The British Academy has announced Sandhya Suri‘s highly praised crime thriller, Santosh, as the U.K.’s official submission for the international feature film category at the Oscars.
Santosh, a Hindi-language film that premiered at the Un Certain Regard section at Cannes earlier this year, enters the race with notable expectations, especially following the U.K.’s historic win in the same category last year with Jonathan Glazer’s The Zone of Interest.
This film marks the feature directorial debut of British-Indian filmmaker Sandhya Suri, who is recognized for her earlier documentary work, such as I for India (2005) and Around India with a Movie Camera (2018). Set in the rural regions of northern India, Santosh tells the story of a newly widowed woman who takes over her late husband’s role as a police constable. Her life becomes intertwined with a murder investigation involving an underage girl from a marginalized caste, led by a determined feminist inspector.
Written and directed by Suri, Santosh stars Shahana Goswami and Sunita Rajwar, with cinematography by Lennert Hillege and editing by Maxime Pozzi-Garcia. The production team includes Mike Goodridge, James Bowsher, Balthazar de Ganay, and Alan McAlex, with Ama Ampadu, Eva Yates, and others serving as executive producers. Produced under the Good Chaos banner, the film is co-produced by Razor Film and Haut et Court, with funding from BFI and BBC Film. Variety praised Santosh for its sharp intelligence, noting its focus on the complex dynamics of power and the people who control it.
