The 63-year-old actor's cell phone wasn't working in the more remote parts of the country and it wasn't until he journeyed to the coast that he was able to receive calls, reported Daily Star online.
Gere, who previously won a Golden Globe for 2002 movie-musical "Chicago", was flooded with messages when he eventually switched the device on and he initially feared something bad had happened at home.
"I was in India (when the nominations were announced), and my phone wasn't working. But when I got to the coast in south India, all of a sudden my phone worked. I turned it on and had 50 messages. My first thought was that something was wrong, and then it was all 'congratulations.' I totally forgot about it," Gere said.
The Golden Globe Awards will be handed out in Los Angeles on 13 January and Gere will face competition from Daniel Day-Lewis, John Hawkes, Joaquin Phoenix and Denzel Washington in the category for Best Performance By An Actor In A Motion Picture - Drama.