HYDERABAD, India (AP) — India celebrated its two historic Academy Awards with an enthusiasm befitting the energy of best original song “Naatu Naatu.”
The catchy and danceable song of the Telugu-language blockbuster “RRR” is the first from an Indian film to win an Oscar and has charmed international audiences with its energetic rhythm and choreography.
But that was not the only award of the night for the country, the short documentary “The Elephant Whisperers” (“Our baby elephant”) took the Oscar at the ceremony on Sunday, giving the first triumph to an Indian production. The short, which is available on Netflix, tells the story of a couple in southern India who care for an orphaned elephant and explores the bond between humans and animals.
The phrase “Congratulations India” trended on Twitter following MM Keeravani and Chandrabose’s “Naatu Naatu” triumphed over the likes of Rihanna and Lady Gaga in the best original song category.
In the southern city of Hyderabad, where the predominant language is Telugu, people were elated by the triumph of the song. “It’s an incredible feeling. Finally, a Telugu film did it and we won an Oscar,” rejoiced Venkata Ramanna, a software engineer, who described the win as “thrilling.”
Indian celebrities and politicians, cricketers and citizens alike took to social media to celebrate the winners.
“#NaatuNaatu on top of the world!!!” Chiranjeevi, a leading ethnic Telugu actor and politician, wrote on Twitter.
“Exceptional! The popularity of ‘Naatu Naatu’ is global,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted.
The prime minister also congratulated the female filmmaking duo behind “The Elephant Whisperers”, director Kartiki Gonsalves and producer Guneet Monga, for underlining the “importance of sustainable development and living in harmony with nature”.
Monga tweeted that the award was “historic” for India and for women. “To all the women watching… The future is bold and the future is here,” she wrote.
Licypriya Kangujam, a young climate activist in, called the documentary’s triumph a proud moment for environmentalists.
On Monday the hashtags Naatu Naatu and RRR continued to dominate social networks.
The three-hour action maximalist epic is one of India’s highest-grossing and costliest films and brings together two of the country’s biggest actors: NT Rama Rao Jr. and Ram Charan.
It also did well at the box office in the United States, before finding a larger audience on Netflix, where it ranked among the top 10 most-watched non-English-language productions for weeks. The hugely popular “RRR” song also won a Golden Globe in January.
“’Naatu Naatu’ is a thrill all over the world,” Charan posted on Twitter congratulating the “RRR” team. “This award belongs to every Indian actor, technician and movie buff,” he wrote.
The video for the song was filmed in August 2021 in front of Ukraine’s Mariinskyi Palace, the president’s official residence in kyiv, months before Russia invaded the country. It took the crew 15 days to shoot the video, which featured around 50 dancers and up to 400 extras.
In an interview with Variety in January, director SS Rajamouli said he wanted to explore the film’s anti-colonial themes in the song through an action sequence in which the film’s two main Indian actors danced more than the British ones. He said he wanted choreography “that would look great with two people doing it together, but not be so complicated that no one might do it.”
The speedy dance steps went viral, prompting a TikTok challenge where users try to recreate the acrobatic moves. And thanks to its catchy beat, it became an internet sensation, racking up more than 122 million views on YouTube.
Backstage at the Oscars, Keeravani was excited regarding the win. “It’s just the beginning of everything,” he said. “In the world, especially the West. People are more interested in Indian and Asian music. It is something that had already taken time to happen. I feel very happy to open doors and the world to embrace my culture.”
