The much-awaited Cannes Film Festival will start today evening in the South of France. Actor Deepika Padukone is already at Cannes as a member of the jury for the festival's 75th edition. The jury will jointly decide who will take home this year’s prize and announce it on May 28, when the prestigious festival comes to an end.
The star-studded event will also see actors like Nawazuddin Siddiqui, R Madhavan, Tamannaah Bhatia, Pooja Hegde, Nayanthara and folk artiste Mame Khan walk the red carpet along with music maestro AR Rahman and Grammy-winning composer Ricky Kej.
The celebrities will grace the opening ceremony of the 2022 Cannes Film Festival as part of the Indian delegation led by Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur. CBFC chief Prasoon Joshi, CBFC board member Vani Tripathi Tikoo and acclaimed director Shekhar Kapur will also be present at the opening ceremony.
Actor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan will also make her annual appearance. She was spotted at the Mumbai airport on Monday night along with her husband and actor Abhishek Bachchan and their daughter Aaradhya. The actor has been representing India for a cosmetic brand at the Cannes red carpet for several years now.
Actor Akshay Kumar, who was slated to walk the red carpet on the opening day of the 75th Cannes Film Festival, will not be able to attend the event as has he tested positive for Covid-19 recently. On Saturday, the actor shared a message on social media, saying he will “really miss being there” at the festival.
“Was really looking forward to rooting for our cinema at the India Pavilion at #Cannes2022, but have sadly tested positive for Covid. Will rest it out. Loads of best wishes to you and your entire team, @ianuragthakur,” Akshay Kumar tweeted.
TV actors Hina Khan and Helly Shah will be part of the star-studded Indian delegation which will also see South Indian film actors such as Nayanthara, Aditi Rao Hydari, Tamannaah Bhatia and Pooja Hegde walk the red carpet. While Hina Khan has already attended the 72nd Cannes Film Festival in 2019, Pooja Hegde, Nayanthara, Helly Shah, Tamannaah Bhatia and Aditi Rao Hydari will debut at the Cannes red carpet 2022.
Hydari will be representing smartphone brand Vivo India at the festival. Speaking to ANI, the actor said she was “excited and thrilled” to walk the red carpet at Cannes Film Festival.
“As an artist myself, being a part of a prestigious institution that celebrates cinema is an exhilarating feeling," she said.
India will be the official 'Country of Honour' at the 'Marche' Du Film', organised along with the Cannes Film Festival. This is the first time that the film festival will have an official ‘Country of Honour’. It is expected to continue the tradition in its future editions. The Palais des Festival will premiere of R Madhavan’s “Rocketry: The Nambi Effect” on May 19.
(Edited by : Sudarsanan Mani)
