Guneet Monga breaks silence on not being allowed to deliver acceptance speech at Oscars

Directed by Kartiki Gonsalves and produced by Guneet Monga, the Tamil language documentary short The Elephant Whisperers created history at the 95th Oscars by becoming the first Indian production to win an Academy Award in the Best Documentary Short Film category.

Days after lifting the trophy, producer Guneet Monga has expressed her displeasure over being cut off just as she was about to deliver an acceptance speech on the Oscars 2023 stage after The Elephant Whisperers’ win.

Speaking with Bombay Times, Monga said that she was shocked and it was evident on her face on stage. “I did not get a chance to deliver my Oscar speech. There was a shock on my face. I just wanted to say it’s India’s first Oscar in Indian production, which is such a huge thing. My heart started racing as I couldn’t have come so far and not be heard. I’ll go back there and I will make sure I’m heard," she said.

Monga landed in India on Friday morning and was welcomed with celebrations at the Mumbai airport. Speaking with the media, she said, “We had a big competition. There was another film in our category supported by Malala Yousafzai. Our film worked across countries, ages… the kind of love we are getting from across the world, the film worked its magic.”

India won two Oscars at the recently concluded 95^th Academy Awards. In addition to The Elephant Whisperers, filmmaker SS Rajamouli’s RRR won an Oscar in the Best Original Song category, for its globally popular song “Naatu Naatu.”

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