Director Vidhu Vinod Chopra has opened up about the international recognition his film 12th Fail has received. The Vikrant Massey-starrer, which became a sleeper hit last year, not only outperformed expectations, but also earned three times its budget. Chopra shared that many in Hollywood have told him the film deserved to be in the Oscar race.

Speaking at the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa on Friday, Chopra discussed the trend of thrillers and other genres often getting overlooked at the National Film Awards. He remarked, “Can I tell you one thing? So many people, including folks in Hollywood, have told me that 12th Fail should have represented India at the Oscars, not whatever went.”

India’s official entry for the 2025 Academy Awards is Laapataa Ladies. Last year, it was the Malayalam survival drama 2018, which did not receive a nomination. 12th Fail was not selected by the Film Federation of India to represent India.

Chopra emphasized that he doesn’t prioritize awards, adding, “Say yes or no, do I care? What I care about is — did I make a good film or not? Please don’t give too much importance to awards. They’re for people outside the industry acknowledging you for reasons we don’t know.”