Bollywood biggies bet big on Cannes

CANNES: The world's largest film-producing nation may be missing from the official selection of the 61st Cannes Film Festival, which opens on May 14, but, as always, a sizeable Indian contingent will descend on the French Riviera over the next fortnight to promote a wide array of cinematic wares.
    
Leading the Indian charge will be evergreen star Dev Anand, whose 1965 super hit, Guide, is part of Cannes Classics, a section launched in 2004 to showcase restored or new prints of masterworks of the past.
    
Guide, directed by Vijay Anand, will be screened alongside such classics as Max Ophuls' Lola Montes (1955), Jean Cocteau's Orphee (1949) and the late Sri Lankan master Lester James Peries' Gamperaliya (1965), among several other timeless gems.
    
The only other Indian who will "officially" participate in the Cannes film festival this year is the Mumbai-based movie critic and writer, Anupama Chopra.
    
She is on the jury of the 'Un Certain Regard sidebar', which is a section of the festival's official section. The five-member jury is headed by Turkish-German filmmaker Fatih Akin and includes a critic each from Russia and Egypt.
     
On the sidelines of the glitzy festival, in the supercharged Cannes Film Market, a host of Bollywood corporate entities will unveil a slew of new products and announce their respective plans for the future.
     
Spearheading the Indian movie industry this year is Reliance Big Entertainment (RBE), the showbiz arm of the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG).
     
Among other things, RBE is understood to have drawn up plans to announce its formal foray into the international movie business with a clutch of films starring A-list Hollywood stars.
   
In Cannes, the company will also announce a tie-up with Amitabh Bachchans production company, ABCL, in which RBE has bought a sizeable stake (reportedly worth around Rs 200 crore).
    
RBE, which will be represented in Cannes by several top-level honchos, is expected to also launch multiple movie deals with leading Mumbai filmmakersFarhan Akhtar, Vidhu Vinod Chopra and Sudhir Mishra.
     
Besides unveiling its Rs 60-crore animation film, Sultan The Warrior, made in conjunction with Soundarya Rajnikanth's Chennai-based Ocher Studios, RBE is likely to premiere Harry Baweja's Love Story 2050 and Rituparno Ghosh's Bengali film starring Bipasha Basu, Sab Charitra Kalpanik, in the Cannes Film Market.
    
Another key player in the Indian entertainment space, Eros International, will be in the Cannes Film Market to push Sarkar Raj, God Tussi Great Ho and Drona. The company is also expected to announce a long-term strategic alliance with a major Hollywood studio.
    
Shemaroo Entertainment will premiere its ambitious animation film, Ghatotkach  The Master of Magic, revolving around the mythic adventures of Bheema's son. Also participating in the Cannes Film Market are companies like Moser Baer and Saregama Films.
    
With the Bachchans figuring prominently in many of the Indian events planned for Cannes, Amitabh, Abhishek and Aishwarya, who is a brand ambassador of French cosmetics giant L'Oreal, one of the main sponsors of the Cannes Film Festival, are likely to fly into town to flag off ABCL's alliance with Reliance and promote Sarkar Raj.