Anasuya Sengupta makes history as First Indian to win Top Acting Award at Cannes Film Festival : Bollywood News

Anasuya Sengupta made history as the first Indian to clinch a prestigious acting accolade at the Cannes Film Festival, securing the Best Actress award in the Un Certain Regard segment. A relatively unknown actress, primarily known for her work as a production designer in Mumbai and residing in Goa, Sengupta's breakthrough came with her compelling portrayal in Bulgarian director Constantin Bojanov's film, The Shameless. Co-starring with renowned actress Mita Vashist, Sengupta's gritty performance captivated audiences and critics alike. Shot across India and Nepal over a month and a half, the film's success further solidifies Sengupta's rising status in the global film industry.

Anasuya Sengupta makes history as First Indian to win Top Acting Award at Cannes Film Festival

Bojanov, an award-winning director, is also Anasuya's Facebook friend. He took her by surprise when he unexpectedly requested her to send an audition tape. That marked the beginning of the Jadavpur University graduate's acting career.

The Kolkata-born debutante actress has previously worked as a production designer on Srijit Mukherjee's Forget Me Not in Netflix's 2021 Satyajit Ray anthology, as well as Masaba Masaba. She portrays Renuka, a vagrant who flees Delhi after being accused with murder and seeks safety in a sex worker colony in northern India.

The plot revolves around Renuka's illegal love affair with a girl named Devika, played by Omara Shetty, who is first barred from sex work due to physical infirmities, but not for long.

Her voice shaking with emotion, and prompting repeated screams and ovation, she concluded her brief victory speech by saying, “We don’t need to be colonised to know how very, very pathetic colonisers are.”

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