MUMBAI: Under a blazing afternoon sun on Akurli Road in Kandivali, a line of empty LPG cylinders stands in silent formation, placeholders for anxious residents waiting for a refill truck to arrive.

Everybody has their own idea of what makes a best picture winner at the Oscars. Perhaps a biopic or something huge in scale such as "Dances With Wolves" and "Titanic," or a small art-house movie like ...