I&B Minister of State L Murugan opens India Pavilion at Cannes

Cannes: At the 76th Cannes Film Festival, Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting L Murugan opened the India Pavilion on Wednesday, PTI Reported.

On the occasion, the minister praised India's "timeless tradition of storytelling", which is finding mileage in the world.

"You will not find too many Hollywood films these days that do not have names of Indians in the credits, especially in the VFX and animation departments," the minister said.

"India is well placed to become the world's leading content creator," he stated, asserting that the foundations of the country's economy are strong.

He then mentioned India's Oscar-winning short documentary "The Elephant Whisperers" by Kartiki Gonsalves. He said that the story of Bomman and Bellie is set in Mudumalai, which is near his hometown in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu.

"The film has touched the hearts of people across the world," he opined.

L Murugan spoke after Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur addressed the attendees via a video-recorded message.

The minister unveiled the poster of the upcoming 54th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) to be held in Goa in November.

Guneet Monga, producer of "The Elephant Whisperers", was seated on the dais. Among others on the dais were actors Vijay Varma and Sara Ali Khan.

Later in an Instagram post, Guneet Monga said she was "delighted" to be at the Cannes Film Festival 2023 as a part of the Indian government delegation.

In the post that accompanied a picture from the gala's red carpet with L Murugan and Manipuri actor Kangabam Tomba, she wrote, "India is now on the global stage in world cinema, and it's an honour to be a part of this momentous occasion."