It is a film that gave a second lease of life to his film career, standing up like a ''shining armour amid a series of flops featuring the actor over the last few years.

Naturally then, for Bollywood actor Vivek Oberoi, Vishal Bhardwaj's 'Omkara', the filmmaker's Indian adaptation of Shakespeare's 'Othello' is a film close to his heart.

''Omkara is a film that bridges the divide between commercial and so-called art films. The gangsters in the film are so powerful yet so closer to real life. For example, my character in the film Kesu Firangi is shown to wield so much power but at the same time it displays so much innocence.

Infact, the audience in theatres can feel his vulnerability and innocence. In this context, 'Omkara' is a significant milestone in my career,'' Viveik told during a recent visit to Osian's Cinefan festival for Asian and Arab cinema for the screening of 'Omkara'.

Stating that 'Omkara' in a way symbolised the changed look of Indian cinema over the decades, Vivek said,''during my father's (Suresh Oberoi) times, there was a distinction between art and commercial cinema. Now commercial Hindi cinema is increasingly adopting the style of docu-drama as epitomized by a films like 'Shootout At Lokhandwala.''

For example, Vivek said, his role as gangster Maya Dolas in Sanjay Gupta's 'Shootout at Lokhandwala' was a combined result of the director's vision and his research on the the mannerisms of people living in Madgaon where Maya lived.

Expressing a sense of pride over the screening of 'Omkara' at the Osian's Cinefan festival of Asian and Arab cinema on wednesday, Vivek said,''I feel films like 'Omkara' change perpectives of people vis-à-vis commercial cinema. In this context, I would go to the extent of even saying that 'Omkara' should have been the Indian entry to the Oscars.''