Amul Celebrates Shyam Benegal’s ‘Manthan’ Shines at 77th Edition of Cannes Film Festival 2024

The ongoing 77th edition of the Cannes Film Festival witnessed a proud moment for Indian cinema with the screening of Shyam Benegal’s classic film ‘Manthan’ on Friday evening. Inspired by the pioneering milk cooperative movement led by Verghese Kurien, ‘Manthan’ was originally released in 1976 and stars the late actors Smita Patil and Naseeruddin Shah. Kurien, the visionary social entrepreneur behind ‘Operation Flood’, transformed India from a milk-deficient nation into the world’s largest producer of milk and dairy products and founded the billion-dollar brand ‘Amul’.

The film, which immortalizes this revolutionary transformation, is considered a golden chapter in the history of Indian cinema. The screening at Cannes was attended by Naseeruddin Shah, his wife Ratna Pathak Shah, Prateik Babbar (son of Smita Patil), Nirmala Kurien (daughter of Verghese Kurien), Anita Patil Deshmukh and Manya Patil Seth (sisters of Smita Patil), and Dr. Jayen Mehta, Managing Director of the Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd., which produced the film.

Praise has poured in from all corners to celebrate ‘Manthan’s’ Cannes premiere. Amul India, known for its creative advertisements, honored the feat with a signature doodle featuring the Amul girl representing Smita Patil, holding a glass of milk and bread with butter. The doodle read, “Humara makhan, humara manthan…Amul Toast of Cannes.” Social media users reacted positively, with comments like “Hahah love the way Amul celebrates all the achievements” and “Manthan, the churning.”

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Ahead of the film’s screening, Dr. Jayen Mehta and Nirmala Kurien highlighted Amul’s significant role at the Bharat Pavilion, revealing the cooperative’s support in bringing ‘Manthan’ back to the big screen and their unique involvement in the film’s production. ‘Manthan,’ set in Gujarat, was the first Indian film entirely crowdfunded by 500,000 farmers who donated Rs. 2 each. The script, co-written by Kurien and Vijay Tendulkar, won two National Film Awards in 1977 for Best Feature Film in Hindi and Best Screenplay. It was also India’s official entry to the 1976 Academy Awards in the Best Foreign Language Film category.

The restored version of ‘Manthan,’ by the Film Heritage Foundation, premiered at Cannes, adding another feather to its illustrious cap. Images of the ‘Manthan’ team walking the iconic red carpet have been widely shared, celebrating this historic moment.

The Cannes Film Festival 2024, which opened on May 14, will run until May 25.