Indian director Payal Kapadia makes history with Cannes Grand Prix win
Three Indians bag awards at Cannes Film Festival 2024
At the Cannes Film Festival’s 77th edition, that concluded in the French riviera town on Saturday, Indian filmmaker Payal Kapadia made history as the first Indian director to secure the Grand Prix, the second highest honour at Cannes, just after Palme d’Or. Kapadia’s film, All We Imagine as Light, stood out amidst a stellar lineup, affirming India’s cinematic prowess on the international stage.
Payal Kapadia makes history with Cannes Grand Prix win
Kapadia became the first female director in India and the first Indian film in 30 years to compete in the festival’s main competition. Shaji N Karun’s Swaham was selected for and competed in the main competition in 1994.
Her film received an eight-minute standing ovation and was billed as a potential winner by international critics in their reviews.
The 77th edition of the Festival de Cannes, that was chaired by American director Greta Gerwig, saw an impressive lineup of films and a distinguished jury that included celebrated figures from the film industry such as Turkish screenwriter Ebru Ceylan, American actress Lily Gladstone, French actress Eva Green, Lebanese director Nadine Labaki, Spanish director Juan Antonio Bayona, Italian actor Pierfrancesco Favino, Japanese director Kore-eda Hirokazu, and French actor and producer Omar Sy.
The coveted Palme d’Or was awarded to Sean Baker for his film Anora.
To sweeten the night even further, Kapadia did not turn out to be the only Indian to walk away with honours. Anasuya Sengupta won Best Actress for her role in The Shameless, while Chidananda S Naik b aged the first prize in the La Cinef section, for his film, Sunflowers Were the First Ones to Know.
The Best Actor award was won by Abou Sangaré won for L’Histoire de Souleymane.
The Jury Prize went to Jacques Audiard’s Emilia Pérez, which also saw an ensemble of actresses, Adriana Paz, Zoe Saldaña, Karla Sofía Gascón, and Selena Gomez, sharing the Best Performance by an Actress award. The Best Director accolade was given to Miguel Gomes for Grand Tour, while Mohammad Rasoulof received a Special Award for The Seed of the Sacred Fig.
In the acting categories, Jesse Plemons won Best Performance by an Actor for his role in Kinds of Kindness, directed by Yorgos Lanthimos. Coralie Fargeat took home the Best Screenplay award for The Substance. The festival also honoured George Lucas with an Honorary Palme d’Or for his extraordinary contributions to cinema.
In the Short Films category, Nebojša Slijepčević’s The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent won the Palme d’Or, with Daniel Soares’ Bad for a Moment receiving a special mention.
The Un Certain Regard section recognised Black Dog by Guan Hu with the top prize. The Jury Prize went to L’Histoire de Souleymane by Boris Lojkine.
The Best Director award was shared by Roberto Minervini for The Damned and Rungano Nyoni for On Becoming a Guinea Fowl.
The Youth Award was given to Louise Courvoisier for Holy Cow, and Tawfik Alzaidi’s Norah received a Special Mention as a first film.
The Caméra d’Or was awarded to Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel for Armand, with a Special Mention for Mongrel by Wei Liang Chiang and You Qiao Yin.
In the La Cinef section, besides Naik, the joint second prize was awarded to Asya Segalovich for Out the Window Through the Wall and Nikos Kolioukos for The Chaos She Left Behind.
