The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has sent out invitations to 398 artists and executives to become its members, and along with the likes of Taylor Swift, Ke Huy Quan, and Austin Butler, there is a bunch of Indians on the list this year.  

The Indian celebs who are poised to become members of the Academy and will be eligible to vote for films and artists competing for the Oscars from next year included Jr NTR, Ram Charan, Karan Johar, Siddharth Roy Kapur, Mani Ratnam, Chaitanya Tamhane, MM Keeravani, Chandrabose, and Shaunak Sen.

However, these are not all. The other Indian names on the invitee list are KK Senthil Kumarhave (casting director), Haresh Hingorani (visual effects, Laal Singh Chaddha, Zero), P.C. Sanath (visual effects, 5 Rupees, Baahubali: The Beginning), Sabu Cyril (Production Design, RRR, Runway 34), Bela Bajaria (executive, Netflix), Rafiq Bhatia (music, Everything Everywhere All At Once), Andrij Parekh (cinematographer, The Zookeeper’s Wife), Shivani Pandya Malhotra (executive, Red Sea Film), Shivani Rawat (executive, ShivHans Pictures), Girish Balakrishnan (production and technology), Kranti Sarma (production and technology). 

Announcing the same, Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang said in a statement:  “The Academy is proud to welcome these 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.”

Apart from India’s stupendous run at the 95th Academy Awards that saw SS Rajamouli’s magnum opus RRR winning the ‘Best Original Song’ Oscar for ‘Naatu Naatu and Kartiki Gonsalves and Guneet Monga’s The Elephant Whisperers winning in the Best Documentary Short category, this list also reflects the Academy’s attempts to get more non-white members on board to address its lack of diversity that faced extensive social media backlash under the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite in recent years. 

Last year, actors Suriya and Kajol, along with writer-director Reema Kagti were among the 397 names on the invitee list. Back in 2018, 20 Indian film personalities, including Naseeruddin Shah, Shah Rukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit, Ali Fazal, Anil Kapoor, Tabu, Aditya Chopra, and Guneet Monga made it to the list. While in 2017, Aamir Khan, Salman Khan, Priyanka Chopra, Irrfan Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, Deepika Padukone, and Aishwarya Rai were among the Indian invitees. Other Indian celebrities who are members of the Academy include AR Rahman, Sharmila Tagore, Resul Pookutty, and Freida Pinto.

Oscar winners and even artistes from shortlisted nominees are often extended an invitation to join the Academy as members. Unlike the regular membership process, where the person must be backed by two sponsors from the existing list of members in the same category, Oscar winners and nominees do not require sponsors. However, the invitee must accept their invitation to join the ranks.

The next Academy awards is scheduled to take place on March 10, 2024.