Bollywood Stars Appear at Cannes Film Festival

When millions of Americans sit down to watch the Oscars, we are traditionally treated to spectacular celebrity fare, with familiar faces such as Tom Cruise, George Clooney, Julia Roberts, Brad Pitt, and many other household celebrity names.

At the Cannes film festival, you'll find plenty of movie actors and actresses who are easily recognizable and whose names grace the pages of gossip magazines weekly. You'll also find quite a few celebrities you may not immediately be familiar with, despite their large following and undeniable fame.

These are the stars of Bollywood, and Aishwarya Rai is one of the biggest. According an article in the India Daily, this years Cannes film festival held on the French Riviera attracted the largest gathering of Bollywood celebrities so far, with Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai leading the way up the red carpet alongside her husband of one month Abhishek Bachchan.

The Bollywood following in America has been growing steadily stronger as many Americans begin to take note of the fine crop of stylish Indian films and the talented actors and actresses. While Aishwarya Rai is a common household name in many countries, Americans might know her best from her 2004 film "Bride & Prejudice," directed by Gurinder Chadha.

Aishwarya Rai took a short hiatus from filming her latest film, Ashutosh Gowarikers "Jodha Akbar", to appear at the Cannes film festival. Also present were Preity Zinta, promoting jewelry manufacturer Chopard, and John Abraham and Bipasha Basu, who will be promoting "Goal", a film from Bollywood director Vivek Agnihotris. Goal will be featured at Cannes this year, along with "Cheeni Kum", starring major Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan. Amitabh Bachchan will also be at Cannes to promote the film.

Mani Ratnam's Bollywood hit 'Guru' will also be screened at the Cannes film festival as part of a special focus on Bollywood and Indian cinema.