"India Didn’t Have Any Moment At Cannes": Anurag Kashyap On India Claiming Payal Kapadia's Win (image-Instagram/anuragkashyap10)
If there is anyone who knows how to say it like it is in Bollywood, it is hands-down Anurag Kashyap. Recently, the filmmaker called out the appropriation of Payal Kapadia and other artists’ achievements at Cannes 2024 being labelled as “India’s” victory.
The Gangs of Wasseypur director said, “India didn’t have any moments at Cannes. Not a single of those films is Indian. I think we need to address it the way it should be addressed. India has stopped supporting such cinema.”
Read Also: From Anti-National To Nation’s Honour: Payal Kapadia’s Journey To Grand Prix At Cannes
Last month, three Indians bagged massive victories at the 77th edition of the Cannes Film Festival. Kapadia became the first ever director from India to win the Grand Prix for her film All We Imagine As Light. While Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) student Chidananda S. Naik won the Best Short Film Award in the La Cinef section for his Sunflowers Were The First To Know, Anusuya Sengupta won the Best Actress award in Un Certain Regard for The Shameless. Moreover, British Indian writer-director Sandhya Suri’s Santosh was selected for the same category.
Emphasising how the win was of the independent filmmakers alone, Kashyap told PTI, “Payal Kapadia’s film happened because of the French fund. India did not even give the rebate promised to that film. It has still not been given. Sandhya Suri’s film was funded from UK Film Lottery Fund. Karan Kandhari’s film was funded from UK. Konstantin’s (Bojanov, director of The Shameless) film was almost self-financed, and a company that funded it. He got no support from India. India just likes to take credit for a lot of things.”
Read Also: Vijay Varma Mocks Gajendra Chauhan For ‘Being Proud’ Of Payal Kapadia’s Win
Further highlighting the lack of support by the government for its talent, Kashyap gave the example of Kapadia’s last film, which won at Cannes but has not been released in India. “We have two Oscar-nominated documentaries. Did they release in India? The government does not even have a support system for things that bring a lot of soft power, cultural respect to India. Let’s stop this useless celebration,” he said.
“India didn’t have any moment at Cannes….India just likes to take credit for a lot of things.”
Listen to Anurag Kashyap pic.twitter.com/NLysbtTr6j
— Parth MN (@parthpunter) June 11, 2024
On the work front, Kashyap will be next seen as not a director but an actor. Starring as the antagonist in Vijay Sethupathi’s upcoming Maharaja, Kashyap can be seen in a chilling role.
