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Payal Kapadia Wins Prestigious 2026 CHANEL Next Prize for Filmmaking Excellence
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News18•23-09-2026, 18:15
Payal Kapadia Wins Prestigious 2026 CHANEL Next Prize for Filmmaking Excellence
- •Filmmaker Payal Kapadia has been named one of the 10 winners of the 2026 CHANEL Next Prize, a biennial award celebrating contemporary artists who are redefining their disciplines.
- •Kapadia is the sole filmmaker among this year's recipients, recognized for her groundbreaking work including her debut feature ‘All We Imagine as Light’ which won the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival.
- •The CHANEL Next Prize awards 100,000 euros in unrestricted funding to each recipient to support ambitious new projects, along with a two-year mentorship and networking program.
- •Kapadia's film ‘All We Imagine as Light’ was the first Indian film in 30 years to compete for the Palme d’Or at Cannes and the first to win the Grand Prix.
- •Other 2026 winners span various artistic fields including music, visual art, performance, and design, from countries like the US, Nigeria, Portugal, and China.
Key Questions Answered
Each recipient of the 2026 CHANEL Next Prize receives 100,000 euros in unrestricted funding to support the development of ambitious new projects, along with a two-year mentorship and networking program.
Payal Kapadia's debut feature film "All We Imagine as Light," which explores female friendship and longing in Mumbai, won the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival.
Payal Kapadia returned to Cannes in 2025 to serve on the main competition jury and was later named President of the jury for the 65th edition of Cannes Critics' Week in May 2026.
