Neeraj Ghaywan meets his ‘inspiration’ Spike Lee; Ishaan Khatter, Zoya Akhtar react. See Pic

Director Neeraj Ghaywan is over the moon as he met his inspiration, none other than Hollywood legend filmmaker Spike Lee, at the Cannes Film Festival. The Masaan filmmaker took to his social media and posted a picture with Spike, and his Bollywood friends definitely could not keep calm.

(Also read: Aishwarya Rai touches down in France for Cannes Film Festival with daughter Aaradhya. Watch)

When Neeraj met Spike Lee

Neeraj got a chance to not only meet but also talk with Malcolm X director who has inspired his filmmaking journey. Neeraj took to his Instagram and posted the picture which a caption that read, “Chatted with @officialspikelee! Do The Right Thing, Malcom X and Blackkklansman have been a huge inspiration to me. His oeuvre is a lesson in talking about oppression through cinema. More power to you.”

Bollywood reacts

As soon as Neeraj dropped his picture with the legendary filmmaker, Bollywood rushed in to comment on the post. Ishaan Khatter, who is starring in Neeraj’s Homebound, reacted with fire emojis. Filmmaker Zoya Akhtar also commented with all her love through heart and fire emojis. Actor Richa Chaddha could not believe and commented, “whaaaaaa🔥”. Actor Shweta Tripathi, who acted in Neeraj’s Masaan, also could not keep calm as she commented, “Shataaaaaaaaaaaap!!! 😍😍😍”. Actor Kayoze Irani commented with hearts on the filmmaker’s post.

Why Spike Lee and Neeraj Ghaywan are in Cannes

Filmmaker Spike Lee’s latest film, Highest 2 Lowest, starring Denzel Washington and rapper A$AP Rocky, premiered at the French film festival on May 19. The film is Spike’s adaptation of Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa’s 1963 crime thriller High and Low. 

Meanwhile, Neeraj is all set for the world premiere of his film Homebound on May 21 as part of the Un Certain Regard section at Cannes. The film follows the story of two childhood friends in a North Indian village and features Janhvi Kapoor, Ishaan Khatter, and Vishal Jethwa in the lead roles. Dharma Productions, Apoorva Mehta, and Adar Poonawalla produced the project.

Source

Press Room May 20, 2025