The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Tuesday announced the list of films that have been shortlisted in 10 categories for Oscars 2022 that also included the Best International Film. India's official entry for this year, debutant director PS Vinothraj's Tamil film Koozhangal (Pebbles), produced under Vignesh Shivan and Nayanthara's Rowdy Pictures banner, has bowed out of the race after it missed the chance to enter the next round due to competition from several other ventures from around the world. With the Oscar nominations to be announced on February 8, 2022 and the ceremony to be held at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on March 27, 2022, this latest news has come as a big blow for many Tamil cinema fans, who were hoping for Koozhangal to secure a spot in the Oscars nomination list. 

Reacting to the developments, director Vignesh Shivan, who has co-produced Koozhangal with Nayanthara, took to social media to express his thoughts about Koozhangal missing out on the opportunity to feature in the top 10 list in the Oscars run. Expressing his desire for the film to be featured in the Academy Awards nomination list, the Kaathuvaakula Rendu Kaadhal director thanked PS Vinoth Raj for his work in Koozhangal , including the Indian jury members for choosing their film as an official entry. He tweeted, "Would have been great to be on this list !  Nevertheless I thank @PsVinothraj for giving such a pure cinema!  I thank the Indian jury members for selecting our film as the official entry for the oscars this year🙏🏻 Thanking all our well-wishers & friends for rooting for us😇"

Earlier in the day, Vignesh Shivan shared his views at the announcement that Koozhangal had missed out on a shot at the Oscars. He wrote on Twitter, "to check if our film has come in the list itself is a big achievement,yes! But still! The happiness & pride that we could have brought in to independent cinema makers and producers like us would have been remarkable! If we could have made it to the short list! ?? @TheAcademy." Koozhangal revolves around the relationship between an alcoholic father and his son, with the film featuring music by Yuvan Shankar Raja. The film, which was recently also nominated for the 37th edition of the prestigious Independent Spirit Awards, 2022, under the Best International Film category, became the first Tamil film to win the Tiger Award at the International Film Festival of Rotterdam this year. Koozhangal was also earlier screened at the Kyiv Molodist Film Festival in Ukraine and the prestigious Shanghai International Film Festival.