'RRR' team, Karan Johar, Mani Ratnam and others invited to become Academy members

The RRR team, including actors Ram Charan, Jr NTR and composer MM Keeravani, as well as filmmakers Mani Ratnam and Karan Johar are among the 398 artistes and executives who have received invitations to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS).

RRR lyricist Chandrabose, who along with Keeravani won the Oscar for best original song for the film's blockbuster track "Naatu Naatu" in March, has also received an invitation. Two other invitees include RRR cinematographer KK Senthil Kumar and production designer Sabu Cyril, a press release stated.

Indian names feature heavily in the Academy's class of 2023 with the inclusion of Shaunak Sen, the director of Oscar-nominated documentary, Siddharth Roy Kapur, the producer of India's official Oscar entry Chhello Show, and Chaitanya Tamhane, known for critically-acclaimed Marathi titles The Disciple and Court in the list.

It also includes Girish Balakrishnan and Kranti Sarma from the field of production and technology; visual effects artistes Haresh Hingorani and PC Sanath; film executive Shivani Rawat and Shivani Pandya Malhotra, the managing director of Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea International Film Festival.

According to the AMPAS, the class of 2023 include 40 per cent women and 34 per cent from underrepresented ethnic/racial communities. 52 per cent of the invitees are from 50 countries and territories outside the US. 76 Oscar nominees, including 22 winners, are among the invitees.

In a statement, Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang said the organisation is proud to welcome the "artists and professionals into our membership".

"They represent extraordinary global talent across cinematic disciplines and have made a vital impact on the arts and sciences of motion pictures and on movie fans worldwide,” they added.

The Academy has been actively working to introduce more diversity in its voting to avoid a controversy like 2016 when the Oscars were dubbed “white” for failing to recognise talents of colour.

The 2023 batch boasts of major Hollywood names including Academy Award-winning actor Ke Huy Quan, Austin Butler, Kerry Condon, Bill Hader, Nicholas Hoult, Stephanie Hsu, Lashana Lynch, Paul Mescal, Park Hae-il, filmmaking duo The Daniels (Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert) and musicians Taylor Swift, Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye and David Byrne.

In 2022, the organisation had invited 397 new members which included Indian names such as actors Kajol, Suriya, filmmakers Reema Kagti, Sushmit Ghosh, Rintu Thomas, and Pan Nalin.