My nomination for the Oscar is The Lunch box!

I too had hoped that The Lunch Box would be our foreign film Oscar entry. I have not seen the film that has been nominated instead to be the Indian entry (and am sure it must be a good film too), but I continue to wish that the jury had decided upon this precious film. At a time when epic sagas and special effect extravaganzas are what entice an audience into the cinema, it came as a breath of fresh air to encounter a cinematic experience that held such nuanced subtlety and offered the message of hope so brilliantly.

The measured acting of the three main protagonists - Irfan Khan,  Nawazuddin Siddiqui  and Nimrat Kaur is what holds this tender story together and what makes it poetically poignant without it becoming cloyingly sweet. For me perhaps it is the acting of Nimrat Kaur that is the real stellar performance out of the lot. The quiet inflictions that this mature actor gives to the story line injects the credibility that elevates this film into being truly superlative.

Perhaps my only critique would be the initial "wobbliness"of the camera shots that are meant perhaps to be like darting eyes that take you from one part of the scene to the other. Thankfully as the film progresses this settles and the visual flow becomes conducive to the narrative that unfolds so effortlessly.

In the recent context of Indian cinema where many hopefuls wait for their dream moment in the arc lights of filmdom, these three actors are great examples of those who held personal ambitions and yet waited to find their niche within the industry without compromise. The finessed portrayals of their characters speak volumes about how deeply they individually understand their craft.

So yes I'm certainly disappointed that this film was not the choice of the jury and I believe we have once again not known the value of our own talent and how impressive this film actually is.

For those of you who have not seen this film its an absolute MUST see! And I am waiting for the release of it  as a DVD because I intend to send this film as a gift to all my foreign friends abroad.......