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Filmmaker Shekhar Kapur on Cannes, Cate Blanchett & more.

A sense of déjà vu has enveloped filmmaker Shekhar Kapur. It’s his fourth outing at the French Riviera but first in more ways than one — for it’s only this time that he’ll get to play the ringmaster at the hottest French film festival.Waltzing into the prestigious Cannes International Film Festival as a member of the Feature Film Jury, Kapur is in a pleasant state of mind.

“I’ve taken three films to Cannes in the past, but being on the jury will be a different experience. Just that I’m too bad with dressing up, and that’s what’s bothering me,” he says with a chuckle.A self-confessed fashion disaster and director of films such as Masoom, Elizabeth and Bandit Queen, hopes his good friend and Hollywood actress Cate Blanchett was here to bail him out.

“She (Cate) was horrified when I told her that for two decades I’ve only worn clothes designed by a Maharashtrian designer named Suresh. She helped me get dressed for a gala a few years ago, and Suresh didn’t like it,” recalls Kapur.

While the filmmaking genius is expecting friends to help him figure out the “kurta pyjama and other designer stuff” to sport at the French fiesta, he’ll miss his daughter while there. “She’s just the best travelled kid you’ll ever meet. I love to see the world through her eyes but Cannes isn’t the place for her,” he says.Kapur, who’s busy working on his futuristic film, Paani, which he initially wanted to screen at Cannes, says the fest is all for Indian films with a meaning.

“Films such as Udaan, Love Sex Aur Dhokha and Aamir boast of international appeal. The last few years has seen many talented Indian directors being lauded for their films at foreign film fests. Cannes is a great place to be... only if you’re looking for business. Young, experimental filmmakers should hold private screenings there to lear more about the craft,” he points out.