Cannes participation is a proud moment for Pakistan, says Mahira Khan

One of Pakistan’s leading showbiz stars Mahira Khan is heading to the world-famed Cannes Film Festival as a hair care spokesperson for an international cosmetic group - L’Oreal Paris.

She was appointed its brand ambassador last year and though L’Oreal has recently completed a decade in Pakistan this is the first time that the brand has invited a Pakistani actress to Cannes.

Announcing this, managing director of L’Oreal Pakistan (Private) Limited, Musharaf Hai said: “This year, we announced Mahira Khan as the local spokesperson for our hair care brand and she is certainly a very credible name; an internationally celebrated television and film actor and a strong advocate for women’s empowerment. The converging factor which has led to this joint representation of L’Oreal Paris and Pakistan is the current revival of cinema, with local movies like ‘Verna’, ‘Punjab Nahi Jaungi’ and ‘Cake’ winning nationwide and international acclaim.”

While speaking at a media conference here on Tuesday, Musharaf revealed Mahira Khan’s schedule according to which she will be attending the festival for three days. She will be meeting with fashion designers and the L’Oreal Paris Global Makeup and Hair Styling team of Stephane Lancien as well as giving interviews to mainstream media like the BBC TV (UK), ISHQ (Germany) and the Associated Press TV (UK).

Seven shows titled the Worth It Show will be broadcast at the festival by L’Oreal Paris, unveiling the ordinary woman behind an actress’ star persona. Mahira will be featuring in one of these interviews.

Mahira will also walk the red carpet on May 15 along with its other official representatives from other countries. These include the likes of Julianne Moore, Jane Fonda, Eva Longoria, Penelope Cruz, and also her Indian counterparts - Sonam Kapoor, Ashwariya Rai Bachchan and Deepika Padukone.

Musharaf further said on the occasion, “Mahira is a role model for young women in Pakistan and her appearance at Cannes is just the beginning to showcase Pakistani talent globally. It’s an honour to stand shoulder to shoulder with such big names and I’m sure Mahira will excel at it!”

He said it is just the beginning, in the future, fashion designers and film actors could well be invited for Pakistani representation at the festival.

The Pakistan starlet also spoke at the conference and said, “I feel like I am a player going abroad to play for Pakistan but I am playing all alone. I am very nervous. This is a proud moment for Pakistan and hopefully it will open more doors for us.”

Replying to a question, Mahira said that she had no idea what she would wear at the festival. However, she said that she would definitely be herself.