While the prestigious Cannes Film Festival has always been reserved for Aishwarya Rai Bachchan’s glamourous red carpet escapades, among other things movie-related, this year will prove different with an actress making it to the nine-member jury.
It isn’t the first time that Bollywood has found a place in the jury, with director Shekhar Kapur and actress Sharmila Tagore making an impression earlier.
‘Dirty Picture’ star Vidya joins ‘Life of Pi’ director Ang Lee at the jury, which will be headed by Hollywood’s Steven Spielberg.
The other big names are Oscar-winners Nicole Kidman and Christophe Waltz, Japanese director Naomi Kawase, Scottish director Lynne Ramsay, French actor-director Daniel Auteuil and Romanian director Cristian Mungiu.
The jury will award the coveted Palme d'Or prize to one of 19 films in competition.
In its 66th year, the festival will run from May 15 to 26. It will open with ‘The Great Gatsby’, which has Amitabh Bachchan in a cameo.
"Vidya Balan on cannes jury... awesome...," director Anurag Kashyap tweeted.
The festival will also showcase India in all its glory as we celebrate 100 years of Indian cinema.
Apart from Vidya, actress Nandita Das is also a part of a separate jury for short films.
Amitabh will attend the opening ceremony, while his daughter-in-law Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has been extended a special invite.