The Oscars are special because it is an award for the film industry by the film industry

For over 15 years, I have found myself awake at 6.30am on a Monday morning eagerly waiting for the Academy Awards of Motion Pictures & Sciences (AMPAS) to announce the best in (predominantly American) cinema. My earliest memory is seeing Nicolas Cage walk away with the best actor prize for Leaving Las Vegas, a movie I wasn’t old enough to see and didn’t have access to. It would mark the occasion when I’d learn that “upset” meant much more than making someone unhappy. That it also implies an unexpected result; as I’d later learn that Sean Penn was the favourite for Dead Man Walking.

The anticipation for the Oscars actually begins months in advance as early as February of the preceding year when acclaimed directors present their films at the Berlin Film Festival. It is followed by Cannes in May and Toronto in September, two festivals known for their judicious curation evident in the line-up. The festivals are when critics start singling out films or performances which have realistic Oscar potential. Simply put, the Oscar fever cannot be escaped.

It helps that the Oscars are occasionally not unafraid to be international such as when French film Amelie, in the year when Ashutosh Gowariker and Aamir Khan represented India with Lagaan, had multiple Oscar nominations but walked out with zero awards, and the Taiwanese film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon won four awards including cinematography and original score. There is rarely an Indian to root for but still I am glued to the television, biting my nails/keeping my fingers crossed for my personal favourite when the presenter says, “And the Oscar goes to...” Thanks to multiplexes, video parlours and the internet, I now am able to see most of the films to decide my own best for the award. Occasionally the winner’s name draws a roar of applause (Spike Jonze winning original screenplay for Her or Kathryn Bigelow becoming the first woman to win best director for The Hurt Locker) or a scream of frustration (Jennifer Lawrence winning best actress over Emmanuelle Riva in Amour and Terrence Malick’s The Thin Red Line winning none).

So the question rises why does it matter so much who wins the golden statuette? The answers are fairly simple: In a refreshing change, it feels good to watch an award ceremony live; know that no artist sits there thinking that his or her mere presence merits an award. It’s also nice to sit through a show which is not so ratings obsessed that it would end the telecast with an award for best actor and not best picture, which is the way it is, and should be, at the Oscars and even at the Golden Globes.

At the Oscars, the winners of technical categories and writers are not sidelined quickly but given their due moment in spotlight. It’s almost relieving to know that the true merit of work and not someone’s star power or reputation is being rewarded. Often it results in scenarios such as cinematographer Roger Deakins, nominated for Unbroken this year, finds himself in: He has been nominated 11 times and is likely to walk away empty-handed once again. Mexican lensman Emmannuel Lubezki is a favourite to win his second consecutive Oscar with Birdman.

So what makes Oscars so coveted, draw millions of viewers worldwide on TV and front pages of dailies? Why do marketing teams lead expensive campaigns led by For Your consideration ads in newspapers and banners on websites seeking the prize? Among its many draws is that it gets your film noticed, which implies that people want to see what’s so great in the film that it won an Oscar. The film itself may not be running in theatres but there are always DVD or video-on-demand sites and DVDs where it can be caught.

More importantly, Oscar is an award for the industry by the industry. Different professionals from cinema – actors, casting directors, cinematographers, costume designers, designers, directors, documentary filmmakers, executives, editors, makeup artists and hairstylists, music, producers, public relation officials, short film and feature animation makers, sound technicians, visual effect artists, writers – come together to recognise the achievement of their peers.

It makes it hard to get yourself an Oscar, for it would mean wooing a sizeable of the 6,000 plus members, not all of whose identities are known. The Academy Awards winners are determined on a mathematical procedure. It may not result in a winner of your preference but unlike the desi awards, selected by a handful or by public votes, at least you wouldn’t be appalled by the choices. So Queen is the best film but its spine, its leading star, is not best actress simply because Kangana Ranaut announced that she would not attend any award shows this year. Now take AMPAS, which has handed Katherine Hepburn the award four times, knowing well that she wouldn’t even bother to attend the event, and given Mo’Nique best supporting actress for Precious even though she refused to campaign for the award by hitting the party circuit. Most often, it ends up being the best of that given year, which explains why Hilary Swank has two best actress Oscars.

By Sunday morning, the firm PricewaterhouseCoopers would have tallied the ballots of the members and reached a unanimous verdict. There have been ties, unfortunately none which I have witnessed. The Academy may not always get it right (crash over Brokeback Mountain, really? and Departures for best foreign language film over The Class and Waltz with Bashir?) but there is a legitimacy to the process. There is genuine excitement too because there is secrecy to the process, with only two people at PwC aware of the winners before the show itself.

Every year, I find myself wondering why can’t the Hindi film industry start the process of building a reputed organisation similar to the AMPAS, an invitation-only body full of film professionals. A chunk of AMPAS’ members are former nominees and winners, and rest are those whose names are recommended by the existing members. Simply put, you are there because you are worth it. The awards themselves don’t feature silly categories such as Best Hero of the Year – Female. So being nominated alone is a way of your peers patting you on the back for a job well done.

If only our own award shows weren’t a farcical, nonsensical spectacle with little to celebrate, then I wouldn’t have been that hooked to the Oscars. Who am I kidding? I have and will always be even though this year for a change I was partially happy with our own award shows to hand the top prize, which please note was presented before best actor and actress, not to the highest-earning film but really the best Hindi film of the year in Queen.

All I know is that the only way I’m not getting the Monday blues is if Boyhood and The Grand Budapest Hotel win the most prizes on February 23.