SS Rajamouli registers first big win for RRR, nabs Bet Director at New York Film Critics Circle

SS Rajamouli’s RRR has opened its account at the international awards circuit. Registering the film’s first major win, Rajamouli won Best Director at The New York Film Critics Circle on Friday. The New York Film Critics Circle, founded in 1935, is the oldest critics group in the US, with members from newspapers, magazines and online publications. The group will hand out its awards at a dinner in early January. (Also read: SS Rajamouli meets Star Wars director JJ Abrams in Los Angeles, fans call it ‘huge’ moment)

RRR is a Telugu feature starring Jr NTR, Ram Charan, Alia Bhatt, Ajay Devgn and others. Released in March 2022, RRR is a fictional story based on the lives of two Telugu freedom fighters, Alluri Seetharama Raju and Komaram Bheem. The film collected over ₹1200 crore worldwide.

Despite huge success, RRR was not selected as India’s official entry for Oscars 2023. So makers applied RRR in 14 categories under ‘For your consideration’ campaign. The producers applied to The Academy For the Oscars in main categories. RRR team has asked for consideration in categories including– Best Picture (DVV Danayya), Best Director (SS Rajamouli), Best Actor (Jr NTR and Ram Charan), Best Supporting Actor (Ajay Devgn), Best Supporting Actress (Alia Bhatt) and more.

The New York Film Critics Circle has named “ Tár ” as its best picture of the year, with Todd Field’s contemporary drama about a renowned conductor and composer also nabbing best actress for Cate Blanchett’s leading performance. The group met Friday in New York to vote on and announce its selections for the year.

Colin Farrell won best actor for two of his performances this year, in Kogonada’s future-set sci-fi drama After Yang, in which he plays a father trying to repair his young daughter’s android, and in Martin McDonagh’s The Banshees of Inisherin, where he is suddenly defriended by his longtime pal (Brendan Gleeson).

Ke Huy Quan was named best supporting actor for his turn in Everything Everywhere All At Once, close on the heels of his Gotham Award, while Keke Palmer got best supporting actress for Jordan Peele’s thriller Nope.

The group is known for spreading awards across a wide swath of the year’s films: Even Top Gun: Maverick picked up an award, for Claudio Miranda’s cinematography. Other winners included Charlotte Wells’ Aftersun, selected as best first film, and Dean Fleischer-Camp’s Marcel the Shell with Shoes On for best animated film.

(With AP inputs)

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