In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, actor Ram Charan spoke about the time when his movie RRR didn’t make it as India’s official selection for the Academy Awards. He admitted that the move didn’t surprise him but did disappoint him.

“No, I was not surprised that another film was chosen, but we were a little disappointed that we were not selected. I really don’t understand the process of selection. Prior to this, I had no knowledge of how it’s done, so I don’t know if I can really comment on it. Whoever did the selection, I’m sure they’ve been in the process for many years, and I’m sure [The Last Film Show] is a great film. I haven’t gotten the chance to see it yet, but nevertheless, I hope this is a great beginning for us. We are so happy with the reception from the West, the East and India, and all these nominations and awards are definitely great. They’re feathers in our cap, and I hope we have even better things to look forward to in the future,” he said in the interview.

RRR became the first Indian film to be nominated in the Best Original Song category for Naatu Naatu at the Oscars. RRR also won the Golden Globe award for Best Original Song for Naatu Naatu. At the Critics’ Choice Movie Awards, it won two awards for Best Song and Best Foreign Language Film.