OF PASSION AND SLUGGISH FILMS

The first film I saw at the Cannes Film Festival was only six minutes long. It was a snippet of a VR film, which attempts to engage all your senses including smell. But that isn’t the most unusual thing about Le Musk. The most unusual thing is that it’s been directed by one of the world’s greatest living composers — AR Rahman.

Rahman was in Cannes to talk about his passion project, already three years in the making. Le Musk is a nonlinear sensory experience and asks intriguing questions — what is the scent of fear, what is the scent of joy. I asked Rahman if it would also provide answers. He smiled and said the important thing is to ask questions. Le Musk, which will eventually be a little over an hour long, is likely to be completed by December.

The festival kicked off with a screening of Jim Jarmusch’s star-studded zombie romp, The Dead Don’t Die. The cast came in full force — Tilda Swinton, Adam Driver, Bill Murray, and Chloe Sevigny. Jarmusch is making a point about a world gone to hell but the film is more

sluggish than smart. Crackling promos promised much more but sadly, this one doesn’t soar.

Meanwhile, controversy continued to swirl around the decision to honour veteran French actor Alain Delon with an honorary Palme d’Or.

Cannes has long been criticised for not having enough female filmmakers in the official selection. This year, 13 of the 47 films in the official selection are directed by women and four female directors are in contention for the Palme d’Or. In the 72 yearhistory of the festival, only one woman, Jane Campion, won the Palme (for The Piano; 1993).

The festival released some numbers — this year 1,845 feature films were submitted for the official selection. Not a single Indian film made the cut. Neither do we have Indian artists on any jury. A Cannes veteran told me Indian talent is too hard to manage. “They want first class tickets, business class for their entourage, hair and makeup every day. It’s just too much to deal with,” she said.

I’m soon meeting two inspiring Indian directors, both of whom happen to be women — Rima Das and Mira Nair. Watch this space for more.