Indian fans have been analysing videos of Alia Bhatt being ‘ignored’ on the red carpet by global paparazzi as her coral-hued gown only screamed, ‘playing safe, yet again’.
With little to cheer for in cinema this year, Indians have been left with a red carpet fuelled by pure, risk-averse ‘wannabe’ energy, even as they remain hopelessly hooked to checking out who wore what.
It’s a double whammy for Indian cinema fans this year.
The prestigious Cannes Film Festival is currently underway (concluding on May 23rd). Usually, India has had something or the other to offer. Whether it was a groundbreaking offering making a splash in ‘Un Certain Regard’ segment, an indie being screened in the ‘Out of Competition’ category, or a big legacy name on the jury, there was always something that kept the Indian film fans on life support.
Of course, there are Indian films being screened at the festival this year too, but nothing to equal the buzz around Neeraj Ghaywan’s Homebound, for example — starring Ishaan Khattar, Vishal Jethwa and Janhvi Kapoor — which had drawn a nine-minute long standing ovation. Payal Kapadia who had won the Grand Prix in 2024 for her directorial debut All We Imagine As Light, is serving as the president of the jury for the Critics’ Week, but lacks the glamour of previous jury members at the festival like Aishwarya Rai (2003), Vidya Balan (2013) and Deepika Padukone (2022).
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This bleak scenario is further magnified on the world’s most watched red carpet, where our A-listers were spotted navigating the French Riviera in a fashion vibe sadly rooted in a ‘wannabe’ energy, one that reeked of insecurity.
And yet, we have been obsessively doomscrolling and analysing the videos of Alia Bhatt being ‘ignored’ on the red carpet by global paparazzi as her coral-hued gown only screamed, ‘playing safe, yet again’. Urvashi Rautela’s presence has once more made the aam junta question the accessibility quotient of the red carpet, and if it is ‘really’ that democratic. Actors Aditi Rao Hydari and Huma Qureshi belted out that ultimate defensive greatest hit from India: the ‘saree’. It’s been an underwhelming show, putting it mildly.
F for fashion, F for films, F for falling flat
Director Anurag Kashyap hit the nail on the head when, in a conversation held on the Riviera with critic Sucharita Tyagi, he lamented that “In India… the obsession with Cannes is only to walk the red carpet” because we fail to understand the festival’s actual purpose. It’s the red carpet that has the entire nation hooked, and sadly, not the films.
A scene from Neeraj Ghaywan's Homebound, which recieved at nine-minute standing ovation last year.
But the question needs to be asked: why? Why do we need validation from a gathering that might not really understand our quirks and idiosyncrasies? And let’s say we need to win that validation and beat them at their own game; even there, we fall flat, tumble down from our non-fashionable high horse.
“We are so scared to experiment, A-listers even more so. We play safe; we only go for the tried-and-tested formulas. Fashion at Cannes has always stood for something more, more than just style or looking good. Remember Julia Roberts walking barefoot on the red carpet?” says a senior stylist who has styled many A-listers. “Alia Bhatt is a L’Oréal brand ambassador; she should have at least tried something different in her makeup to express herself, if nothing else.”
In 2016, Julia Roberts walked barefoot on the Cannes red carpet to essentially tread on the rules of shoe requirements for women. So did actor Kristen Stewart, who removed her Christian Louboutins right on the red carpet in 2018. Salma Hayek even carried a sign in 2014 that read ‘Bring Back Our Girls’, using the carpet to draw attention to the 200 schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram in Nigeria.
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It’s 2026 and we still remember those iconic ‘fashionable’ acts, whereas, where Alia Bhatt is concerned, we can at best say that her wave to the paparazzi could have been a little more enthusiastic.
Our A-listers are so plagued by the fear of being cancelled or trolled that they refuse to even try anything new. They wish to command global respect, but sadly, they do nothing to translate that desire into action. While entire armies of stylists, makeup artists, and fashion experts are at their beck and call, our stars still commit the ultimate fashion faux pas: being unauthentic and entirely devoid of voice or personality.
Clothed in nostalgia, armed for the future
There was a time, in what now seems like a galaxy far, far away, when Indian fashion actually asserted itself. Remember Aishwarya Rai, who dared to sport a frosty purple lipstick; Deepika Padukone in that fuchsia pink Ashi Studio gown, replete with ruffles and power shoulders; Sonam Kapoor in a Ralph & Russo saree-gown; or Vidya Balan decked out in pearls and a jadau nathni. Did they wow the international fashion police? We don’t know. But did they assert their choices, their personality, and their voice, owning the red carpet in the process? A resounding hell yes!
Payal Kapadia won the Grand Prix in 2024 for her directorial debut, All We Imagine As Light. File Photo
“Cannes has always been different. The red carpet always made more news than the films, and the good-looking actors and their sartorial choices caught the attention of the world. "Directors, filmmakers, and even films are often sidelined”, shares an award-winning documentary filmmaker who has attended a few red carpets of her own. “But I definitely remember when Payal Kapadia’s film [All We Imagine As Light] was nominated in 2024; how they [the film’s team] owned that space. An actor from the film [Kani Kusruti] was carrying a bag symbolic of Palestine, while another sported a Maharashtrian nath. And they danced on the red carpet! That’s what fashion and red carpets should be about: owning oneself, asserting one’s identity, and having a purpose.”
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Maybe that’s what is missing. A belief, a purpose and meaning. Sure, many A-listers are invited by brands and there are millions riding on the endorsement. But who says a corporate deal needs to be soulless? Case in point: Zendaya/Law Roach and Louis Vuitton ( no blind corporate Louis Vuitton branding). Or Rihanna and Puma, where the Barbadian singer-songwriter used the massive platform of the corporate giant to champion body positivity and scout for diverse talent casting. Sometimes, a purpose, a thought to champion, is the clarion call and accessory needed to boost one’s confidence and give the spine something to stand tall on.
Right now, our celebs are but mere flapping banners in the wind, swaying to the beck and call of almost anyone. And Indians just can’t stop watching and dissecting on social media.
