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'No money...no publicity': When Shabana recalled 'Nishant' screening at Cannes
10 May 2025

In an episode of In The Ring with Filmfare, veteran actor Shabana Azmi looked back at the 1976 Cannes Film Festival.

She attended the festival for the screening of her film Nishant, which competed for the prestigious Palme d'Or.

Azmi recalled how the team employed interesting strategies to draw attention to their project.

The film was directed by Shyam Benegal and co-starred Smita Patil.

Azmi and Patil's strategy paid off at Cannes
Innovative approach

Azmi shared, "We had no publicity material and no money."

"So Shyam Benegal asked Smita and me to wear our best saris and walk up and down the promenade to attract attention."

"Everybody would turn around and look at us. And the minute they would look at us, we'd say, "Please, it's our film, please come at 6."

"We had a house full. With just that, it worked. I mean, it was really amazing."

'Film was important, not the clothes...'
Cultural pride

Azmi stressed it was the simplicity of their approach that mattered most, "It was the simplicity of it all. Film was important, not the clothes."

The film also starred Om Puri, Girish Karnad, and Amrish Puri, and is streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

Meanwhile, Cannes Film Festival 2025 is ready to roll from May 13 to May 24 and will be attended by Alia Bhatt and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, among other Indian stars.