Angh is now in the Oscar race. The Nagaland-set drama, which premiered at TIFF this year, has won the Platform Prize — making it the first Indian film ever to do so under the festival’s new eligibility rules. That means it’s officially in contention for the International Feature Film category at the 2027 Academy Awards. No other Indian film has reached that stage through TIFF’s platform strand before. The win isn’t just a milestone for the film, it’s a seismic shift for regional cinema in India. Especially for the Northeast, where storytelling has long lived in oral tradition, not on screens. The film, directed by Theja Rio and produced by Nancy Nisa Beso, follows an ageing Konyak village chief and his son as they navigate cultural erosion in 1960s Nagaland. It was shot on 16mm film, a deliberate choice to mirror the texture of memory and history. Grain, light, silence. All were part of the craft. The cast includes BAFTA-winning actor Douglas Henshall alongside an entirely Indigenous Naga ensemble, many of whom had never acted before. The production built two villages from scratch in remote areas with almost no infrastructure. Crew members worked on token pay. A tea-maker on set once said he’d “help finish the film because it felt like ours.” That spirit carried through. Locals brought food, cakes, eggs, chips. To the set. They watched filming. Some even asked how to get into cinematography or sound design. The film wasn’t just made in Nagaland. It was made by it. And now, after years of being told their stories weren’t cinematic enough, filmmakers from the region have a seat at the global table. But here’s the real test: can they bring it home? Theja Rio once wanted to be a rapper. Nancy Nisa Beso says people still ask if they need visas to work in Nagaland. That’s the gap. Recognition at TIFF doesn’t mean a single ticket sold in Dimapur or Kohima. The challenge now isn’t just visibility, it’s access. The film’s release in theatres across India, especially in the Northeast, is the next frontier. If Angh wins an Oscar nomination, it’ll be historic. But if it doesn’t reach its own people, the victory will feel hollow. The journey isn’t over. It’s just begun.