New Delhi: Gujarati film 'Chello Show' will be officially sent by India for the 95th Academy Awards. The Film Federation of India (FFI) announced this on Tuesday. The English title of the film is "Last Film Show". Directed by Pan Nalin, the film will release in cinemas across the country on October 14.

According to Suparna Sen, Secretary General of the Film Federation of India (FFI), 'Chello Show' will be officially sent by India for the Oscar Awards 2023. Selected to represent India in the Best International Feature Film category at the Oscars, the film is produced by Siddharth Roy Kapur and produced by Roy Kapur Films, Jugaad Motion Pictures, Monsoon Films, Chhelo Show LLP and Mark Dwell. The film stars Bhavin Rabri, Bhavesh Shrimali, Richa Meena, Dipen Rawal and Paresh Mehta.

It had its world premiere as the inaugural film at the Tribeca Film Festival in June last year. The film is inspired by the own memories of director Pan Nalin, who fell in love with films as a child in the rural areas of Gujarat. Set in a remote village in Saurashtra, the film tells the story of a nine-year-old boy, who once goes to a cinema to watch a movie and then falls in love with cinema for life. It has won several awards during its premiere at film festivals.

The Gujarati film 'Chello Show' also won the 'Golden Spike' award at the 66th 'Valladolid Film Festival' in Spain. Last year, Tamil film 'Kozhangal', directed by filmmaker Vinodraj PS, was officially sent by India for the Oscars, but the film was not selected. The last time Aamir Khan's film 'Lagaan' made it to the last five at the Oscars was in 2001. Two other Indian films that made it to the last five are 'Mother India' (1958) and 'Salaam Bombay' (1989). The 95th Academy Awards ceremony will be held in Los Angeles on March 12, 2023.