Indians on Cannes Film Festival jury, from Deepika Padukone to Payal Kapadia

Mumbai-born director named as a member for this year's event

Deepika Padukone at the opening ceremony of the Cannes Film Festival in 2022. Getty Images

Indian filmmaker Payal Kapadia, who won the Grand Prix with All We Imagine as Light at last year's Cannes Film Festival, is returning this year as a jury member.

The Mumbai-born director and writer will join Oscar-winning actress Halle Berry and British actor Jeremy Strong on a jury headed by French actress and Oscar winner Juliette Binoche.

Other members include Italian actor Alba Rohrwacher; Korean filmmaker Hong Sangsoo; Congolese director Dieudo Hamadi; Mexican filmmaker Carlos Reygadas; and French-Moroccan writer Leila Slimani.

The jury members will be tasked with deciding this year's Palme d'Or winner. A total of 19 films are vying for the top prize this year, six of which are directed by women.

Indian filmmaker Payal Kapadia will be part of the jury at the Cannes Film Festival. AFP

Kapadia last year became the first Indian filmmaker in the prestigious competition line-up in 30 years with her searing drama All We Imagine as Light, which explores loneliness, love and womanhood in today’s India.

She joins an impressive list of fellow Indians on the jury at the festival, which begins on May 13 and is now in its 78th year. Here are nine other famous faces who have served in the past.

Mrinal Sen

The late filmmaker was the first Indian jury member. He joined the group in 1982, the year before his film Kharij won the jury prize. Other films of his to be presented in France include Ek Din Pratidin, Khandar and Genesis.

Mira Nair

The notable director served on the jury in 1990 and has many accolades and nominations to her name. Her debut feature film Salaam Bombay! was nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film at the Oscars in 1988. She won the Camera d'Or and Grand Prix at Cannes, alongside numerous other awards.

Arundhati Roy

Arundhati Roy, centre, with her fellow 2000 jury members. From left, German actress Barbara Sukowa; French actress Nicole Garcia; French director Luc Besson; British actress Kristin Scott Thomas; and Spanish actress Aitana Sanchez-Gijon. WireImage

Roy may be better known for her literary prowess, having won the Booker Prize for her novel The God Of Small Things, published in 1997, but she was invited to join the Cannes film jury in 2000. The author and activist's early career focused on screenplays and she's written for television.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan at the festival in 2003. Getty Images

Rai made her first Cannes appearance in 2002, turning heads by wearing a yellow sari on the red carpet for the premiere of Devdas, which co-starred Shah Rukh Khan. Only one year later, she was serving on the jury, becoming the first Indian actress to do so.

Nandita Das

Indian actress Nandita Das, centre, with guests in 2005. Getty Images

Two years after Rai, Das served in 2005. In 2013, the actress and filmmaker, known for directing Firaaq (2008) and for starring in Fire (1996) and Bawandar (2000), joined the juries for Cinefondation, which promotes next-generation international filmmakers, and short film.

Sharmila Tagore

The veteran actress joined the international jury in 2009, but her career at Cannes started decades before that, when her 1960 film Devi, directed by Satyajit Ray, was screened at the festival in 1962.

Shekhar Kapur

Indian filmmaker Shekar Kapur. Photo: Expo 2020 Dubai

It was Kapur's turn in 2010. The Bafta and Golden Globe-nominated filmmaker and actor is known for his work on Elizabeth (1998), The Four Feathers (2002) and Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007).

Vidya Balan

Vidya Balan at Cannes in 2013. Alamy

It was three years before another Indian representative served, but in 2013, multi-award-winning Kahaani actress Balan was invited to join the prestigious group, the same year she made her Cannes debut.

Balan is known for portraying strong female characters. She was last seen in Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3, which became one of the highest-grossing Hindi films of 2024.

Deepika Padukone

Deepika Padukone served as jury member in 2022. Sipa USA

One of the most influential Indian stars, the Bollywood actress was a regular on the Cannes red carpet as a L'Oreal ambassador, before becoming a jury member in 2022.

She served alongside veteran French actor Vincent Lindon, as well as British actress and director Rebecca Hall; Swedish actress Noomi Rapace; Italian actress and director Jasmine Trinca; Iranian director Asghar Farhadi, French director Ladj Ly; American director Jeff Nichols and Norwegian director Joachim Trier.

“I feel really proud to be here as an Indian and to be representing the country,” Padukone said. “But when we look back at 75 Years of Cannes, there have been only a handful of Indian films and Indian talent that have been able to make it and I feel like collectively as a nation today we have it.”

Besides her jury duties, Padukone, who also made history that year by becoming the first Indian to be a Louis Vuitton ambassador, was widely praised for showcasing her culture on the red carpet.