Singers Rahul Sipligunj, Kaala Bhairava to perform ‘Naatu Naatu’ at Oscars ceremony

PTI, Mar 1, 2023, 10:53 AM IST

Rahul Sipligunj and Kaala Bhairava, the singers of ”Naatu Naatu” from SS Rajamouli’s feature film ”RRR”, will perform the Oscar-nominated song at the upcoming edition of the Hollywood awards.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) shared the announcement on its official Instagram account late Tuesday night. ”Rahul Sipligunj and Kaala Bhairava. ‘Naatu Naatu.’ LIVE at the 95th Oscars. Tune into ABC to watch the Oscars LIVE on Sunday, March 12th at 8e/5p! #Oscars95,” the Academy said in the post.

Sipligunj, who will take the Oscars stage at Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on March 12, tweeted the Academy’s announcement via his official Twitter page.

”This is going to be unforgettable moment in my life (sic),” he wrote. Other nominees in the category are: ”Applause” from ”Tell It Like a Woman”, ”Hold My Hand” from “Top Gun: Maverick”, “Lift Me Up” from “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” and ”This Is a Life” from “Everything Everywhere All at Once”.

Composed by veteran music director MM Keeravaani and penned by Chandrabose, ”Naatu Naatu” is a Telugu song from Rajamouli’s celebrated period action blockbuster ”RRR”. Earlier this year, the track — which translates to bucolic in Telugu and demonstrates the spirit of fun in country music in over 4.35 breathless minutes of song and dance — won the Golden Globe Award and a Critics Choice Award. ”RRR” follows a pre-Independence fictional story woven around two real-life Indian revolutionaries – Alluri Sitarama Raju and Komaram Bheem – in the 1920s. The film stars Ram Charan and Jr NTR in the lead as well as Alia Bhatt and Ajay Devgn, and Shriya Saran in key roles. The lavishly mounted epic is the first Indian film in over two decades to be nominated for the Academy Awards.

Besides ”RRR”, Indian documentaries such as ”All That Breathes” by Shaunak Sen and ”The Elephant Whisperers” by Karthiki Gonsalves are also nominated at the 2023 Academy Awards in the best documentary feature and best documentary short segments, respectively.