Bollywood brigade heading to Cannes

The Indian film industry is usually well-represented at the Cannes Film Festival, and this year is expected to be no different. The Cannes International Film Festival red carpet is not indifferent to a Bollywood presence and this time again a number of celebrities, including Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Arjun Rampal and Bipasha Basu are likely to attend the gala, to be held from May 16-27. Rampal is expected to make an appearance at the forthcoming 65th Cannes International Film Festival as the ambassador of Chivas, the official partner of the event. He is likely to be accompanied by his designer friend Rohit Bal. The actor had recently expressed a desire to showcase his upcoming film Heroine at the festival. "I would love to be [a part of Cannes]. That is a film that deserves to be there. If Heroine can be showcased there, it will be great," he said. Directed by Madhur Bhandarkar and co-produced by him and Ronnie Screwvala, the film has Kareena Kapoor and Rampal in the lead roles. Randeep Hooda and Shahana Goswami will also be seen in pivotal roles.Heroine was announced with Bachchan at the festival last year. But she opted out of the film due to her pregnancy. However, to keep her red carpet tradition alive, Bachchan is most likely to grace the French film festival again this time. She has been attending since 2002 as the global face of L'Oreal. Like Bachchan, Mallika Sherawat has been a regular on the Cannes red carpet, but whether she will attend the gala this year or not is still a mystery. Basu may also attend the festival to promote her debut international movie, Singularity. Based on the first Anglo-Maratha war in 18th century colonial India, this romantic movie also marks the Hollywood debut of actor Abhay Deol. This is not the first time that Basu will be attending the festival. In 2007, she walked the red carpet to promote her film Dhan Dhana Dhan Goal, along with her co-star and her then-boyfriend John Abraham. Directed by Roland Joffe, Singularity has been lined up to be showcased at the festival as part of a promotional drive. The year 2009 saw Karan Johar attending the festival to represent a lifestyle brand. The subsequent year saw Deepika Padukone making her presence felt in traditional Indian wear as the face of a liquor brand. In 2011, Sonam Kapoor, Minissha Lamba and Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra walked the red carpet. While Kapoor and Lamba were representing the brands they endorse, Mehra's docu-drama Bollywood — The Greatest Love Story Ever Told was screened at the event. From: Gulfnews