Several Indian films made their debut at Cannes this year, with “Sunflowers Were the First Ones to Know” and “Bunnyhood” clinching awards yesterday, while “All We Imagine as Light” top honor nomination.
As we eagerly awaited the Palme d’Or ceremony on May 25, hoping for Payal Kapadia’s “All We Imagine as Light” to triumph, we celebrated the success of two Indian films showcased at Cannes 2024. “Sunflowers Were the First Ones to Know” claimed the first prize, while “Bunnyhood” secured the third prize in the La Cinef Selection.
Directed by Chidananda S Naik, a student at The Film and Television Institute of India, “Sunflowers Were the First Ones to Know” is a 15-minute film delving into themes of destiny, faith, and human desperation. The trailer initiates with a group of men gazing skyward as a voice in Kannada narrates, “One fine morning, the village rooster didn’t crow at all,” setting a tone of intrigue. The trailer offers glimpses without revealing much, leaving viewers unsettled as hooded figures traverse a forest, their lanterns casting an eerie glow, evoking a sense of mystery and anticipation.
The men in the trailer gaze skyward in search of the sun in “Sunflowers Were the First Ones to Know,” a film based on a Kannada folktale where a woman steals the village’s prized rooster, casting perpetual darkness. Directed by Naik, the film, shot entirely at night, evokes both intrigue and foreboding.
Although the folktale is well-known in Karnataka, Naik found that it was unfamiliar to many outside the state. In an interview with The Hindu, he expressed his aspiration to bring Indian myths and folktales to the screen, hoping they become as common in conversations as Greek philosophy.
For Naik, being recognized by Cannes and winning top honors was a hard-won victory, especially considering he was advised against making the film. Despite having only four days to shoot, the 29-year-old director persisted, driven by childhood memories and a desire to share these stories.
Don’t be misled by the title “Bunnyhood”; Mansi Maheshwari’s film leans heavily into the “evil bunny” archetype. The animated trailer, which secured third place at Cannes 2024, feels like a surreal acid trip, unsettling viewers from the start. It opens with a mother’s announcement to her daughter about a visit to Big Patties, accompanied by jarring guitar riffs and scratchy illustrations. The scene quickly transitions into a nightmarish scenario as looming, malevolent figures transform into bunnies and administer a needle to the girl.
Maheshwari, originally from Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, drew inspiration for Bunnyhood from a childhood incident where her mother lied about undergoing appendix surgery. This early encounter with deceit left a lasting impression, prompting Maheshwari to explore themes of lies and their consequences in her film. She meticulously crafted each frame to resemble a vintage flyer, drawing them on A5 sheets with a ballpoint pen and scanning them at her film school in England. Despite the extensive paper usage, Maheshwari’s Cannes accolade validates her creative endeavor. She expressed her passion for animation and her desire to blend horror and comedy in Bunnyhood, emphasizing the project’s experimental nature and the freedom it provided for creative exploration.
Alongside “All We Imagine as Light,” “Sunflowers Were the First Ones to Know,” and “Bunnyhood,” several other Indian films premiered at Cannes 2024, showcasing a diverse range of stories and talents. These include “Santosh” by British-Indian filmmaker Sandhya Suri, featuring Shahana Goswami; “Manthan” by Shyam Benegal, a classic winner of the National Film Award in 1976; “Sister Midnight” directed by Karan Kandhari and starring Radhika Apte; “In Retreat” by Syed Maisam Ali Shah; “The Shameless,” directed by Konstantin Bojanov but set in India and Nepal; and “Kooki,” a Hindi film from Assam directed by Pranab J. Deka. Notably, Anasuya Sengupta made history as the first Indian to win Best Actress at Cannes for her role in “The Shameless,” portraying a sex worker on the run after killing a cop. It’s undeniably a remarkable year for India and its filmmakers, marking a significant presence at the world’s most prestigious film festival.
