MUMBAI: Critically acclaimed film Jalpari - The Desert Mermaid has been submitted as a direct entry for the Oscars.

Ultra Distributors CMD Sushilkumar Agrawal said, "In all, 17 films were competing to be sent as India‘s official entry for the foreign film category at the Oscars. Every film had a potential in some way or the other way to compete for the Oscars, but unfortunately only one film can go as an official entry from India. The original story and concept is the USP of our film. The blazing subject, the treatment of the film and the powerful performances has the potential to compete to the Oscars. So we decided to submit our film as a direct entry for the Academy Awards."

Jalpari… is directed by Nila Madhab Panda director of award winning I Am Kalam. The film deals with the various predicaments that a girl child encounters in rural India and also addresses the divide between rural and urban India. The film depicts India‘s national shame ‘female foeticide‘ in a lighter way, without getting preachy.

The distributor has submitted the film to the Academy of Motion Pictures and its team will shortly visit US for promotion of the film and it exhibition.

Recently Jalpari… received the Audience Choice Award at the Minsk International Film Festival in Belarus and selected as an official entry for International Film Festival in Montreal that will take place in March next year and many other international film festivals.