Mumbai: Vishal Jethwa’s ‘Homebound’ failed to make it to the final nominations list in the Best International Feature Film category of the 98th Academy Awards.
Despite the disappointment, the actor remains positive and said that the journey so far has been incredibly special as his film represented Indian cinema globally.
“While we didn’t make the final nominations, being shortlisted among the final 15 films is an honour in itself. Seeing Homebound travel this far and represent India globally has been incredibly special,” the actor was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times. “And I will forever be grateful to have been part of this film.”
Confessing that he did believe and hoped that the film would go ahead, he said, “Even though we say that we should not expect anything, but ab jab itna aage aa gaye the to thoda expectations to thi. (When we reached so far, I did have a little more expectation.) No matter how many people saw the film, they liked it and called it a strong story and that in itself feels like an achievement.”
Hoping that his learning from the Oscar campaigning days stays with him forever, Vishal said, “Iss film ka poore experience ne, chaahe wo shooting ho ya campaigning ho, ya film festivals attend karna ho, isne mukhe bohot badla hai. This has been a liberating experience for me. (The entire experience including the shooting, campaigning, attending film festivals among others have been truly inspiring and has changed me a lot.)”
He added, “I have been able to understand myself better and I have gained this confidence. Sometimes I worry about losing this confidence once all of this is over and whatever I have learnt and built as a person shouldn’t go away.”
Vishal played the role of Chandan Kumar Valmiki in the movie, which also stars Ishaan Khatter in the parallel lead.