Jamshedpur: Maratha Mandir Cinema, a 14-minute short film made by Chaibasa-born author-filmmaker Pankaj Dubey, 39, will be screened at the Festival de Cannes, between May 8 and 19.

Also nominated for a popular Indian film award earlier this year, Maratha Mandir Cinema is Dubey's first film to make it to Cannes in the Short Film Catalog category with entries from across the world.

The film is about a girl, Simran, born and brought up in Mumbai's red light area Kamathipura who finds hope in Bollywood's romantic blockbuster Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge (DDLJ) running for over two decades at nearby theatre Maratha Mandir.

Bollywood actor Sarika plays this girl's foster mother.

Speaking from Mumbai, Dubey said DDLJ's social impact intrigued him. "Many of us think commercial films are only entertaining but somewhere they can change lives. Sex workers in Kamathipura find hope for love from this film. They watch the film every day. I got to learn about it when the Maratha Mandir Trust decided to call off the screening in 2015, leading to a huge outcry after which the film (DDLJ) was reinstated, and it fascinated me," he said.

Dubey said the last dialogue of Amrish Puri, who plays the autocratic father undergoing a change of heart, " Ja puttar ja, jee le apni zindagi" was a liberation chant for sex workers.

The history honours alumnus from the University of Delhi has had stints with BBC and TV Today Network and has authored books published by Penguin India such as What a Loser!, Love Curry and Ishqiyapa - To Hell with Love.

"Though I'm from what people say a sleepy town like Chaibasa, my imagination has brought me to where I am today after my experiences in journalism, broadcasting, curating film festivals, writing books and making films," he said. "I'm looking forward to Festival de Cannes to meet the global film fraternity. Also, France is the birthplace of cinema and Renaissance."