The news of Malayalam movie "Jallikattu" becoming India's official entry for the 93rd Academy Awards (Oscars 2021) in the International Feature Film category has taken the Internet by storm.
Based on the short story “Maoist” by writer S. Hareesh, “Jallikattu” revolves around a tamed buffalo that escapes from its owner on the eve of its scheduled slaughter and creates havoc by hurting people in a village in Kerala state.
The film is named after a traditional sport, Jallikattu, which is held annually in India's Tamil Nadu state. In the sport, fighters pounce on a running bull, try to hold on to its hump, and try to go along with the animal without falling or getting hurt.
Calling it an uphill task to select "Jallikattu" out of 26 other hit movies, jury member Rahul Rawail, chairman, Film Federation of India, told Indian media: “It’s a film which brings out the raw side of human beings, that we’re worse than animals. Human instincts are worse than animals. The film has been depicted wonderfully. It’s a production that all of us should be proud of…The emotions, which come out, moved all of us. Lijo is an extremely competent director. So, that’s why we zeroed in on Jallikattu”.
Starring actors Antony Varghese, Chemban Vinod Jose, Sabumon Abdusamad, and Santhy Balachandran, their fans and fellow celebrities have taken to social media to share their sheer joy.
The 93rd Academy Awards will be held on 25 April 2021 in Los Angeles. "Jallikattu" had its international premiere at the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival. It was screened at the 24th Busan International Film Festival before its theatrical release on 4 October last year.