Kambakkht Ishq team not going to Cannes

Last week we reported that Akshay Kumar and Kareena Kapoor, the lead pair of "Kambakkht Ishq", were to walk the red carpet with Sylvester Stallone at the Cannes Film Festival starting on May 13.

Producer Sajid Nadiadwala has now announced that his “Kambakkht Ishq” lead actors will no longer attend the Cannes Film Festival. This is a side effect of the ongoing crisis caused by the producers and distributors vs multiplexes conflict.

"Because of the strike and embargo thereof on new releases in multiplexes, we are not allowed to screen any trailers anywhere or release audio cassettes of new releases. For Cannes, we needed to be there for the worldwide coverage of our trailers which would also be aired on Indian TV channels. But now, we can't release trailers of upcoming releases, so there's no point in going to Cannes," said Sajid.

“This would have been my first trip to Cannes. Akshay, Kareena and I were really looking forward to our trip and to walking the red carpet. But these are minor disappointments compared to the larger picture where everyone in the film industry benefits. Ultimately we all belong to the same family and no personal interest is above the interests of all," added Sajid.

The “Kambakkht Ishq” team was also due to perform at the IPL finals on May 24 in Johannesberg, South Africa, but that too has been cancelled because of the strike.

Meanwhile, one person who will surely be in Cannes during the film festival is Arjun Rampal.

The beverage company, for which he shot an ad for with Nicole Kidman recently, is taking him to Cannes for a day on May 15. He’ll be flown there on a helicopter from Paris and will be put up at a luxury villa.

Also scheduled to attend the Cannes Film Festival are Hrithik and Rakesh Roshan, and Mexican actress Barbara Mori. They will be promoting their upcoming film “Kites”. It remains to be seen whether their plans too will get affected because of the strike.