India’s Oscar hope ‘Homebound’ misses final nominations

India’s official Oscar entry Homebound has failed to secure a nomination at the 98th Academy Awards, ending its campaign after making the final shortlist in the International Feature Film category.

The film did not feature among the five nominees announced on January 22, despite strong early buzz and a successful run through major international festivals. The shortlisted films for International Feature Film were from Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany, Iraq, Japan, Jordan, Norway, Palestine, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan and Tunisia. The final nominees are The Secret Agent (Brazil), It Was Just an Accident (France), Sentimental Value (Norway), Sirat (Spain) and The Voice of Hind Rajab (Tunisia).

Homebound had reached a rare milestone for Indian cinema by becoming only the fifth Indian film to be shortlisted for the category in the Academy Awards’ 98-year history. It was among the 15 films that remained in contention until the final round of voting.

Directed by Neeraj Ghaywan, the film stars Ishaan Khatter and Vishal Jethwa as childhood friends whose shared ambition to join the police force shapes their lives, with Janhvi Kapoor in a key supporting role. The film has been widely praised for its grounded storytelling and performances, and premiered at Cannes, followed by screenings at the Toronto International Film Festival and the Melbourne International Film Festival.

The project is produced by Karan Johar, Adar Poonawalla and Apoorva Mehta, with Marijke deSouza and Melita Toscan Du Plantier as co-producers. Martin Scorsese and Pravin Khairnar are credited as executive producers.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences unveiled the full list of Oscar nominations. Michael B Jordan’s Sinners led the field with 16 nominations, followed by titles such as One Battle After Another, Marty Supreme, Sentimental Value and Frankenstein.

In the acting categories, Timothée Chalamet became the youngest male actor to receive three Best Actor nominations, earning a nod for Marty Supreme. He will compete against Leonardo DiCaprio (One Battle After Another), Ethan Hawke (Blue Moon), Michael B Jordan (Sinners) and Wagner Moura (The Secret Agent).

International cinema continued to make a strong showing across categories, while the Animated Feature race included box office heavyweight Zootopia 2 and Netflix hit KPop Demon Hunters.

The nominees were announced by Danielle Brooks and Lewis Pullman. The 98th Academy Awards ceremony will be held on March 15, 2026, with Conan O’Brien returning as host.