Filmmaker SS Rajamouli is currently on a break from the Varanasi shoot for his tour of Europe. The director, whose films RRR and the Baahubali franchise have found audiences across the world, has been honoured at the prestigious Institut Lumière in Lyon, France. The director was inducted into the institute’s ‘Wall of Filmmakers’ for his body of work. Rajamouli visited the Lumière Museum in Lyon, where his name was permanently added to the Mur des Cinéastes (Wall of Filmmakers), placing him alongside legends like Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino.
SS Rajamouli receives special honour in France
SS Rajamouli took to his X account to share a note on the special moment. It read, “Visited the Lumière Museum and the screening room where Eega and RRR was screened to a full house in Lyon, France. Thierry Frémaux, the director of the Institut Lumière and the Cannes Film Festival, was gracious enough to introduce me. Then he said he had planned a surprise and walked me through the very street where cinema was born. I was already emotional for everything that was happening around me.”
He went on to add, “And there is this wall full of plaques. Names of legends like Martin Scorsese, Clint Eastwood, Quentin Tarantino, Francis Ford Coppola… and then I noticed a plate covered with a red cloth. My mind went blank. I don’t even know what to say for the honour of having my name permanently placed on the Mur des Cinéastes, along with the greats.”
“Only gratitude. Deeply, deeply humbled. Thank you @InstitutLumiere for a memory I will carry for a lifetime,” he concluded.
SS Karthikeya reacts
Rajamouli’s son, SS Karthikeya, who is also accompanying him on the trip to France took to his X account and shared a note to celebrate his father. He wrote, “One after another – after the French Cinematheque, this time where CINEMA was born, Institut Lumiére, LYON! Just to have his films EEGA & RRR screen at the place where the first shot using a cinematograph was EVER shot is so overwhelming and SSR being honouring with a plaque on their wall amongst the greats is the most emotional moment!”
He added, “Listening to people say that they are discovering Indian cinema through his films and exploring Indian stories and culture is so gratifying! Such a satisfying and full filing trip! @ssrajamouli have really come a looong way and really excited and looking forward to the loooong journey ahead, Baba!”
About SS Rajamouli’s Varanasi
Varanasi is one of the most anticipated Indian films in recent years. Rajamouli recently revealed that the film’s major action sequences have already been completed, with shooting expected to wrap up by October. The film, starring Mahesh Babu, Priyanka Chopra and Prithviraj Sukumaran, is slated for a theatrical release in April 2027.
