No cheer for India as All We Imagine As Light and Citadel Honey Bunny fail to win Critics Choice Awards 2025

Payal Kapadia's All We Imagine As Light failed to win the Critics Choice Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

Payal Kapadia's All We Imagine As Light stumbled at the last hurdle at the Critics Choice Awards 2025. The acclaimed film had been nominated in the Best Foreign Language Film category and was one of the favourites but eventually lost to Selena Gomez-starrer Emilia Perez. The other Indian nominee - Citadel: Honey Bunny - also lost in its category. (Also Read | Critics Choice Awards 2025 list of winners: Shogun sweeps all major awards for drama series)

A still from All We Imagine as Light.

All We Imagine As Light loses to Emilia Perez

The two films were up against Flow (Latvia), I’m Still Here (Brazil), Kneecap (Ireland), and The Seed of the Sacred Fig (Germany). All We Imagine As Light won the Grand Prix at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, becoming the first Indian film to do so. That made it a favourite for most international awards. However, the film has so far failed to win at the big Hollywood awards, securing nominations but not winning in both the Critics Choice Awards and the Golden Globes.

All We Imagine As Light was not nominated at the 2025 Oscars as it was not selected as India's official entry to the Academy Awards. The Film Federation of India instead sent Kiran Rao's Laapataa Ladies (Lost Ladies) for consideration in the Best Foreign Language Film category. However, the film also failed to secure a nomination.

Emilia Perez, a Spanish-language musical crime directed by Jacques Audiard, has seen controversy for its numerous award nominations as well as the hateful tweets of its star, Karla Sofía Gascón. The actor did not attend the Critics Choice Awards after Netflix and the film distanced themselves from her amid the controversy.

Citadel Honey Bunny loses to Squid Game

All We Imagine As Light was not the only Indian nominee at the awards. Varun Dhawan and Samantha Ruth Prabhu's Amazon Prime Video show Citadel: Honey Bunny was nominated for Best Foreign Language Series. But it also faltered at the final hurdle, losing to the Netflix sensation, Squid Game.

The two shows were up against Acapulco, La Máquina, The Law According to Lidia Poët, My Brilliant Friend, Pachinko, and Senna.

About the 30th Critics Choice Awards

The Critics Choice Awards 2025 were held in Los Angeles on Friday night (February 7). Like in the previous four years, film and television nominations are being announced separately.

The 30th Critics’ Choice Awards are streaming LIVE in India on Lionsgate Play from 5.30 am onwards.