On the Film Federation of India jury’s decision to choose Taare Zameen Par, Rai made it amply clear that he had no feeling of “being cheated”. “My reaction was nothing like I was cheated or anything of that sort. Fortunately, unlike last year, this year’s films were very competent, making it difficult for the jury to take a pick,” he said.

Interestingly, Taare Zameen Par was Rai’s own personal favourite. “Taare remains my favourite and I’m genuinely very happy for them as they deserve to be there. It’s indeed very pleasing to see a star as big as Aamir Khan coming out to make a film on dyslexia, which even I was unaware of till I watched the movie,” he said.

Earlier, Shwaas, directed by another debutant director debutant Sandeep Sawant, was India’s official entry to the 2004 Oscars and was ranked 6th at the Academy Awards in the Best Foreign Language Film category. It is widely agreed that films like Shwaas and Tingyahave been instrumental in reviving Marathi cinema, attracting not only Maharashtian audiences but others too.

According to Rai, the jury debated over two hours on the final two films on the list — Taare Zameen Par and Tingya. “What I learnt from those who were witness to the discussions is that every aspect of the two films was discussed and debated in great detail by the jury members, including the child artistes,” he said. Ultimately, Tingya lost on grounds of “technical finesse”.

Asked about the losing factor, he said: “I don’t want to get into it¿there is bound to be a difference between a Rs 27-lakh film and Rs 50-crore film.”

... contd.