Advantage RRR for Oscars? SS Rajamouli adjudged the Best Director by The New York Film Critics Circle

Is RRR within a striking distance of bagging an Oscar nomination? The buzz suggests so. There was disappointment for movie buffs when the Gujarati film Chello Show was picked over RRR as the official Indian nomination for the Oscars. However, RRR's international distributor Variance Films stepped up the ante at the right time to push the film's chances to bag a nomination at the Oscars across multiple categories. SS Rajamouli toured across various parts of the US as part of an extended promotional drive too.

Now in what seems like a shot in the arm for team RRR ahead of the Oscars, The New York Film Critics Circle, one of the most revered critics’ groups, has adjudged SS Rajamouli as the best director this year. This honour, announced this Friday, holds immense credibility, given it's coming at the right time just before the awards season and is considered crucial to boost a film's prospects at the Oscars. The award is chosen by a group of 50 journalists from top publications across the globe. 

Some of the other winners at The New York Film Critics Circle awards include Colin Farrell for The Banshees of Inisherin, Cate Blanchett for Tár, Ke Huy Qua for Everything Everywhere All at Once and Keke Palmer for Nope, to name a few. Tom Cruise's popular film Top Gun: Maverick too had won an award under the best cinematography category (Claudio Miranda).

RRR, streaming on Netflix, ZEE5 and Disney+ Hotstar, features Jr NTR, Ram Charan, Alia Bhatt and Ajay Devgn in the lead roles. The film collected over Rs 1200 crore at the global box office and is performing well upon its release in Japan too. With cinematography by Senthil Kumar and art direction by Sabu Cyril, RRR had music by MM Keeravaani.