Bangladesh has selected A House Named Shahana as its submission for the Academy Award for best international feature, elevating Leesa Gazi’s debut to the center of the country’s awards push. The Bengali-language drama, adapted from Gazi’s own novella, follows Dipa, a young woman in 1990s Bangladesh who is forced into a long-distance marriage to a widower in Britain and later returns home to rebuild her life as a physician while confronting stigma around divorce and “family honor.” The film premiered on the festival circuit in late 2023 and has gathered momentum with limited international play and television exposure in the U.K., positioning it for a wider campaign.
Local organizers announced the pick in Dhaka on September 27 after deliberating over a shortlist of five titles. Committee representatives framed the decision as an effort to spotlight a grounded, character-driven story with clear cultural specificity and broad accessibility. Early materials emphasize the film’s use of live-recorded sound, period detail, and a performance from Aanon Siddiqua that traces Dipa’s shift from coercion and abuse to self-determination. The production is backed by Bangladesh-U.K. partners and runs approximately two hours.
Industry coverage notes that the selection arrives during an increasingly competitive awards season for South Asian cinema. Bangladesh has submitted multiple times to the international feature category but has yet to secure a nomination; the committee’s timetable suggests a coordinated rollout through the fall to build awareness with voters. The film’s subject—women’s autonomy within patriarchal family structures—has drawn consistent interest from curators since its South Asia Competition berth in Mumbai, where it received a gender-sensitivity citation, and subsequent screenings at regional showcases. The Oscar entry also dovetails with a recent spate of press features on Gazi, highlighting her background as a writer-director and the project’s development from page to screen.
As submissions mount worldwide for the 98th Academy Awards, A House Named Shahana will lean on historical resonance and contemporary relevance: a story set three decades ago that echoes current debates over consent, migration, and women’s rights. The campaign is expected to build on festival endorsements, diaspora interest, and the film’s cross-border production footprint to seek a berth on the December shortlist.
