Los Angeles, Jan 20 (THAINDIAN NEWS) The Indian entry for the Academy Award for the Best Foreign Language Film 2009 is the Paresh Mokashi directed ‘Harishchandrachi Factory’. And it has failed to make it to the final 5-nomination list for the Academy Award for the Best Foreign Language Film 2009. This Marathi movie is actually a biopic on Dadasaheb Phalke, who is also said to be the Father of Indian Cinema.

In November 2009, the director of the movie – Paresh Mokashi also traveled to the US, to promote it and to lobby for the final nominations too. He arranged screenings of the Marathi movie at the Smithsonian University in Washington University on November 7. This screening was followed by another screening at the University Of Southern California on November 8. “These two major screenings were followed by other smaller screenings in schools and universities. I was completely floored by the American curiosity about Dadasaheb Phalke.”

Meanwhile 22nd January also marks the day when this Marathi movie would be released in India. It would be released with Hindi sub-titles. The director was not much in favor of the translation, as he felt that the essence of the Marathi dialogues would be lost in the Hindi translations.

The nine films competing for the next round are:-

• Argentina, “El Secreto de Sus Ojos,” Juan Jose Campanella, director;
• Australia, “Samson & Delilah,” Warwick Thornton, director;
• Bulgaria, “The World Is Big and Salvation Lurks around the Corner,” Stephan Komandarev, director;
• France, “Un Prophète,” Jacques Audiard, director;
• Germany, “The White Ribbon,” Michael Haneke, director;
• Israel, “Ajami,” Scandar Copti and Yaron Shani, directors;
• Kazakhstan, “Kelin,” Ermek Tursunov, director;
• The Netherlands, “Winter in Wartime,” Martin Koolhoven, director;
• Peru, “The Milk of Sorrow,” Claudia Llosa, director.