International Emmys: No win for Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Vir Das and ‘Aarya’

Actors Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Vir Das and the series “Aarya”, led by Sushmita Sen, could not register a win at the 2021 International Emmy Awards but the comedian said it was “an honour” to represent the country at the awards ceremony.

Siddiqui, who was nominated for the best performance by an actor category for his Netflix movie “Serious Men”, lost out to Scottish actor David Tennant.

While Das’ Netflix comedy special “Vir Das: For India” lost out to “Call My Agent” Season 4 from France in the comedy category.

The comedian, who has been in news back home for his “I Come From Two Indias” monologue, said he loved the French drama.

“I was nominated for best comedy at the International Emmy Awards, for jokes. Call My Agent, a gigantic beautiful show I love won. But I got this medal and ate this fantastic salad with a very interesting crispy cheese topping. It was an honour to represent my country. Thanks so much to the @iemmys For India. It’s always for India. #VirDasForIndia,” he wrote on Instagram.

Das has received praise as well as police complaints about his monologue in Washington recently.

Sen’s “Aarya”, a Disney+ Hotstar series directed by Ram Madhvani, was nominated in the best drama series category alongside Chile’s “El Presidente”, Israel’s “Tehran” and the second season of “There She Goes” from the UK.

Israel’s “Tehran” topped the drama series category, ending India’s run at the yearly awards.

Madhvani on Monday had hoped to bring the trophy home. “Here we are after taking a 16-hour flight, we are hoping when we go back, we will win but even if we don’t it is a big big thing to be nominated,” he said on Monday.

Last year, director Richie Mehta’s “Delhi Crime”, fronted by Shefali Shah, won the best drama series honours at the International Emmys. Both Das and Siddiqui attended the ceremony in New York along with Madhvani. Sen, who recently underwent surgery, gave the awards night a miss. Organised by the International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, the International Emmys aim at “recognizing excellence in television produced outside of the U.S. for over 48 years”.

This year’s best performance by an actress trophy went to Hayley Squires for the series “Adult Material”, while Thailand’s “Hope Frozen: A Quest To Live Twice” won the documentary award. 21st Annual Latin GRAMMY Awards were given the non-English language U.S. primetime program and UK’s “The Masked Singer” was awarded in the non-scripted entertainment category. New Zealand’s “INSiDE” became the best short-form series, while the best telenovela was given to China’s “The Song Of Glory”. “Atlantic Crossing”, a Norway set historical drama, won in the TV movie / mini-series category. France’s “Kubrick By Kubrick” was recognised in the Arts Programming category. The nominations for the year 2021 were announced in September. The ceremony was organised adhering to COVID-19 safety guidelines.