Nearly 10 months in, 2025 has been a strange year for Hindi cinema. The highest-grossing film of this year so far is a heavily fictionalised, overly violent version of a chapter from the Maratha history. The close second is a breakout blockbuster featuring two debutants that hit the nation like an unexpected avalanche. And yet, amid the cacophony, a quiet film about systemic and societal rot has been chosen as India’s official entry in the Best International Feature Film category at the 98th Academy Awards.

Neeraj Ghaywan’s sophomore feature-length directorial seems like the obvious choice to represent India at the fabled Oscars. The story of two childhood friends, impoverished and marginalised because of their identity—one’s a Dalit, the other Muslim—and the resultant casual cruelty, Hom

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