Awards
Bollywood flavour spices up Cannes
NEW DELHI: The 58th Cannes film festival has taken off in the French Riveria resort amidst the flavour of Bollywood, which will showcase India brand at this world’s glamorous film festival.
And, present there will be the industry chambers and the entertainment industry, including representatives from the TV world.
For the third consecutive year Confederation of India Industry (CII) is headed for Cannes to project the Indian film industry in the international market and supported by ministry of information & broadcasting and National Film Development Corporation (NFDC).
For the first time the Film and Television Producers Guild of India has joined hands with CII to bring together a high-powered delegation from Indian film to Cannes. I&B minister Jaipal Reddy will lead the Indian delegation.
Some of the key Indian delegates include Subhash Ghai, chairman of CII National Entertainment Committee, Bobby Bedi, co-chairman of CII National Entertainment Committee, Amit Khanna, president Film and Television Producers Guild, Manmohan Shetty, MD, Adlabs Films, Sunit Tandon, NFDC, Ronnie Screwvala, CEO, UTV, Sandeep Bhargav, CEO, Sahara One Motion Picture Company, Akbar Khan, MD, Mashreq Communications, Anshuman Swami, CEO, Applause Entertainment among others. Y C Deveshwar, Vice President, CII , N Srinivasan, Director General ,CII will accompany the delegation.
The presence of actress Nandita Das who will be on the Cannes jury this year, a feat accomplished by Aishwarya Rai in 2003, is a big boost and great value add to the India brand. Nandita Das will also inaugurate the CII India Pavilion, according to an official statement from the CII..
The highlight of this year’s extravaganza would be the screening of “Pather Panchali” on 12 May, as a ‘kick-off’ event at this year’s Cannes Classics Series. Cannes Classics was introduced as an integral part of the festival three years ago. This year, ‘Pather Panchali’ has been selected to honour it as one of the world’s greatest films on the 50th anniversary of its release in 1955. ‘Pather Panchali’ received one of the most prestigious awards of the event in 1956 — The Best Human Document.
This year movie outfits exhibiting at the India Pavilion at Riveria
include NFDC, Sahara India Mass Communication, Indian Motion Pictures, Sunstone Entertainment, Mashreq Communication and Planman Life among others.
CII feels that Cannes is an excellent platform for Indian film industry to interact and network with global showbiz community and also understand international production distribution and exhibition market scenarios better.
Over 60 Indian films will be screened at the Cannes Film Market, including the English version of Subhash Ghai’s Kisna , Sunstone Entertainment’s Chicken Tikka Masala, Eros International’s Matrubhoomi–A nation without women and Ketan Mehta’s The Rising , among others.
Coinciding with the fest, CII will hold an India Evening, a glitzy
show, which is already a talking point at Cannes. The India Evening is scheduled for 19 May at the Carlton Beach Restaurant.
Every year, the Cannes festival brings together over 7,000 participants from 70 countries including 16,000 buyers, 14,000 screenings in 30 venues.
Awards
Ajay Kakar to chair jury for ad:tech Honours Awards 2026
Industry leaders join jury as nominations surge for marketing tech awards
NEW DELHI: The ad:tech Honours Awards 2026 are gearing up for a bigger second edition, with Ajay Kakar, head of corporate branding at Adani Group, set to chair the jury for India’s technology-focused marketing awards.
Organised in partnership with the International Advertising Association India Chapter, the awards celebrate the growing influence of technology in shaping modern advertising and marketing outcomes. This year’s edition has drawn a strong response from across the industry, signalling rising momentum around innovation in marketing technology.
The organisers say the nominations reflect a wide range of ideas and approaches, highlighting how brands and agencies are increasingly leaning on platforms, tools and data to sharpen their campaigns and connect with audiences more effectively.
Leading the evaluation process, Kakar will head a jury made up of senior leaders from across brands, agencies and technology platforms.
The jury panel includes Amaresh Godbole, CEO, digital technology business at Publicis Groupe; Bishwajeet S, head of marketing and PR at Volkswagen India; Carol Goyal, executive director at Rediffusion and CEO of Aesthetic Intelligence Lab; Kushal Sanghvi, director at Komerz; Lara Balsara, executive director at Madison World; Rana Barua, group CEO India, sea and North Asia; Deepak Oram, senior vice president growth marketing and martech; and Priyanka Khaneja Gandhi, head of marketing and creative solutions at Amazon Ads India.
The ad:tech Honours Awards aim to recognise not just creative campaigns but the smart use of technology that delivers measurable impact and business results. Categories this year reflect the rapidly evolving digital landscape, covering areas such as artificial intelligence, data-driven marketing, content ecosystems, automation, martech and adtech integration, and commerce-led marketing.
The winners will be announced on 17 March 2026 at the Yashobhoomi Convention Centre in New Delhi during ad:tech New Delhi 2026. The event is expected to bring together leaders from brands, agencies, platforms, creators and technology partners for an evening celebrating the ideas and innovations shaping the future of marketing.iconductor industries.
