This is his second time at the Cannes Film Festival as part of the Indian delegation and Madhur Bhandarkar is excited to be back. The director, who has just returned from the French Riviera, tells us, “It’s a great way to meet people from all over the world. I always say that Cannes was the mother of film festivals!. I am always excited to meet technicians and story writers from different countries and watch their films. So, it’s a great feeling.”
Madhur Bhandarkar meets Michael Douglas at Cannes 2023
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One of the highlights of his visit this year, he shares, was meeting Hollywood star Michael Douglas. “It was absolutely a big fan moment for me,” says Bhandarkar, adding, “A friend introduced me to Michael sir at the Indian Pavilion. We grew up watching Michael Douglas movies. He was only there for 10-12 minutes and we kept talking about all his great movies like Basic Instinct (1992) and Wall Street. I was a big fan of his movie King of California. He is very kind. such a great personality.”
The Lock in India and Babli Bouncer The filmmaker (both 2022), who last attended the festival in 2019, feels that India’s footprint on the global map is growing with each passing year. “For example, at the Indian Pavillion, (politician) Khushboo, (actors) Sara Ali Khan and Vijay Varma, (producer) Guneet Monga, Dr L Murugun (Information and Broadcasting Minister) spoke about how India left a strong mark globally. , especially in the last 10 years,” he continues, “In terms of the kind of cinema we make, people have seen how RRR (2022) and Naatu Naatu The (Oscar-winning song) got attention. And here in Cannes, when I was interacting with people, I had an amazing response Naatu Naatu. So people are talking and curious about the kind of cinema and content we make. The rise of OTT has also been huge.”
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Beaming with pride, the director adds, “I have been a very frequent visitor to film festivals around the world. Ever since I started making movies, I’ve been on the jury as well. And I’ve seen that we’re the biggest production house in the world, in terms of cinema.”
