28 others on the list to become a prime candidate for entry.