British actor Riz Ahmed on Sunday won his first Oscar for director Aneil Karia’s live action short film, The Long Goodbye, which Ahmed co wrote and starred in.

The win marks the first time a Muslim artist has won the award in the live-action short category.

In his acceptance speech, the actor honoured his immigrant roots and said, “You know, in such divided times, we believe that the role of story is to remind us that there is no us and them, there’s just us. This is for everyone who feels like they don’t belong and anyone who feels like they’re stuck in a no man’s land, you’re not alone, we’ll meet you there. That’s where the future is.”

The Long Goodbye features music from Ahmed’s 2021 album of the same name, which reflected on his identity as a British-Pakistani artist.

The film tells the story of a South Asian family living in a London suburb. The closely-knit family is shown preparing for a wedding celebration when they are interrupted by news reports depicting violence and an all-white militia, which soon knocks on the family’s door.

The live-action film is a terrifying take on the everyday nightmare of any family belonging to a marginalised community.

Social media users congratulated the actor on the big win.

People loved his acceptance speech and demanded that it be shared “far and wide.”

Some users called out the academy for not airing Ahmed’s win on the live broadcast.

Ahmed was also nominated for an academy award last year for his role as a hearing-impaired drummer in the film, Sound of Metal. He had lost to Welsh actor Anthony Hopkins.