Actor Alia Bhatt may have turned heads during her appearances at the Cannes Film Festival. Still, social media users were quick to speculate that the actor was seemingly “ignored” by international photographers during one of her red carpet outings. Amid the buzz, veteran author and columnist Shobhaa De has taken a sharp dig at Alia’s Cannes look, saying she was waving at her own team.
Shobhaa takes a dig at Alia
Recently, Shobhaa took to Instagram to post a reel talking about the looks and presence of Indian actors at the international film festival. She posted the reel with a caption, “Sorry! This is India’s embarrassing “No Cannes Do” moment…. Just for info : Most major Hollywood biggies stayed away in 2026. Just three worthy filmmakers from India were officially invited. The rest had paid their way to the Festival. Or were there as brand ambassadors.”
In the reel, Shobhaa reacted to the ongoing chatter about Alia being “ignored” by photographers at the film festival, saying the actor’s fashion choices at the festival did not work for her.
Shobhaa started the reel by saying, “Here is the delayed Cannes reel. As you know, there are some things that are a Cannes do, and there are a few things that are a no Cannes do. So, here are a few things I think are a no-Cannes do, especially from the Indian contingent, so desperate to make an impact on that red carpet and not quite cutting it.”
She went on to stress that one can see from the visuals that “our ladies have gone flat out to try and mimic something that they’re not all that comfortable doing”.
Shobhaa shared that one “cannot go there in, what you imagine, is amazing couture and expect anyone to take your pictures because they don’t know who you are.”
“But I must hand it to Alia Bhatt with no one around except maybe her HMU (hair and makeup) team to take her pictures. Maybe she was waving at her own team, blowing kisses to them, hoping that the visuals and the optics, once they were on global Instagram, would present a slightly different picture,” Shobhaa said in her video.
Breaking down her look, Shobhaa mentioned, “Her peachy look, it was an ill-fitting gown. Sorry, didn’t work for me. The overdrape couture that she wore for the India pavilion didn’t work for me. The nath somewhat did, but the nath has been done to death. The other carpet looks in this weather, for heaven’s sake, when it should be something much lighter, much breezier… This is overstating. Didn’t like a single look.”
Shobhaa praises Aishwarya
The author went on to heap praise on Aishwarya Rai, saying that while she may have faced criticism for some of her red carpet looks over the years, there is no denying her immense global appeal and popularity on the international stage.
Shobhaa said, “I’ve had lots of problems with her looks over the years, the purple lipstick, and that hood, but at the end of the day, she’s the only recognisable and recognised star from India on that carpet.”
“These ladies are there not for their achievements in cinema but to push and promote a range of cosmetics and shampoos,” she added.
Shobhaa also spoke about Urvashi Rautela’s presence at the film festival, calling her “lovable”. For her, Joan Collins is the only “star of Cannes this year”.
“She’s there to actually promote a film because that’s what Cannes started as. Not as a fashion show, or a costume ball, but as a serious marketplace for international cinema and discussions… We make the effort only to show up on the red carpet so that fans back home can say ‘oh wow, I love that look’… Like the Met Gala is over, I think the party is over at Cannes too. No style, no substance, but a lot of garam hawa (hot wind),” Shobhaa concluded.
Alia at Cannes
The actor walked the red carpet at the prestigious film festival for the second time, following her 2025 debut. She stunned in a peach gown at the opening ceremony, turned heads in an ivory silk saree-gown at the Bharat Pavilion’s inaugural event, and won hearts with her Cinderella-like blue gown at the screening of La Vie d’Une Femme.
Earlier this week, Alia herself took to social media to give a reply to a troll who commented, “Nobody noticed you”. Alia shared a reel flaunting her regal look in a custom ivory silk saree-gown at the Cannes film festival. In the comments section, a person wrote, “What a pity, no one noticed you,” along with a laughing emoji. However, Alia did not hold back and replied to the comment gracefully. She wrote, “Why pity love? You noticed me :).”
The film festival started on May 12 and will run till May 23.
