Jun 29, 2026 2:01pm IST
SS Rajamouli Overwhelmed as Costa-Gavrás, 93,Watches ‘Baahubali: The Beginning’ and ‘RRR’ Over 8 Hours
Filmmaker SS Rajamouli has earned a permanent place at the Cinémathèque Française, one of the world's biggest film archives and a French non-profit organization founded by film archivist Henri Langlois. While the honor is a big one for the “RRR” maker, what truly overwhelmed him was that Oscar-winning filmmaker Costa-Gavrás stayed back for more than eight hours to watch "RRR' and "Baahubali."
Cinémathèque Française held screenings of his movies, which was followed by a masterclass from SS Rajamouli. Costa-Gavrás, 93, stayed on for eight hours to watch his films and hear Rajamouli’s speech. The Indian filmmaker and his family took to social media to acknowledge the recognition shown by Costa-Gavrás.
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Sharing his reaction on X, Rajamouli wrote, “Having me here in Paris and screening my films is itself an honor. But a sweet surprise I never saw coming. It is a feeling I cannot fully put into words. To have a permanent place in the halls of one of the world’s most legendary film institutions, named after the great Henri Langlois himself is something I will carry with me forever. My deepest gratitude to the legendary Mr. Costa Gavrás and the entire Cinémathèque Française family for this honor and for embracing Indian cinema with such warmth and love.”
SS Rajamouli’s son, SS Karthikeya said Costa-Gavrás and his wife stayed on to watch “RRR” and “Baahubali” back-to-back. It seems he had finished watching “RRR” and later returned with his wife for the “Baahubali: The Beginning” screening.
The Cinematheque Francaise founded by Henri Langlois in 1936, celebrates filmmakers from all over the world. The event was supported by the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne and the Ministry of External Affairs.
In his career, SS Rajamouli has made movies like “Chatrapathi,” (2005), “Magadheera,” (2009), “Eega,” (2012) and the worldwide blockbusters “Baahubali,” (2015) and “RRR” (2022). He is now busy with “Varanasi,” that stars Mahesh Babu, Priyanka Chopra and Prithviraj Sukumaran in lead roles.
The 93-year-old filmmaker of Greek-French origin is known for his classics like “Z” (1969) and “Missing” (1982).
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