A homage was given to late Bollywood Bollywood art director Chandrakant Desai at the ‘In Memoriam’ section of the 96th Academy Awards, demonstrating the recognition of both his talent and impact.
Oscars 2024: Late Bollywood art director Nitin Chandrakant Desai received a moving remembrance at the Oscars’ ‘In Memoriam’ segment. Hollywood, California’s Dolby Theatre hosted the 2024 Oscar ceremony on March 10th 2024 LA. The Indian cinema industry was shocked and sorrowful last year when the acclaimed art director and production designer passed unexpectedly. He was renowned for his amazing work in movies like Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, Lagaan, and Devdas, among others. Andrea Bocelli and his son Matteo Bocelli performed during the segment and sang ‘Time to Say Goodbye’. Taking to Instagram, The Academy shared a video from the award ceremony and captioned it, “Andrea and Matteo Bocelli performing ‘Time to Say Goodbye’ 30th Anniversary Special Edition during the In Memoriam at the 2024 #Oscars.”
Bollywood Art Director Nitin Chandrakant Desai Honoured at Oscars 2024
In addition to Nitin Desai, other notable members of the international entertainment industry honoured in the segment included actors John Bailey, Robbie Robertson, Richard Lewis, Lee Sun-Kyun, Carl Weathers, Matthew Perry, and Andre Braugher, among many others. Directors William Friedkin and Norman Jewison were also honoured.
Nitin Desai was well known for creating stunning settings for a number of successful motion pictures. He was the recipient of four National Film Awards and three Filmfare Awards for Best Art Direction. He worked with several well-known film filmmakers, including Rajkumar Hirani, Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Ashutosh Gowariker, and Sanjay Leela Bhansali. On August 2, 2023, the National Award-winning artist sadly died away at the age of 57. Since he was allegedly discovered hanging at his ND Studios in Karjat, his death was determined to be a suicide. His demise was deeply felt in the film business, as seen by the eulogies offered by a slew of industry heavyweights including Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. In Karjat, Maharashtra, Desai’s studio was discovered to be lifeless.
