While it’s always thrilling to spot your favourite Bollywood celebrity on the Oscars red carpet (shout out to Priyanka Chopra for slaying both her outings), this time we might see them play a slightly different role.
In a bid to be more ‘inclusive’ and ‘diverse’, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) has revealed a list of 774 new members who have been invited to join the Oscars organization, including several Bollywood celebrities like Priyanka Chopra and Deepika Padukone.
These invites are from across the world, belonging to 57 countries. The list comprises of 39% female members and 30% people of colour, reports Deadline. The AMPAS now has an overall female membership count of over 28% and people of colour make up 13% of the total count. According to the Academy, these numbers are going to double up by the year 2020.
The Indian celebrities invited include Aamir Khan, Priyanka Chopra, Deepika Padukone, Irrfan Khan, Salman Khan, Amitabh Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. The list also includes directors like Buddhadeb Dasgupta (The Red Door), Mrinal Sen (In Search of Famine), Goutam Ghose (Paar), Sooni Taraporevala (Salaam Bombay!), Anand Patwardhan (Jai Bhim Comrade). Costume designer Arjun Bhasin (Monsoon Wedding) and sound designer Amrit Pritam Dutta (Slumdog Millionaire) are also invited.
There’s diversity in age as well, with Elle Fanning, at 19, being the youngest and Betty White, at 95, the oldest personality to be invited. On the increasing global footprint of the Academy, Outgoing AMPAS president Cheryl Boone Isaacs told Deadline, “We are not looking at numbers in that way. What we are looking for is inclusion. Whether the numbers will continue to be at these levels we will know each year, but probably not. We are not looking to grow the organization. We are looking to have our organization more representative of men and women, here and around the world who are participating in the art form.”
