India has every reason to be proud: Shahana Goswami on Santosh’s Oscar entry

Director Sandhya Suri’s Santosh, a movie set in rural north India, has been shortlisted for Oscar 2025 in the International Feature Film category from the UK. Shahana Goswami, who plays the role of a widow who inherits the job of her husband as a cop in the film, says, “I feel really happy, proud, and encouraged by this selection. It’s a moment of celebration for (director) Sandhya Suri (and) for all of us.”

The movie is an international co-production of the UK, India, France and Germany. Though Santosh is the UK’s official entry to the Oscars, Goswami feels India deserves to be proud of it regardless.

"I don't believe in the segregation of this is mine and that is yours. There is a huge Indian team involved. India has every reason to be proud of it as well. I don't think it is a country-specific thing. It's more thematic. It's about storytelling and diversity. It doesn't matter where the film comes from, the story is still rooted in India," Shahana says.

In the next step, Santosh will compete against 14 other films to get nominated for the 97th Oscars. Goswami, 38, is optimistic about winning and says, “I will be very happy if it plays out that way, and if it doesn’t, then it’s okay. But I do have a gut feeling about the film going through the nominations.”