Akshay Kumar tests positive for COVID-19, will not attend Cannes Film Festival 2022

Akshay Kumar took to his social media to announce that he has tested positive for the Coronavirus. The actor, who was set to grace the red carpet of the Cannes Film Festival 2022 in France, will now sit out on the event. The 54-year-old was set to represent India at the grand film festival. 

Akshay Kumar tests positive for COVID-19, will not attend Cannes 2022

Taking to his official Twitter handle, he made the announcement and also sent best wishes to the Indian continent which will represent the country in France. He also mentioned the Union Minister of Information & Broadcasting, Youth Affairs and Sports Anurag Thakur and stated that he will 'really miss' being at Cannes 2022. 

Akshay Kumar tweeted, ''Was really looking forward to rooting for our cinema at the India Pavilion at #Cannes2022, but have sadly tested positive for Covid. Will rest it out. Loads of best wishes to you and your entire team,@ianuragthakur. Will really miss being there.''

Cannes Film Festival 2022

As per PTI, actor Pooja Hegde, filmmaker Shekhar Kapur and music maestro AR Rahman are set to grace the red carpet on the opening day of the Cannes film festival 2022 in France. Touted as one of the biggest film festivals, the event is set to take place from May 17 to May 28. Moreover, actor Deepika Padukone will represent India at Cannes 2022 as part of the jury.

Apart from the strong presence of the Indian contingent at the festival, Union Minister Anurag Thakur announced that five startups will be pitched to the audio-visual industry for Cannes 2022. As reported by ANI, Union Minister Anurag Thakur talked about the significance of the film festival by stating, ''Our branding in Cannes will have only one focus that is India is the content hub of the world. This will bring business to the country. Our rich filmmaking, and heritage all will be shown.''

R Madhavan's upcoming biographical film Rocketry: The Nambi Effect will be premiered at the festival. The Union Minister also stated, ''India which is known as the world's largest filmmaker, many from the entertainment industries will be attending Cannes Film Festival this year. Our focus will be to pitch India as the content creator of the world. We will show the type of films in Cannes that will showcase India's strength in content.''

Image: Instagram/@akshaykumarr_