Oscars 2026: Neeraj Ghaywan’s ‘Homebound’ gets shortlisted in the Best International Feature Film category

Neeraj Ghaywan’s sophomore feature, Homebound has been shortlisted for the 98^th Academy Awards in the Best International Feature Film category.

On Tuesday, December 16, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced shortlists in all the categories, including, Animated Short Film, Casting, Cinematography, Documentary Feature Film, Documentary Short Film, International Feature Film, Live Action Short Film, Makeup and Hairstyling, Music (Original Score), Music (Original Song), Sound and Visual Effects.

Homebound, produced by Karan Johar and starring Ishaan Khatter, Vishal Jethwa and Janhvi Kapoor, will advance to the nomination round along with fifteen others in the category. In the next round, Academy members from all branches will be invited to watch all the 15 shortlisted films to vote.

Reacting to the news, Karan took to social media and wrote, “I am not sure I can articulate how proud, elated and over the moon I am with the journey of Homebound. All of us @dharmamovies are privileged to have this proud and important film in our filmography. Thank you @neeraj.ghaywan for making so many dreams of ours come true. From Cannes to being on the Oscar shortlist this has been such an overwhelming journey! Love to the entire cast and crew and teams of this special special film! Upwards and onwards.”

Other films that made it to the shortlist in the Best International Feature category include, Argentina’s Belén, Brazil’s The Secret Agent, France’s It Was Just an Accident, Germany’s Sound of Falling, Iraq’s The President’s Cake, Japan’s Kokuho, Jordan’s All That’s Left of You, Norway’s Sentimental Value, Palestine’s Palestine 36, South Korea’s No Other Choice, Spain’s Sirât, Switzerland’s Late Shift, Taiwan’s Left-Handed Girl and Tunisia’s The Voice of Hind Rajab.

Hollywood director Martin Scorsese serves as the executive producer on Homebound. It tells the story of two childhood friends, Shoaib (Ishaan) and Chandan (Vishal) who chase a police job that promises them dignity but are trapped in India’s brutal socio-political reality. The film is based on journalist Basharat Peer’s 2020 New York Times article, ‘Taking Amrit Home’.

After its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival and the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) earlier this year, Homebound was released in theatres on September 26, 2025.