Deepali Singh (DNA; May 19, 2019)

Huma Qureshi sounded excited, but a tad tired when we recently spoke to her over the phone. “It’s exhausting to try out so many clothes!” she said. The Kaala actress was getting ready to fly off to the French Riviera for the 72nd Cannes Film Festival that night, but before that, a large part of her day had been spent in trial sessions. After all, she had to sport gorgeous ensembles for the several events that she was expected to attend. “It’s a dream,” she admitted, adding that she had always wanted to go to Cannes. “I have grown up seeing all these stunning pictures of beautiful actresses walking down the red carpet. This is my third visit there and I’m looking forward to it,” she exclaimed.

Last year, she shone in a Nikhil Thampi bespoke suit, lined with platinum metal chips and stood out in the sea of evening gowns. This time, for the Chopard party on Friday, the actress wore a stunning suede-wool blend blazer with tulle and chantilly lace by Nauman Piyarji. When we asked her what will she don on the red carpet today, she replied, “Expect the unexpected!” Just like her acting projects? “I’d like to think so!” she laughed. Over to Huma...

The first time you had visited Cannes Film Festival was in 2012 for the screening of Gangs Of Wasseypur. Do you remember how it felt?
I was nervous and excited at the same time. Of course, going to the festival is great and the fashion is amazing, but I’m an actor first and if your film is screened there, it’s reason to feel exhilarated. That’s why my first visit was extremely special. It was for my debut film and we were at Cannes, so I was over the moon!

It must be an honour to represent India on a global platform...
It’s a huge honour for me and for any actor. We’re living in such interesting times where more and more people are turning towards India for our content. We have fans all over the world. Cannes is so prestigious — it’s a festival where you celebrate art for art itself. It’s the best of world cinema on such a vast platform and everybody comes forward to support it. As an actor, I have always thought of picking scripts or doing films that have a certain kind of content/resonance. Hence, to go to a festival like this feels like a natural extension of who I am. I always want to be seen as someone who can look nice but at the same time, be capable of pulling off a powerful role. I don’t think there should be any demarcations.

Apart from movies, all eyes are on this event for its fashion quotient as well. How do you balance people’s expectations while maintaining your individualistic style? 
You can’t please everyone. You have to live your life by your rules and be your own person. Also, the more I think about it, I wonder what are we, as actors and role models, saying to others? Are we telling them to be clones of each other, wherein everyone looks the same and even talks about the same things? If you don’t celebrate individuality, uniqueness and diversity, what is the purpose of this? If somebody is good at something, I might be good at something else. Why should you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree? As far as cinema or fashion choices are concerned, I always want to do something that is individual to me. Last year, I barely had any time to prepare. I was keen to sport something minimal in the sea of gowns. I wanted to don something sharp and sleek, and Nikhil Thampi made a beautiful pant suit for me. It was quite heavy — I was walking like a robot on those high steps (laughs)! But these experiences are special because many people asked me about the outfit and that felt nice.

Do you follow the fashion at Cannes or look forward to what your contemporaries in Bollywood are wearing?
I admire all my colleagues and feel they make such cool and brave choices in fashion. All of us keep pushing ourselves and that’s healthy competition!

Is there anyone in particular you admire in that regard? 
I think Sonam Kapoor (aka Sonam K Ahuja) should be awarded for what she has done over the past many years at Cannes and fashion in general. Before that, styling was limited to films. But she has inspired so many others with her sartorial choices. She puts in a lot of effort in what she does and that’s commendable. Kudos to her! I’d like to know what she is wearing this year at Cannes.


Huma Qureshi in a Nauman Piyarji creation