Mohanlal Pulimurugan in the race of Oscar

Two songs from the Malayalam film Pulimurugan secured a spot on the Oscar shortlist for best original song. Composer Gopi Sundar also made it to the list of best original score for his work in the film. Two songs, 'Kaadanayum Kaalchilambe' and 'Maanathe Maarikurumbe' from the Malayalam movie, composed by Gopi Sundar, are part of the Original Score list.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAAS) has announced a shortlist of 141 scores and 70 songs from eligible feature-length motion pictures released this year for nominations in these categories at the 90th Academy Awards.

Starring Mohanlal,  Vysakh's Pulimurugan is the biggest blockbuster of all time in Malayalam cinema.  It is also the first Malayalam movie to gross over Rs100 crore at box offices worldwide. Sundar took to social media to express his excitement. "All God's grace... No words," he wrote. The Vysakh-directed action adventure movie is the only Indian film in the contention in both the categories.

Three songs from Lake of Fire are a part of the line-up and Indian composer AR Rahman congratulated team Qutub-E- Kripa for the feat. "Congratulations Qutub-E-Kripa team of A.H. Kaashif, Parag Chhabra, Riyanjali Bhowmick, Jerry Vincent, Sachin Mannat and N.D. Santosh for the Lake of Fire songs shortlist for Best Original Song at the 2018 Academy Awards," Rahman tweeted.

Other songs in the best original song category include Taylor Swift's "I don't wanna live forever" from Fifty Shades Darker, Mariah Carey's "The Star" from The Star and Nick Jonas' "Home" from Ferdinand. Nominations for the Oscars will be announced on 23 January and the award ceremony will be held on 4 March 2018 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California.

-Agencies