Tamil film actor Suriya Sivakumar, Bollywood actress Kajol and director Reema Kagti (Gold and Talaash: The Answer Lies Within) were invited by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to be a part of the Oscars panel for 2023.
Academy nominated Indian documentary filmmakers Sushmit Ghosh and Rinku Thomas (Writing with Fire), acclaimed filmmaker Nalin Kumar Pandaya (Angry Indian Godesses) and Indian American producer Aditya Sood (Deadpool and Murder On Orient Express) were also sent the invitation by the academy.
The academy has invited about 397 guests to join the panel for the event that would take place March 12, 2023. Media sources state that Suriya is the first South Indian actor to get the invitation till date.
A list of all the artists and executives who were invited to join the Academy was released on June 28, 2022. According to media sources the academy said that the new members were selected on the basis of, “their professional qualifications and their ongoing commitment to representation, inclusion and equality.”
Media sources state that if all the invitee accepts the invitations, the Academy will have a total of 10,665 members with 9,655 of them eligible to vote for Oscars 2023. They added that 50 percent of the new invitees were from 53 countries outside the United States of America (USA). They include 15 Oscar winners and 71 nominees.
Other artists like Robin de Jess (Tick Tick Boom!), Olga Merediz (In the Heights), Jon Spaihts (Dune), director Reinaldo Marcus Green (King Richard), screenwriter Jeremy O Harris (Zola) and American singer Billie Eilish were other notable invitees, as per media sources.
The Academy of Motion Pictures Art and Sciences is an organization formed in 1927 in the USA. It presents the yearly Academy Awards, officially known as Oscars for achievement in a branch of film which is recognised by the Academy. The membership to the organisation is invitation-based.
On the work front, Suriya was last seen in Lokesh Kanagaraj’s Vikram in a special appearance which received much praise from moviegoers and will be seen next in a drama film directed by Bala, tentatively titled Suriya 41.