Big news for Indian cinema! The animated movie ‘Mahavatar Narsimha’ has officially qualified to be considered for an Oscar in the Best Animated Feature category at the Academy Awards in 2026.

This is a massive deal because it means an Indian cartoon film is now competing directly against huge movies from Hollywood and Japan for the world’s biggest movie prize!

Why This Is Such a Big Deal

Directed by Ashwin Kumar and produced by Hombale Films (the studio behind KGF and Salaar), Mahavatar Narsimha tells a classic Indian myth: the powerful story of Lord Vishnu’s Narasimha (Lion-Man) form saving his young devotee Prahlada from his evil father, Hiranyakashipu.

This movie’s qualification shows that Indian animation is catching up to the world standard. If it manages to get nominated, it will be the first-ever Indian animated movie to achieve that historic feat!

The Tough Competition

The film is on a long list of about 35 animated movies from around the world. It’s facing off against some seriously big players, including:

• Disney’s Zootopia 2
• The mega-hit anime Demon Slayer
• The unique action film KPop Demon Hunters

The director, Ashwin Kumar, said he wanted the movie to have the epic feel of Indian myths like the Mahabharata, but with the awesome special effects and big scale you see in Hollywood movies like Avatar.

A Huge Box Office Hit

Before the Oscars buzz, Mahavatar Narsimha was already a major success. It was made for about ₹40 Crore but earned a stunning ₹300+ Crore globally! This proves that people love high-quality animated stories based on Indian culture.

And this is just the beginning! This movie is the start of a massive Mahavatar Cinematic Universe series that plans to tell the stories of all ten major Avatars of Lord Vishnu.

We will find out if Mahavatar Narsimha makes the final list of nominees on January 22, 2026. Until then, India is crossing its fingers for a historic Oscar nomination!