Nandita Das Instagram – It seems like my post about Cannes has sparked an unintended debate! It’s amusing how a spontaneous sharing of thoughts and throwback images was perceived to be ‘a dig’! Pointing fingers is a pointless exercise. Things are often more nuanced than we think they are. At such events, men have far less pressure about how they look. They can repeat their tuxedos, and no one will know or care. Whereas women have a much greater burden of looking beautiful, sexy, regal, stylish, stunning, unique etc. etc. Blaming them is overlooking the role each of us plays in perpetuating this disproportionate pressure. The celebrities, the festival, the media and us viewers and readers…we are all complicit. Please read my posts for what they are and not what you think is between the lines! I dislike sitting on judgement just as much as I don’t like to be judged for my choices. Nuances are often lost in short-form communications. For instance, I should not have written that the festival is about films because it is also about conversations and collaborations between filmmakers, storytellers, producers, technicians and film lovers. That was between the lines! A lot of the festival happens outside the Palais, in the informal spaces – in cafes and lobbies and on the Croisette and streets of Cannes. Over the years I have met some incredible minds and made friends that are going to last a lifetime. There is a reason why such events are called ‘festivals’. And in festivals, people are meant to wear festive clothes! As long as we don’t limit ourselves to it or obsess about it, we are doing justice to such experience. I have never had a PR or a personal photographer. So here are some more Cannes candids with people I cherish, meeting and knowing. And memorable events like when 82 women who had a film in Cannes, walked the red carpet, demanding gender parity. @festivaldecannes #filmfestival