As the world gears up for the 2026 edition of the Cannes Film Festival, beauty giant L’Oréal Paris has sparked online debate after omitting Aishwarya Rai Bachchan from a promotional video released ahead of the event.

The actor, who has long been associated with the brand at Cannes, was noticeably absent from the campaign clip. The video shared on the brand’s Instagram account showed promotional posters being installed across a hotel building in Cannes, featuring stars including Alia Bhatt, Viola Davis, Eva Longoria and Helen Mirren. The caption read: “And action! The most iconic facade in Cannes is getting its festival look.”

Social media users quickly reacted to the omission, flooding the brand’s comments section with questions about why Aishwarya was not featured. Widely regarded as one of the brand’s most recognisable ambassadors at Cannes, she has represented India at the festival for more than three decades.

Following the backlash, L’Oréal Paris confirmed that Aishwarya, Alia Bhatt and Aditi Rao Hydari will represent India at Cannes this year.

Aishwarya became a global ambassador for L’Oréal in 2003 and has attended Cannes with the brand more than 20 times, making her one of the festival’s most familiar red carpet faces.