Oscar nod no boost in India | 'The Forest' director Ashvin Kumar

Mumbai: Winning accolades at international film festivals and being nominated at the Oscars didn't make it any easier for Ashvin Kumar to release his film in India.

The 39-year-old film-maker waited for six years to release his debut feature 'The Forest', and says being nominated for an Oscar (for his 2004 short film 'Little Terrorist') didn't help.

"It makes no difference. If it did, do you think I'd be running around arranging finances for my next film and trying to get this one released?" Kumar said.

'The Forest' has been ready since 2006, but the film-maker said its release was stuck for several reasons, including a fallout with a producer.

The film, about a couple on a jungle holiday which goes horribly wrong, opens in cinemas under the PVR banner on Friday.

"It's easier if you are backed by a big studio, that way you don't have to worry about the money and can concentrate on making the film, but that doesn't always happen," Kumar told Reuters.

'The Forest', starring Nandana Sen and Jaaved Jafferi, is the film-maker's way of bringing the sinister world of the forest into the urban moviegoer's life.

"A lot of urban dwellers aren't as exposed to the forest as we were as kids. And I want them to know that it's a beautiful place, but also a scary one, and you have to look after yourself there," Kumar said.

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