Amid an increasingly polarized global conversation around immigration, a filmmaker with Indian roots found himself on one of cinema’s biggest stages. Alexandre Singh, born in France in 1980 to an Indian immigrant father who later moved to the UK, brought home an Oscar this year.
Singh, who studied fine arts at the University of Oxford, won in the Live-Action Short Film category for “Two People Exchanging Saliva,” alongside his collaborator Natalie Musteata.
The moment stood out not just for the win, but for its rarity. The category ended in a tie, with the award also going to “The Singers,” directed by Sam A Davis and Jack Piatt, a reminder that even on a night defined by competition, there was room for shared recognition.
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Set against a moment when conversations around immigration are deeply polarized, Singh’s story carries a quieter, more personal weight and one that begins long before the spotlight.
Speaking at a recent event, Singh reflected on his family’s journey, tracing it back to his father’s move from Punjab, India, to the United Kingdom in the 1960s. “In the 1960s, my father left Punjab to come to the United Kingdom with a beard and a turban. Can you imagine what the reception was like back then in the 1960s? It was very difficult for him. Over that time, he got a BA, MSc, PhD. He worked his way up. He lost the beard and the turban,” he said.
His father later married a French woman, and Singh was born in 1980 in Bordeaux, France. He would go on to study fine arts at the University of Oxford—a path shaped, in many ways, by the resilience he describes in his father’s journey.
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Continuing to speak about his father, Alexandre Singh offered a deeply personal reflection. “He loved the Beatles. He loved France, French wine, a certain French woman which is why I’m here. Through that time, he had the immigrant experience. He was so proud to be an Indian. I lost my father when I was 21, and it pains me that in some ways I lost my connection to my heritage, that true connection,” he said.
He also spoke about the tension that came with choosing a different path. Getting into fine arts at the University of Oxford was a milestone, but it was not easy at home. He recalled that moment as one of the most difficult phases of his life, sharing that while it meant everything to him, his father struggled to accept it. For him, coming from an immigrant background, the idea of pursuing the arts was hard to reconcile with the sacrifices he had made.
“We believe art can change people’s souls. Maybe it takes 10 years’ time, but we can change society through art, through creativity, through theatre and ballet, and cinema,” said Singh during the speech at the event.