This year history was made when filmmaker Payal Kapadia became the first person from India to clinch the prestigious Grand Prix at the 77th Cannes Film Festival. In 1946, Neecha Nagar by Chetan Anand, had also shared top honours at the first Cannes Film Festival and  pioneered  social realism in Indian cinema. 

From what we know, Payal's film also furthers this engagement with lived realities of the unseen and the unheard. Cannes this year also screened a gloriously restored 1976 Shyam Benegal classic 'Manthan', reminding us once again just how intentional and socially responsible our cinema used to be.