Richa Chadha Reacts To Debate Over Cannes Being Downgraded As A Fashion Event

Richa Chadha, who is attending the 76th Cannes Film Festival with her husband and actor Ali Fazal, reacted to the ongoing social media debate – whether the focus on fashion at the prestigious festival is overshadowing cinema. Like every year, renowned celebrities are putting their most fashionable foot forward at the Cannes red carpet, promoting their movies, businesses and popular brands. However, some celebrities are being trolled for making an appearance at the French Riviera on behalf of “brands/designers/alcohol labels.” Apart from regular attendee Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, actresses Sara Ali Khan, Manushi Chhillar, Sunny Leone, Anushka Sharma and Mouni Roy, as well as social media influencers like Dolly Singh, Niharika NM and Masoom Minawala are making their Cannes debut this year.

Richa, sharing two notes on her Instagram Stories, asked the trolls to not “sh*t” on people. She wrote: “There’s a lot of chatter on SM (social media) about Cannes, fashion, film, etc. Just wanna say, don’t sh*t on anyone please. People are excited to be here, I notice the ones that are thanking the brands/designers/alcohol labels that are bringing their influencers here. It’s also a great venue for marketing, no? Let them be. You’ll notice most people say, they’re at the red carpet but won’t specify the film. Well, cause they’re not here with a film or for a film.”

She added, “Should you be so lucky to get to work on a film that ends up at the Festival de Cannes. It’s the best feeling in the world. It is, after all, a film festival, no matter what anyone says.”

Richa attended Cannes in 2015 with Vicky Kaushal, Neeraj Ghaywan, and team Masaan. The film was screened at the Un Certain Regard Section, and it won two accolades at the festival. The actress added that it is a great feeling for one to see their film being appreciated with a standing ovation at the festival. She shared another old picture, and mentioned that she was so overwhelmed by the appreciation that Masaan received at Cannes that she cried before the photo was clicked.

The discussion about fashion being a prime focus at the film festival gathered traction after filmmaker Nandita Das said that “it’s a festival of films, not clothes.”

Richa Chadha has also attended the Cannes Film Festival for Anurag Kashyap’s Gangs of Wasseypur. She is attending this year with her husband for her production, Girls Will Be Girls.

Kennedy (by Anurag Kashyap) and Agra are the two Indian films that have been officially selected for this year’s Cannes Film Festival.