Pakistan’s official Oscar entry “Hunden” could not compete amid documentation glitches
Pakistan’s 98th Academy Awards selection saw the historic Burushaski-language film “Hunden” being officially chosen by the country’s Oscars selection committee. However, due to documentation and administrative complications, the film could not make it to the international stage.
Director Karamat Ali revealed that the selection committee informed him via email that Hunden had been designated as Pakistan’s official entry.
Following this, the team submitted all required documents through the Academy’s official online portal. Later, they received another email stating that the documents were incomplete.
The team promptly resubmitted everything, but instead of a confirmation, they were informed that the film could not be accepted as Pakistan’s official entry due to incomplete documentation.
Karamat Ali further stated that the Academy mistakenly sent an email regarding another film, Palestine 36, claiming its documents were incomplete. Pakistani Oscars selection committee chairman Mohammad Ali Naqvi (Mo Naqvi) clarified to the Academy team that Hunden was the officially selected film. Despite Mo Naqvi maintaining consistent communication and the Academy acknowledging the error, the nomination issue remained unresolved.
Under Academy rules, any film must be commercially released in its home country for at least seven consecutive days between October 1, 2024, and September 30, 2025, and at least 50% of the dialogue must be in a non-English language. Director Karamat Ali confirmed that all required documents for Hunden were submitted before the deadline of October 1, 2025.
Despite not making it to the Oscars, Karamat Ali expressed pride in the film’s selection, saying, “We are happy that our film was chosen to represent Pakistan, and we consider that achievement a success.”
Hunden is based on a folk tale from Hunza and is Pakistan’s first film in the Burushaski language. It emphasizes the harmony between nature and human life. This year, due to documentary and administrative challenges, no Pakistani film was officially submitted for the Oscars.