Debut feature filmmaker and a known face in the advertisement industry Gyan Correa must be having a charged up weekend. His love for 
Gujarat made him tell three short stories about life on the highways of Gujarat in the form of a film – The Good Road. The movie that bagged the National award for best Gujarati film has been chosen as India’s entry for the best foreign film category at the Academy Awards 2013.
Sharing about the decision, renowned filmmaker Goutam Ghose, who headed the selection committee, which is a 19 member jury appointed by the Film Federation of India (FFI), told IANS, “It was a unanimous decision to select The Good Road, which is a movie produced by the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC).”
Ghose also shared that the movie faced stiff competition from the Irrfan Khan starrer ‘The Lunchbox’, and also left behind 20 other very strong contenders, including films like Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, English Vinglish, Vishwaroopam, Malayalam film Celluloid and Bengali film Shabdo.
The NFDC produced movie has actors Ajay Gehi, Keval Katrodia and Sonali Kulkarni in lead roles. The movie is about three interesting stories that happen over the highway with a truck driver planning to fake his own death and collect insurance, an urban couple who are separated from their young son on a holiday, and an 11-year-old girl looking for her grandmother.
Buzz on social media
As soon as the news was out, netizens jumped on to social media networks to share their joy and surprise too. I wasn’t surprised to see the quick wish on Facebook from the Gujarat CM and BJP’s PM candidate Narendra Modi congratulating the cast and crew of the movie. The message was shared on Facebook 2 hours ago and has already been shared by more than 1K fans and commented by more than 500 people.
Post by Narendra Modi.
The same message was even shared on Twitter and like always it has got a good response from his fans and movie lovers. The tweet has already got more than 500 retweets.
Delighted to know that Gujarati film ‘The Good Road’ has been chosen to represent India at Oscars. Congrats to cast & crew. My best wishes.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 21, 2013
Besides keywords like Gujarati, #Oscars is already trending on India Twitter Trends. However, some including celebrities are disappointed at ‘The Lunchbox’, a probable winner missing out the race. Some of the tweets that are defining the trends are listed below:
“Why did you not send #TheLunchbox to the Oscars?” “Ask the Dabbawalas, not the govt!” #KapilSibal
— Keh Ke Peheno (@coolfunnytshirt) September 21, 2013
Who are the dolts who sit on juries to select Indian films for the Oscars? Can’t it enter as a wild-card entry?#TheLunchbox
— SUHEL SETH (@suhelseth) September 21, 2013
My take: If #TheLunchbox gets past our gatekeepers, goes for the Oscars, it stands a damned good chance of winning the foreign film award.
— Pritish Nandy (@PritishNandy) September 20, 2013
Really shocked and dissapointed….#LUNCHBOX had every factor working in its favour…we may have just lost our golden chance….SAD!!!
— Karan Johar (@karanjohar) September 21, 2013
Nonetheless it is good news for the regional film industry. With this newly-earned recognition, The Good Road has gained a new wave of interest and might get movie lovers to watch it. For now you can enjoy a short clip from the movie.