SS Rajamouli honoured at France's Lumière Museum

LYON (FRANCE): Filmmaker S.S. Rajamouli has added another international honour to his name after receiving a plaque on the prestigious Wall of Filmmakers (Mur des Cinéastes)at the Institut Lumière in Lyon, France, joining the ranks of some of cinema's greatest directors.His name now features alongside renowned filmmakers such as Martin Scorsese, Clint Eastwood and Quentin Tarantino among others.

Sharing the milestone on social media the RRR director described the recognition as an overwhelming and emotional experience.

"Thierry Frémaux, the director of the Institut Lumière and the Cannes Film Festival, was gracious enough to introduce me. Then he said he had planned a surprise and walked me through the very street where cinema was born... There is this wall full of plaques. Names of legends like Martin Scorsese, Clint Eastwood, Quentin Tarantino, Francis Ford Coppola... and then I noticed a plate covered with a red cloth. My mind went blank," Rajamouli wrote.

Expressing his gratitude, he added, "I don't even know what to say for the honour of having my name permanently placed on the Mur des Cinéastes, along with the greats. Only gratitude. Deeply, deeply humbled. Thank you, Institut Lumière, for a memory I will carry for a lifetime."

The filmmaker also revealed that he visited the Lumière Museum and the screening room where his films Eega and RRR were screened to packed audiences in Lyon.

This marks yet another prestigious recognition for the Baahubali filmmaker in France. Earlier, Rajamouli was honoured with a permanent seat bearing his name at the Cinémathèque Française in Paris in recognition of his contribution to world cinema.

Rajamouli is currently working on his much-anticipated next film, tentatively titled Varanasi , starring Mahesh Babu, with Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Prithviraj Sukumaran reportedly playing key roles.