Cannes Festival 2023: No Indian Film In Palme d’Or Category For 29th Year In A Row

This year, the Cannes International Film Festival will be held from May 16 to 27. The Indian delegation will be led by Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, L Murugan. He will be accompanied by many representatives of the Indian film industry. This year will mark the 29th year in a row where no Indian film will be screened in the event’s prestigious competition for the Palme d’Or (Golden Palm) category.

The last time an Indian film was screened in the category was way back in 1994. Malayalam film Swaham, directed by Shaji N Karun was the only movie screened in the Golden Palm competition. The award was claimed by Quentin Tarantino that year for Pulp Fiction. In 1989, Shaji N Karun was awarded the Camera d’Or Special Mention at the Cannes Film Festival for his maiden film Piravi.

This year, three Indian films are included in the official selection of the Cannes Film Festival. Jenifer Datta Areng, the writer and director from Meghalaya, has been invited to the MDF to present her project on an international platform. Kennedy, a new film by director Anurag Kashyap, a diploma film by FTI Pune graduate Yudhajit Basu, and Ishanou (1990), a restored Manipuri film by Aribam Syam Sharma round out the official selection for Indian cinema this year. However, none of these films are contesting.

For the first time, an Anurag Kashyap film is going to be a part of the Midnight Screenings. In 2013, Bombay Talkies, an anthology film, was shown at Cannes to commemorate Indian cinema’s 100th anniversary. Short films including Kashyap’s Murabba, Zoya Akhtar’s Sheela Ki Jawani, Karan Johar’s Ajeeb Dastan Hai Ye, and Dibakar Banerjee’s Star were compiled for Bombay Talkies.

Kennedy stars Sunny Leone and tells the story of a cop with insomnia who fights against corruption.