For a week in May, Cannes, a resort town on the French Riviera, comes alive as the who’s who of the film world flock to the Cannes Film Festival. This year, among the film stars, directors and producers walking on the red carpet, was city-based lifestyle content creator Simran Balar Jain. Recalling the days leading up to her red carpet debut and the preparations that went into it, she says, “The days leading up to Cannes were an emotional rollercoaster. While it may look glamorous from the outside, behind the scenes there was a lot of pressure. More than anything, I was mentally preparing.”
Despite being a premier film festival at its core, over the years, celeb outfits worn at the Cannes red carpet have been scrutinised thoroughly. To measure up to the occasion, Jain wore an outfit by up and coming designer Kavya Tamboli of the brand Sculpture, which uses upcycled materials to create sculpture-like garments. Before this, Tamboli had also dressed attendees at London Fashion Week. The black and gold custom gown itled ‘The Cage Breaker’ was meant to represent Jain’s journey; as she explains, “When I was born, many people – even within my own family – were disappointed that I was a girl. Growing up, I was constantly told to follow rules and stay within boundaries that were never meant for me. This outfit symbolises that cage, and how I broke free from it. The golden mesh represents the restrictions placed on women, and the silhouette shows one woman lifting another – because that’s what I believe in. We rise by lifting each other up.”
Reflecting on her time at Cannes, Jain says that one of the highlights for her was watching Joaquin Phoenix and Pedro Pascal starrer Eddington ahead of its upcoming theatrical release. Apart from soaking in the films, Jain plans to kick back and enjoy the beauty of France for the next few days, saying, “I want to soak in this energy, minus the chaos. Cannes has so much more to offer beyond the red carpet – the old town, hidden cafés, vintage boutiques, sunrise at the beach… and maybe even a yacht shoot or two.”