These Indian films won hearts at the Cannes Film Festival
1. A Night of Knowing Nothing
Directed by Payal Kapadia, A Night of Knowing Nothing follows the life of a university student in India, who writes letters to her estranged lover, while he is away. The film won the Oeil d’or (Golden Eye) award for best documentary at the 74th Cannes Film Festival.
Starring the late Irrfan Khan, Nimrat Kaur and Nawazuddin Siddiqui in the lead, The Lunchbox was screened at the Cannes Film Festival in 2013 and later bagged the Critics Week Viewers Choice Award also known as Grand Rail d'Or. Directed by Ritesh Batra and produced by Anurag Kashyap, the film tells the story of Ila, an economically dependent woman who seeks love from her husband and cooks delicious meals for his tiffin every day. However, things take a turn when her lunchbox gets wrongly delivered to a widower and a much more caring person, Saajan Fernandes, a government officer on the verge of retirement. The two then develop a friendship and write letters to each other.
A film by Murali Nair, Marana Simhasanam tells the story of the first execution by electrocution in India. Starring Vishwas Njavakkal, Lakshmi Raman, Suhas Thayat and Jeevan Mitva in key roles, the film walked away with the Camera d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival in 1999.
Highly lauded by both the critics and the audiences, Salaam Bombay stole the show at the Cannes Film Festival in the year 1988. The Mira Nair directorial depicts the daily lives of children living in the slums of Bombay (now Mumbai), regarded as India's largest city. Featuring Shafiq Syed, Raghuvir Yadav, Late Irrfan Khan, Anita Kanwar, Nana Patekar, Hansa Vithal and Chanda Sharma, the film won the Camera d’Or and the Audience Prize at the Cannes.
Based on a novel by Ramapada Chowdhury, Kharij revolves around the accidental death of an underage servant and the impact it leaves on the lives of those who had hired him. Helmed by Mrinal Sen, Kharij won the Special Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival in 1983. The film starred Anjan Dutt, Mamata Shankar, Sreela Majumdar, Gita Sen and Sunil Mukherjee in interesting roles.
Directed by Satyajit Ray, the Indian Bengali-language epic drama won the Palme d’Or for Best Human Document at the Cannes Film Festival. Considered one of the best works of the celebrated filmmaker, the film focuses on the depiction of poverty in rural Bengal. Featuring Subir Banerjee, Kanu Banerjee, Karuna Banerjee, Uma Dasgupta, Pinaki Sengupta and Chunibala Devi, Pather Panchali was the first film in The Apu Trilogy.
Directed by Prakash Arora and produced by Raj Kapoor, Boot Polish is a heart-wrenching story of two siblings who are forced to beg by their cruel aunt. However, the two kids choose to work hard and earn money by polishing shoes. The film won hearts at the Cannes Film Festival and child actress Naaz was honoured with a Special Distinction Award for her performance in the film.
Starring Nirupa Roy and Balraj Sahani in the lead, Do Bigha Zameen won the illustrious Prix Internationale at the Cannes Film Festival in 1954. Regarded as one of the most iconic films of Hindi cinema, Do Bigha Zameen is a perfect merge of art and commercial cinema. The film narrates the story of a poor farmer who fails to repay his debts and then begins working as a rickshaw puller in Kolkata to earn money for the same.
It was in 1946 when Chetan Anand’s film Neecha Nagar won the top award — the Grand Prix du Festival International du Film (now called Palme d’Or). Inspired by a short story of the same title, the film showcased the differences between the rich and the poor in Indian society. Neecha Nagar emerged as a winner at the Cannes Film Festival while competing with ten other films.
